Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Companies Optimistic Despite Investment Decline

Inflation, higher interest rates, decreased availability of research and development funding, and supply chain problems were among pharmaceutical and medical device companies’ concerns in a survey conducted for the report.

Within this sector, 48% of companies expressed supply chain improvements, while 19% indicated it is worsening.

European (mostly German, Italian, and Swiss) machinery companies have traditionally had strong penetration in this sector, with a smaller representation of Japanese and American companies. Users reported problems finding suppliers in Europe able to commit to delivery dates.

Pharmaceutical machinery purchase origins

Most pharmaceutical and medical device companies have purchased machinery from outside the U.S. in recent years.PMMI Business Intelligence: 2023 Purchasing Plans and PrioritiesThe trend of buying machinery from outside the U.S. has continued in recent years in the pharmaceutical and medical device sector. Over half (57%) of survey respondents indicated they purchased machinery from outside the U.S. between 2021 and 2022. Another 19% of respondents were not sure where their machinery was manufactured, leaving about a quarter (24%) of respondents that have only bought North American machinery in recent years.

Within the pharmaceutical sector, safety and flexibility ranked higher as operational priorities than in any other industry, and those topics were frequently discussed in post-survey interviews.

“Pharma and medical device companies need to comply with Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) and industry-specific regulations,” one survey interviewee says. “Most have controlled environments and strict documentation and quality control requirements. Thus, only a few pre-qualified vendors can participate in our purchasing processes.” 

Survey respondent recommendations for packaging machinery companies in this sector were diverse, ranging from providing spare parts, to lower prices, total cost of ownership, and service.

The most common recommendation was to provide faster spare parts delivery. Some of the respondents indicated they would like to see faster response times when they require a part or component that is not considered part of a regular maintenance program.

SOURCE: PMMI Business Intelligence, “2023 Purchasing Plans and Priorities”

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