Quality Assurance in CDMO Services: What Clients Should Look For
Quality assurance (QA) is not a mere compliance issue in the strictly regulated and competitive pharmaceutical industry and specialty chemical business, it is the foundation of confidence, security, and effectiveness. In the collaboration with a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO), clients need to carefully consider the effectiveness of quality systems of the CDMO and their transparency. The initial and the most important factor is regulatory compliance. Examples of certifications that a high quality CDMO needs to maintain should include GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices), ISO certifications, and regional government approvals (e.g., US FDA, EMA, CDSCO). Such certifications make sure that manufacturing processes fulfill global safety and consistency standards. Data integrity and documentation practice is another critical factor. All the batch records, laboratory notes and test reports should be traceable, tamper evident and audit-ready. Clients are expected to as...