PLIVA-Lachema of Brno expands and modernises production of anti-cancer drugs

The company’s new owner, Barr Pharmaceuticals of the United States, has begun an investment of a half billion Czech crowns in a new line for the production of cytostatic injections for chemotherapy. This production is very technologically demanding and the company has exacting requirements for new employees. The company is seeking 130 people to fill positions.

“Since the beginning of the 1990s, the company has undergone a transformation from a local enterprise to a part of a major European corporation and then to a highly specialised firm within the world’s third-largest producer of generic drugs,” says Roman Cermak, CEO of CzechInvest, through which PLIVA-Lachema applied to the state for investment aid.

PLIVA-Lachema is expanding the capacity of its Brno plant by constructing a new line for the production of injections. The company expects substantial growth of its existing production once the investment is completed and the new line is put into operation. PLIVA-Lachema is currently investing massively in the production of medical substances which are necessary for the preparation of injections.

“Our products are special in that a range of our injections do not bear final sterilization. It is thus necessary to produce for them antiseptics, which represent the most demanding technology in the pharmaceuticals industry,” explains Tomas Topinka, CEO of PLIVA-Lachema. “There are not many firms in Europe which have production on a similar level, and therefore there is always great demand for our products.” The company exports approximately half of its production to other European countries and to the United States. PLIVA-Lachema has established itself in Japan, whose drugs market is among the most closely watched and regulated in the world.

“The company has an exceptional research and production programme and therefore naturally benefits the entire region of South Moravia, whose residents are thus provided further employment opportunities in this prestigious sector; the company is seeking skilled technologists, chemists and other specialists in technical fields,”adds Roman Cermak.

Cytostatic treatment, or chemotherapy, is one of the basic methods of treating cancer. According to data from the Czech Oncological Society, on average every third person in the Czech Republic will develop cancer. In 2004, from which year the latest information is available, doctors diagnosed 66,641 new cases – nearly double the number diagnosed in 1975. Together with a higher number of cancer cases, however, the success rate of treatment has also increased. In the Czech Republic today, there are 40,000 people who are undergoing, or have undergone, cancer treatment.

For more information please contact CzechInvest's Public Relations Department

Lucie Kralova, spokesperson, phone: +420 296 342 538, lucie.kralova@czechinvest.org
Jiri Sochor, PR executive, phone: + 420 296 342 832, jiri.sochor@czechinvest.org

More about PLIVA-Lachema

Brno-based Lachema has a history dating back more than sixty years. The company began to focus on drugs at the end of the 1960s, producing its first anti-cancer preparations in 1980. The company gained a strong strategic partner in 1999, when the multinational pharmaceuticals firm PLIVA became its majority owner, resulting in the change to the company’s current name, PLIVA-Lachema. At the close of last year, the PLIVA group was acquired by the American company Barr, and Lachema thus became part of the world’s third-largest producer of generic drugs. Last year, PLIVA-Lachema’s revenues amounted to CZK 1.11 billion, which represents year-on-year growth of 11.6%. The company dedicated not quite CZK 100 million to research and development.

Contact: Jana Silarova, PR and Communication Specialist
phone.: 541 127 238, fax: 541 127 634, e-mail: silarova@lachema.cz, web: www.lachema.cz