Novartis
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"Sandoz Laboratories" redirects here. For the new Sandoz company founded in 2003, see
Sandoz.
Novartis International AG
 |
| Type | Public (SIX: NOVN, NYSE: NVS) |
| Industry | Pharmaceutical industry |
| Founded | 1996 (from merger) |
| Headquarters | Basel, Switzerland |
| Key people | Daniel Vasella (Chairman), Joseph Jimenez[1] (CEO) |
| Products | Pharmaceuticals, generic drugs, over-the-counter drugs, vaccines, diagnostics, contact lenses, animal health (list...) |
| Revenue | US $44.27 billion (2009)[2] |
| Operating income |  US $9.98 billion (2009)[2] |
| Net income | US $8.40 billion (2009)[2] |
| Employees | 99,830 (FTE, 2009)[2] |
| Subsidiaries | Ciba Vision, Sandoz |
| Website | www.novartis.com |
Novartis International AG is a
multinational pharmaceutical company based in
Basel, Switzerland, ranking number three in
sales among the world-wide industry, which accounted 36.173 billon in 2008.
[3] It currently is the sixth largest pharmaceutical company in terms of revenue ($41.5 billion in 2009) with a profit margin of about 20%, which is the same as its industry competitors. Their profits were down by 31% from 2007 levels.
[4] Novartis manufactures drugs such as
clozapine (Clozaril),
diclofenac (Voltaren),
carbamazepine (Tegretol),
valsartan (Diovan),
imatinib mesylate (Gleevec / Glivec),
ciclosporin (Neoral / Sandimmun),
letrozole (Femara),
methylphenidate (Ritalin),
terbinafine (Lamisil), and others. Renamed to Novartis following an acquisition by
Ciba-Geigy, it owns
Sandoz, a large manufacturer of
generic drugs. The company formerly owned the
Gerber Products Company, a major infant and baby products producer, but sold it to
Nestlé on 1 September 2007.
[5][6][7][8]
Novartis is a full member of the
European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA)
[9] and of the
International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA)
[10]
[edit] Collaborative research
In addition to internal research and development activities Novartis is also involved in publicly funded collaborative research projects, with other industrial and academic partners. One example in the area of
non-clinical safety assessment is the
InnoMed PredTox.
[11][12] The company is expanding its activities in joint research projects within the framework of the
Innovative Medicines Initiative of
EFPIA and the
European Commission.
[13] The company's research operations have their global headquarters in
Cambridge, Massachusetts.
[14]
[edit] History
Novartis headquarters in
Basel Novartis was created in 1996 from the merger of
Ciba-Geigy and
Sandoz Laboratories, both Swiss companies with long histories. Ciba-Geigy was formed in 1970 by the merger of
J. R. Geigy Ltd (founded in Basel in 1758) and
CIBA (founded in Basel in 1859). Combining the histories of the merger partners, the company's effective history spans 250 years.
[15]
[edit] Ciba-Geigy
Johann Rudolf Geigy-Gemuseus (1733–1793) began trading in 1758 in "materials, chemicals, dyes and drugs of all kinds"
[16] in
Basel,
Switzerland.
Johann Rudolf Geigy-Merian (1830–1917) and
Johann Muller-Pack acquired a site in Basel in 1857, where they built a
dyewood mill and a
dye extraction plant. Two years later, they began the production of synthetic
fuchsine. In 1901, they formed the
public limited company Geigy and the name of the company was changed to
J. R. Geigy Ltd in 1914.
In 1859
Alexander Clavel (1805 – 1873) took up the production of
fuchsine in his factory for
silk-dyeing works in Basel. In 1864, a new site for the production of synthetic dyes was constructed, and in 1873, Clavel sold his dye factory to the new company
Bindschedler and Busch. In 1884 Bindschedler and Busch was transformed into a joint-stock company with the name "Gesellschaft für Chemische Industrie Basel" (Company for Chemical Industry Basel). The
acronym,
CIBA, was adopted as the company's name in 1945.
