World Monitor Mag, Industrial Overview WM_November_2018_WEB_Version | Page 35

EXPERT OPINION
of the country's economy; secondly, we
do not just supply medicines, being the
flagship of domestic pharmaceutical in-
dustry, but also we are reliable partners
of the Ministry of Health for promising
projects that are important for the de-
velopment of domestic healthcare. For
example, last year alone, together with
the Republican Centre for Health Develop-
ment of the Ministry of Health of RK, we
held a series of seminars featuring par-
ticipation of an international expert on
the evaluation of medical technologies.
It is rather difficult to develop an expert
service, since this task requires signifi-
cant investments. Our initiative has be-
come a popular partner project, covering
the most current direction.
Speaking about the scale of
SANTO, you mentioned the plant
in Shymkent. We know that the
company is making investments in
its development. How do you think
the investments improve the work
of the enterprise and what are the
achievements?
I would like to note that the plant
in Shymkent is probably the most
modern pharmaceutical site in the
country. It is quite unique, because
there are productions there that have
no analogues throughout the Central
Asian region. Since 2011, from the
date of the investor’s arrival, the
company does not actually have a
single old production site left. Starting
in 2014, almost every year, we launch
new production in accordance with
the standards of good manufacturing
practice cGMP. Today, the plant has
six production zones: injectables in
ampoules; infusion preparations in
bottles; two production of powder
antibiotics; the production of solid
dosage forms and another new
project that we launched this spring
is the production of non-sterile
solutions. Imagine that in a territory
of 17 hectares completely different
areas are concentrated. All specified
production lines are new projects that
have been completed because of the
investments of the Polpharma Group.
The construction and modernization
of sites required an $84 million
investment, infrastructure preparation,
excluding the costs of personnel
training, technology transfer, and the
introduction of standards. Today the
plant is not only new production, but
first of all people who receive advanced
experience here.
Now we are in the sixth stage of the
investment program, which by 2023
could exceed $108 million. In 2019, we
are planning to create a new site for the
production of solid dosage forms using wet
granulation. We already have a new solid
drugs production plant that we launched
last year, but a different technology
is being used there. A huge laboratory
modernization project has been planned.
The existing modern laboratory of the
scientific research institute was created
during the first stage of the investment
program. We are starting a project to
create and modernize a microbiology
and quality control laboratory complex.
This is also an investment project that
supported by EUROBAK
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