With this R&D center, the Galicia-based company expects to increase its turnover by 25% over the next two years and step up its growth and internationalisation plan.
GalChimia was established in 2001 as a spin-off at the University of Santiago de Compostela in a business venture run by organic chemistry PhDs Carme Pampín and Jacobo Cruces.
Its funding comes from its operations and all its share capital is still owned by the entrepreneurial team of Drs Pampín and Cruces, USC Organic Chemistry Department lecturers Gabriel Tojo and Ramón Estévez, and venture capital firm Unirisco Galicia.
A specialist in organic chemistry products and services for the pharmaceutical industry, Galician firm GalChimia has today opened its R&D centre in the Barcelona Science Park (Parc Científic de Barcelona, PCB) to step up its growth and internationalisation strategy.
GalChimia was established in 2001 as a spin-off at the University of Santiago de Compostela (USC) by organic chemistry PhDs Carme Pampín and Jacobo Cruces. With over 225 customers in 25 countries worldwide it is now an international leader in discovery chemistry for the pharmaceutical industry. The company’s heavy investment in internationalisation has enabled it to double its sales in just five years.
“GalChimia has been highly successful in Spain due to its huge experience in synthetic organic chemistry,” says Carme Pampín, CEO at GalChimia and Chair of Bioga, the Galician Life Science Business Technology Cluster. “The PCB is one of the leading biotechnology clusters in Europe. We’ve opened our first national branch there because as a company we’ve taken the strategic decision to continue growing within Spain and add to our footprint in the international market.”
“Our presence in Barcelona will bring us much closer to a large part of our current clients and also place us in a strategic position in Europe,” Pampín explains. “With this new site, GalChimia expects to increase its turnover by 25% in the next two years.”
Passion for chemistry
GalChimia discovers, develops and markets chemical products and high added-value services for pharmaceutical research laboratories, with a portfolio that includes discovery chemistry, process development and analytical services. The company also delivers scientific advice, technical consulting and support for basic and technological chemistry research.
Over the last 16 years the GalChimia team has successfully completed more than 1,500 drug discovery projects for cutting-edge pharmaceutical firms and small biotech companies in its field.
“Chemistry is the foundation for a pharmaceutical company’s development and the active ingredient in its drugs,” points out Julie Masse, Head of International Business Development and Director of the GalChimia centre in the PCB. “It’s the company’s most sensitive activity in terms of science and also intellectual property. At GalChimia, we’re experts in chemical synthesis. We’ve been in this business for over 16 years and we have an outstanding team which has solved numerous problems for customers all over the world. Each year we invest 30% of our earnings in technological equipment and R&D.”
“In the 4 years I’ve been with the company I’ve seen how highly GalChimia’s customers rate what it does,” she adds. “We furnish them with our knowledge and they also come to see us because they trust us and know we make every effort to carry out their projects. Our new R&D centre at the PCB will allow us to meet the ever-growing demand and deliver our chemical research and process development knowhow and expertise in a strategic European setting.”
The opening ceremony at the PCB for GalChimia’s new centre brought together fifty people from academia, science and business, including the company’s founding partners and management team and Barcelona Science Park CEO Ignasi Belda. The event was also attended by a large number of its customers, including pharma giants Esteve and Amirall, who came along to support the Galician firm on this significant day.