In 1925 J. R. Geigy Ltd. began producing textile auxiliaries,
[clarification needed] an activity which Ciba took up in 1928.
In 1939, Geigy chemist
Paul Hermann Müller discovered that
DDT was effective against malaria-bearing insects. He received the 1948
Nobel Prize in Medicine for this work.
CIBA and Geigy merged in 1971 to form
Ciba‑Geigy Ltd.. This company merged with Sandoz in 1996, with the pharmaceutical divisions of both staying together to form Novartis. Other Ciba-Geigy businesses being spun off as independent companies.
[edit] Sandoz
The
Chemiefirma Kern und Sandoz ("Kern and Sandoz Chemistry Firm") was founded in 1886 by Alfred Kern (1850–1893) and Edouard Sandoz (1853–1928). The first dyes manufactured by them were
alizarine blue and
auramine. After Kern's death, the partnership became the corporation
Chemische Fabrik vormals Sandoz in 1895. The company began producing the fever-reducing drug
antipyrin in the same year. In 1899, the company began producing the sugar substitute,
saccharin. Further pharmaceutical research began in 1917 under
Arthur Stoll (1887–1971),
who is the founder of Sandoz's pharmaceutical department in 1917. In 1918, Arthur Stoll isolates ergotamine from ergot; the substance is eventually used to treat migraine and headeaches and is introduced under the trade name Gynergen in 1921.
Between the World Wars,
Gynergen (1921) and
Calcium-Sandoz (1929) were brought to market. Sandoz also produced chemicals for
textiles,
paper, and
leather, beginning in 1929. In 1939, the company began producing agricultural chemicals.
The
psychedelic effects of
lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) were discovered at the Sandoz laboratories in 1943 by
Arthur Stoll and
Albert Hofmann (
patent by Stoll and Hofmann in USA on Mar. 23, 1948). Sandoz began clinical trials and marketed the substance, from 1947 through the mid 1960s, under the name
Delysid as a
psychiatric drug, thought useful for treating a wide variety of
mental ailments, ranging from
alcoholism to
sexual deviancy. Sandoz suggested in its marketing literature that psychiatrists take LSD themselves,
[17] to gain a better subjective understanding of the
schizophrenic experience, and many did exactly that and so did other scientific researchers. For several years, the psychedelic drugs also were called "
psychotomimetic" because they were thought to mimic
psychosis. Later research caused this term to be abandoned, as neuroscientists gained a better understanding of psychoses, including schizophrenia. Research on LSD peaked in the 1950s and early 1960s. Sandoz withdrew the drug from the market in the mid-1960s. The drug became a cultural novelty of the 1960s after psychologist
Timothy Leary at
Harvard University began to promulgate its use for recreational and spiritual experiences among the general public.
Sandoz opened its first foreign offices in 1964.
In 1967, Sandoz merged with Wander AG (known for
Ovomaltine and
Isostar). Sandoz acquired the companies
Delmark,
Wasabröd (a
Swedish manufacturer of
crisp bread), and
Gerber Products Company (a
baby food company).
On 1 November 1986, a fire broke out in a production plant storage room, which led to
Sandoz chemical spill and a large amount of
pesticide being released into the upper
Rhine river. This exposure killed many fish and other aquatic life.
In 1995, Sandoz spun off its specialty chemicals business to form
Clariant. Subsequently, in 1997, Clariant merged with the specialty chemicals business that was spun off from
Hoechst AG in
Germany.
In 2005, Sandoz expanded significantly though the acquisition of
Hexal, one of Germany's leading
generic drug companies, and
Eon Labs, a fast-growing United States generic pharmaceutical company.
"Sandoz" continues to be used as a Novartis generic drug brand
(see below for details).
[edit] After the merger
Suffern, New York: the sole
Novartis pharmaceutical production facility in the United States
After the merger, Novartis reorganized its operating units and spun out its chemical activities as
Ciba Specialty Chemicals (now a part of
BASF).
