Molecule to Market: Inside the outsourcing space

In this special encore episode of Molecule to Market, you’ll go inside the outsourcing space of the global drug development sector with Mark Bamforth OBE, serial entrepreneur, investor and mentor to CEOs.

Your host, Raman Sehgal, revisits one of Molecule to Market’s most memorable conversations, bringing together Mark’s original two-part story of building and selling three biotech CDMOs for a combined value of $2.5bn.

Raman and Mark discuss the pharmaceutical and biotechnology supply chain, covering:

Mark’s unconventional journey from North Sea oil and the whisky industry to spending 22 years at Genzyme and ultimately leading a global manufacturing network.

Leaving corporate life to build Gallus Biopharmaceuticals, and the baptism of fire that came with raising money for a self funded CDMO carve out.

The strategy and timing behind Gallus and its eventual sale to Patheon.

Spotting the opportunity in viral vectors early, and building Brammer Bio from start up to its $1.7bn acquisition by Thermo Fisher.

Building Arranta Bio across microbiome, plasmid and mRNA capabilities, before an unsolicited approach led to its sale to Recipharm.

Mark’s ability to spot where the market is heading, sometimes before conventional wisdom catches up.

Leadership lessons from more than two decades at Genzyme and three successful founder to exit journeys.

How he thinks about investing, mentoring CEOs and building businesses in complex, fast moving markets.

Mark Bamforth OBE is a serial entrepreneur, investor and mentor to CEOs. He is currently CEO of disAMR, whose mission is to accelerate scientific, financial and policy solutions to protect modern medicine from antimicrobial resistant infections.

He is also Executive Board Chair of Kincellis, an advanced therapies CDMO, General Partner of the Kineticos AMR Accelerator Fund, and serves on the boards of Enterobiotix, Continuus Pharma and the Saltire Foundation USA.

Previously, Mark founded, built and sold three PE backed biotech CDMOs, Gallus Biopharmaceuticals, Brammer Bio and Arranta Bio, over a 12 year period for a combined value of $2.5bn.

Before becoming an entrepreneur, Mark spent 22 years at Genzyme in the UK and US, latterly running a global manufacturing operation spanning 12 sites in nine countries and producing more than 20 commercial products.

He began his career as a petroleum engineer exploring for North Sea oil with Britoil, before moving into the whisky industry as a chemical engineer with Whitbread.

Mark holds a BS in Chemical Engineering from Strathclyde University and an MBA from Henley Management College. He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire, OBE, for services to the biotech industry and UK USA business relations.

Connect with him on LinkedIn.

 

Molecule to Market is sponsored by Bora Pharmaceuticals and supported by Lead Candidate. Please subscribe, tell your industry colleagues and join us in celebrating and promoting the value and importance of the global life science outsourcing space. We’d also appreciate a positive rating!

In this special episode of Molecule to Market, you’ll go inside the outsourcing space of the global drug development sector through the perspective of pharma-side buyers and external manufacturing leaders.

Your host, Raman Sehgal, brings together insights from Daniel Hurni, Felipe Furiati, Frank Binder, and the buyer-side panel from CDMO Live Europe: When Outsourcing Goes Wrong, covering:

What really goes into selecting a CDMO partner, and why price and technical capability are only part of the decision.

Why product lifecycle, supply resilience, geography and risk all influence outsourcing strategy.

What strong pharma-CDMO relationships look like in practice, including trust, transparency, governance and communication.

Why being a genuine strategic partner requires much more than simply using the phrase.

The early warning signs that an outsourcing relationship may be starting to fail, and why sponsors also need to take responsibility.

What makes a CDMO stand out to experienced buyers, from consistency across sites to strong planning, risk management and operational capability.

Why buyers increasingly want to understand the people and processes behind the equipment, not just the facility itself.

This special episode brings together buyer-side perspectives from across Big Pharma, mid-sized pharma and global external manufacturing to provide CDMOs with a clearer view of what their customers really value.

Molecule to Market is sponsored by Bora Pharmaceuticals and supported by Lead Candidate. Please subscribe, tell your industry colleagues and join us in celebrating and promoting the value and importance of the global life science outsourcing space. We’d also appreciate a positive rating!

In this episode of Molecule to Market, you’ll go inside the outsourcing space of the global drug development sector with Frank Binder, Independent Consultant (external manufacturing and supply chain management).

 

Your host, Raman Sehgal, discusses the pharmaceutical and biotechnology supply chain with Frank, covering:

 

Getting hooked on supply chain management during his time at Accenture, before joining Novartis’ biopharma business during the early stages of outsourcing and CDMO management.

