Company Watch

Accutest Lab expands Ahmedabad clinical research operations

Our News Bureau - Mumbai

Accutest Research Laboratories, a full service clinical research organisation with core strengths in bioequivalence/bioavailability and pharmacokinetic studies and formulation development, inaugurated its second facility, a clinical trial laboratory at Ahmedabad, with an investment of Rs 7 crore. Accutest has clients from India, as well as US, Europe, South Africa and Japan on its board. Dr Nirav Gandhi, Vice-President, Accutest says, "Accutest has been functioning at Ahmedabad since 2005. Within a short span of two years, it has expanded to its independent new facility at Ahmedabad. Accutest Ahmedabad will function as an independent CRO with a state-of-the-art analytical lab, in-house pathology lab, quality assurance, regulatory affairs and quality compliance, documentation and report preparation."

Gandhi says, "Its infrastructure consists of clinical pharmacology unit, bio-analytical and in-house pathology lab. It is the first centre in India to have API-5000 LCMS/MS machines for research. A combined investment of Rs 22 crore has been made in two facilities at Ahmedabad." The existing centres at Ahmedabad have been successfully audited by USFDA and WHO. "The CRO market in India has been growing at a fast pace since 2001 and is expected to cross the US$ one billion mark by 2010 from US $200 million in the year 2006, with almost 50 percent growth every year. There is a huge potential untapped for India as currently India accounts for less than five percent of global clinical trials. And since Gujarat has the maximum number of pharmaceutical manufacturing units, Accutest targets to capture a major share of the CRO market by 2010 through its Gujarat operations," says Dr Santosh Joshi, COO and Director, Accutest Labs.

"Accutest has grown almost 60 percent every year since last three years and expects to continue on its high growth trajectory for the next three years. Accutest aspires to evolve as a total partner in drug development process by 2010. We are expecting to be amongst the first three CROs in India and to evolve as a significant global player by 2010," says Dr Satish Sawant, CEO, Accutest. The company also plans to expand in the area of bio-analytical laboratory, formulation development, clinical trials and clinical data management in the near future.