In 1998 the company made headlines with its
biotechnology licensing agreement with the
University of California at Berkeley Department of Plant and
Microbial Biology. Critics of the agreement expressed concern over prospects that the agreement would diminish academic objectivity, or lead to the commercialization of
genetically modified plants. The agreement expired in 2003.
Novartis combined its
agricultural division with that of
AstraZeneca to create,
Syngenta, in November 2000.
In 2003, Novartis created a subsidiary that bundles its generic drug production, reusing the predecessor brand name of Sandoz.
[18]
In 2005, Novartis introduced
Certican (
Everolimus), an immunosuppressant, and in October 2006 began marketing
Telbivudine, a new antiviral drug for
hepatitis B.
On 20 April 2006, Novartis acquired the California-based
Chiron Corporation. Chiron formerly was divided into three units: Chiron Vaccines, Chiron Blood Testing, and Chiron BioPharmaceuticals, to be integrated into Novartis Pharmaceuticals. Chiron Vaccines and Chiron Blood Testing now are combined to form Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics.
The ongoing Basel Campus Project has the aim to transform the St. Johann site - Novartis headquarters in Basel - "from an industrial complex to a place of innovation, knowledge, and encounter".
[19]
On 12 October 2009, Novartis has entered into an agreement for exclusive US and Canadian rights to Fanapt(iloperidone), a new oral medication that is approved by the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the acute treatment of adults with schizophrenia.
[20]
On 6 November 2009, Novartis reached an agreement to acquire an 85% stake in the Chinese vaccines company Zhejiang Tianyuan Bio-Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. as part of a strategic initiative to build a vaccines industry leader in this country and expand the Group's limited presence in this fast-growing market segment. This proposed acquisition will require government and regulatory approvals in China.
[21]
On 4 January 2010, Novartis offered to pay US $39.3 billion to fully acquire
Alcon, the world’s largest eye-care company, including a majority stake held by
Nestlé. Novartis had bought 25% of Alcon in 2008.
[22]
On 11 March 2010, Novartis settled their patent suit in the US District Court for the District of New Jersey with IntelliPharmaCeutics International, Ltd., a Canada-based specialty pharmaceutical company, and its licensee Par Pharmaceutical Inc. over a generic version of the attention deficit hyperactivity disorder drug Focalin XR (dexmethylphenidate hydrochloride).
[23]
[edit] Basel headquarters campus redesign
Human resources building of the new Basel campus of Novartis - designed by Frank Gehry
An ongoing Basel Campus Project has the aim to transform the
Saint Johann site—Novartis headquarters in Basel—"from an industrial complex to a place of innovation, knowledge, and encounter".
[24] The pharmaceutical giant decided to transform the existing Ciba-Geigy office buildings and chemical factories of its headquarters in 2001.
The buildings gradually were demolished and replaced with works by architects and artists of international stature.
Frank Gehry,
Rafael Moneo, and from SANAA,
Kazuyo Sejima and
Ryue Nishizawa were among the architects and
Jenny Holzer and
Richard Serra among the artists. Marked diversity of forms now dominates the campus. Novel features and technologies were introduced by Gehry to conform to the building standards of the Swiss government that prohibit
air-conditioning, while still selecting a contemporary style of massive use of glass exteriors. One adaptation by the architect includes the integration of a building vent,
teepee-style, through the roof, which creates a chimney effect that draws cool air in at the lower levels and vents warmer air.
[edit] Products
[edit] Pharmaceuticals
[edit] Consumer health (OTC)
In January 2009 the
United States Department of Health and Human Services awarded Novartis a $486 million contract for construction of the first U.S. plant to produce cell-based
influenza vaccine, to be located in
Holly Springs,
North Carolina. The stated goal of this program is the capability of producing 150,000,000 doses of
pandemic vaccine within six months of declaring a flu pandemic.