Deciding to move to Celgene, and feeling liberated by the hands-on, can-do culture of a fast growth company.

The intrigue of joining a highly respected Japanese pharma company to help drive global supply chain alignment.

Common themes in pharma and CDMO relationships, including better planning, clearer communication and secondary sourcing.

How CDMO selection has evolved over the last 10 to 15 years, what has changed and what remains the same, including the role of regionalisation.

The lens he uses to identify genuine, strategic partners he can trust.

 

Dr. Frank Binder is a senior supply chain leader with experience across major pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies in Switzerland, the US and Japan. He is now an independent consultant at GSCA | Global Supply Chain Advisors, having previously held senior roles at Santen, Celgene, Novartis, Roche and Accenture. His expertise spans global supply chain transformation, biologics and API production, CDMO management, international logistics, planning, NPI and SOP/IBP. Frank is a recognised pharmaceutical supply chain thought leader, regularly speaking at industry conferences across Europe, the US and Asia. He holds a doctorate in Physical Chemistry from the University of Berne, with further executive education at Cranfield University, Harvard Business School and INSEAD.

 

Connect with him on LinkedIn.

 

Molecule to Market is also sponsored by Bora Pharmaceuticals and supported by Lead Candidate. Please subscribe, tell your industry colleagues and join us in celebrating and promoting the value and importance of the global life science outsourcing space. We’d also appreciate a positive rating!

In this episode of Molecule to Market, you’ll go inside the outsourcing space of the global drug development sector with Stefan Randl, Chief Scientific Officer at Siegfried.

 

Your host, Raman Sehgal, discusses the pharmaceutical and biotechnology supply chain with Stefan, covering:

 

How his love of science, combined with a desire to get closer to the business, led him to leave Novartis

His move from science into commercial roles, and how geographic relocations created a compound impact on his career

The decision to leave a large pharma environment and join a smaller CDMO with both drug substance and drug product capabilities

The importance of scientific innovation in creating competitive advantage in a busy and fragmented market

Stefan’s role in shaping capability, R&D and technical investments, and why CDMOs must stay ahead of the curve by backing the areas they truly believe in

How the need for accelerated speed to market is being driven by more assets, higher quality assets and increasingly complex products

 

Molecule to Market is also sponsored by Bora Pharmaceuticals and supported by Lead Candidate. Please subscribe, tell your industry colleagues and join us in celebrating and promoting the value and importance of the global life science outsourcing space. We’d also appreciate a positive rating!

 

Stefan Randl (1973) joined Siegfried in January 2025 as Chief Scientific Officer. Prior to joining Siegfried, he spent 16 years at Evonik, where he held various leadership positions in several regions, most recently as Vice President Innovation Management Health Care, based in Frankfurt, Germany, and as Vice President Drug Substance, based in Indiana, US. He also headed Sales & Services for Health Care in Asia, based in Tokyo.  He holds a PhD in Organic Chemistry from the Technische Universität Berlin and is a German citizen.

 

Connect with him on LinkedIn.

In this episode of Molecule to Market, you’ll go inside the outsourcing space of the global drug development sector with Erik Haeffler, CEO at APL.

 

Your host, Raman Sehgal, discusses the pharmaceutical and biotechnology supply chain with Erik, covering:

Two decades at AstraZeneca, including being at the forefront of global sourcing and increasingly sophisticated supply chain management in pharma

Managing a highly complex network of more than 100 CDMOs during his time at Meda

Lessons from six years at Recipharm, where he led 4,000 people across 14 manufacturing sites

The unique story behind APL, what attracted him to the CEO role, and how his assumptions about a state owned business were challenged

Implementing a clear strategy for APL’s CDMO business, leading to stronger differentiation and significant growth

The decision to acquire a penicillin facility, and the growth engine now driving APL forward

 

Erik leads APL, a Swedish pharma manufacturing company of 600 people across 5 sites. Being a state owned enterprise with a public policy assignment, APL is a bit of an odd bird on the pharma market. The state assignment comprises pharmacy compounding for the Swedish market, where APL has approx. 80% market share, and also a formal preparedness mission for supply in times of crisis and war. APL is also a fully commercial CDMO with a wide range of capabilities, focusing on a segment that fits into the company's origin in compounding. Erik has more than 30 years in the pharma industry with senior roles in AstraZeneca, Meda and Recipharm. He is also a Board member at Nanologica. 

Connect with him on LinkedIn. 

 

 

Molecule to Market is also sponsored by Bora Pharmaceuticals, and supported by Lead Candidate. Please subscribe, tell your industry colleagues and join us in celebrating and promoting the value and importance of the global life science outsourcing space. We’d also appreciate a positive rating!