[26]
[edit] Animal health
Pet Care
Livestock
- Acatalk Duostar (Fluazuron, Ivermectin), tick control for cattle
- CLiK (Dicyclanil), blowfly control for sheep
- Denagard (Tiamulin)
- Fasinex (Triclabendazole)
- ViraShield
Bioprotection (insect and rodent control)
[edit] Research and development
Major therapeutic areas:
- autoimmunity/transplantation/inflammatory disease
- cardiovascular disease
- diabetes
- gastrointestinal disease
- infectious diseases
- musculoskeletal disease
- neuroscience
- oncology
- ophthalmology
- respiratory disease
Novartis Vaccines was established in April 2006, following the Novartis acquisition of Chiron.
[edit] Controversies and criticism
[edit] Challenge to India's patent laws
In 2006, Novartis launched a court case against
India seeking to prohibit the country from developing
generic drugs based on
patented medicines.
[27] Novartis had challenged a law that allows India to refuse to recognize a patent for an existing medicine if there is a modified formula resulting in a re-patent of the drug.
[28] On August 5, 2007 an Indian court in
Chennai ruled against Novartis saying that, "Novartis’ legal challenge - mounted to limit competition to its own patented medicines - was a threat to people suffering from
cancer,
HIV and
AIDS,
diabetes and other
diseases who are too poor to pay for them."
[29] The high court also claimed to have no jurisdiction on whether Indian Patent law complied with
WTO patent guidelines.
In the months leading up to the hearing, more than half a million people wrote to the
CEO of Novartis expressing their opposition to the suit. Novartis has decided not to appeal the ruling.
[30]
[edit] Advertising practices
In September 2008 the United States
FDA sent a notice to Novartis Pharmaceuticals regarding its advertising of
Focalin XR, an
ADHD drug, in which the company overstated its efficacy while marketing to the public and medical professionals.
[31]
[edit] 'No' to free flu vaccines
In June 2009, Novartis declined to provide free vaccines to the poor in order to counter a current flu epidemic, saying developing nations or donor nations should cover the costs. Daniel Vasella, Novartis chief executive, told the
Financial Times that he would consider offering discounted pricing to low-income nations, but unlike
GlaxoSmithKline, would not offer vaccines for free.
[32]
[edit] Sexual discrimination
On May 17, 2010, a jury in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York awarded $3,367,250 in
compensatory damages against Novartis, finding that the company had committed
sexual discrimination against twelve female
sales representatives and entry-level
managers since 2002, in matters of pay, promotion, and treatment after learning that the employees were
pregnant. Two days later (the trial was bifurcated so that the punitive damages verdict was argued and deliberated separately), the jury awarded
punitive damages in the amount of $250 million, representing about 2 percent of Novartis' gross revenues for 2009. Normally punitive damages would be reduced to less than a 10-1 ratio, but the trial was for a group of named plaintiffs in a
class action, who were representing a class of 5,600 class members. The jury was instructed to award compensatory damages just to the named plaintiffs, but to award punitive damages to the
entire class. Once the court makes findings on compensatory damages for the remaining class members (which are estimated by plaintiffs' counsel at just under $1 billion), the $250 million is expected to satisfy the Supreme Court's single-digit ratio test for proportionality of compensatory to punitive damages.
[33]
[edit] References
- ^ "Novartis’s Jimenez Beats Out Reinhardt to Replace CEO Vasella". Businessweek. http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-01-26/novartis-s-jimenez-beats-out-reinhardt-to-replace-ceo-vasella.html. Retrieved 2010-02-15.
- ^ a b c d "Annual Report 2009" (PDF). Novartis. http://ir2.flife.de/data/novartis2009/igb_html/pdf/Novartis_Annual_Report_2009_EN.pdf. Retrieved 2010-01-26.
- ^ "Top 15 global corporations". IMS. http://www.imshealth.com/deployedfiles/imshealth/Global/Content/StaticFile/Top_Line_Data/Global-Top_15_Companies.pdf. Retrieved 2009-06-12.
- ^ "Fortune Magazine". Time, Inc.. http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/global500/2009/industries/21/index.html. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
- ^ "Gerber: Infant and Baby". Novartis. Archived from the original on January 25, 2007. http://web.archive.org/web/20070125215043/http://www.novartis.com/products/en/infant_baby.shtml. Retrieved 2007-02-17.
- ^ Novartis completes divestment program with transfer of Gerber baby foods business
- ^ [www.nestle.com/MediaCenter/PressReleases/AllPressReleases/AcquisitionGerber-12APR07.htm Nestlé Consolidates Nutrition Leadership Position Through Acquisition of Gerber]
- ^ [www.nestle.com/MediaCenter/PressReleases/AllPressReleases/Nestlé_completes_its_acquisition_of_Gerber.htm Nestlé completes its acquisition of Gerber]
- ^ "The Pharmaceutical Industry in Figures - 2008 Edition". European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA). pp. 49. http://www.efpia.eu/content/default.asp?PageID=559&DocID=4883. Retrieved 2008-08-25.
- ^ IFPMA website|url=http://www.ifpma.org/aboutus/index.php?id=2096/
- ^ Mattes WB (2008), Public consortium efforts in toxicogenomics, Methods Mol Biol. 2008;460:221-38 [1]
- ^ "InnoMed PredTox Member Organizations". http://www.innomed-predtox.com/consortium/members/. Retrieved 2008-08-25.
- ^ Innovative Medicines Initiative. "IMI Call Topics 2008". IMI-GB-018v2-24042008-CallTopics.pdf. European Commission. http://imi.europa.eu/docs/calls01_en.zip. Retrieved 2008-08-25. [dead link]
- ^ Ross, Casey (2010-10-27). "Novartis doubles plan for Cambridge". Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/business/healthcare/articles/2010/10/27/novartis_doubles_plan_for_cambridge/. Retrieved 2010-10-31.
- ^ Company history at Novartis site[clarification needed]
- ^ http://www.ciba.com/index/cmp-index/cmp-about/cmp-abo-history.htm| Ciba history website
- ^ Albert Hofmann: LSD - My Problem Child: Use of LSD in Psychiatry
- ^ "Sandoz U.S. History". Sandoz. http://www.us.sandoz.com/site/en/company/profile/history/content.shtml.
- ^ "Basel Campus Project". Novartis. http://www.novartis.com/about-novartis/locations/basel-campus-project.shtml. Retrieved 2007-10-11.
- ^ Novartis Enters Into Agreement With Vanda
- ^ Novartis to expand its human vaccines presence in China
- ^ Thomasson, Emma (4 January 2010). "Novartis seeks to buy rest of Alcon for $39 billion". Reuters. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6030RK20100104. Retrieved 4 January 2010.
- ^ TradingMarkets.com [2]
- ^ "Basel Campus Project". Novartis. http://www.novartis.com/about-novartis/locations/basel-campus-project.shtml. Retrieved 2007-10-11.
- ^ http://www.novartis.com/investors/product-sales.shtml Novartis official 2007 product sales
- ^ Novartis (January 15, 2009). "US Department of Health and Human Services awards Novartis USD 486 million contract to build manufacturing facility for pandemic flu vaccine". Press release. http://www.novartis.com/newsroom/media-releases/en/2009/1282432.shtml. Retrieved 2009-11-13.
- ^ "India's cheap drugs under patent threat". BBC News. 2007-02-15. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6358721.stm. Retrieved 2007-04-07.
- ^ Indian ruling against pharmaceutical giant Novartis a victory for public health
- ^ Ibid. Patients before Profits.
- ^ Ibid. Make Trade Fair.
- ^ "Focalin XR (dexmethylphenidate hydrochloride) extended-release capsules CII". Warning Letters. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. 2008-09-25. http://www.fda.gov/ICECI/EnforcementActions/WarningLetters/2008/ucm1048118.htm. Retrieved 2009-08-05.
- ^ Financial Times - Novartis says 'no' to free flu vaccines
- ^ Mark Hamblett, "Novartis Hit With $250 Million in Punitives in Gender Bias Case", New York Law Journal, 20 May 2010.
[edit] External links
