The growth of pharma and allied sectors are interdependent. While the success of both sectors depends on positive communication between the sectors, collective efforts are vital for the growth of both the sectors.

The Gujarat pharma industry has a strong backbone comprising the allied sector and consequently it has played a major role in the success of the pharmaceutical sector.

For several decades Gujarat has been known as a pharma machinery hub. Gujarat has the highest number of pharma machinery manufacturers in the country and manufacturing almost all types of machines which are required by the industry.

Pharma machinery industry is the largest sector for business in Gujarat. IDMA - Gujarat State Board (GSB) and Indian Pharma Machinery Manufacturers Association (IPMMA) has always supported each other and are also working together on many projects as development of pharma machinery, considered the back bone of pharma industry.

Says Rajesh Shah, president of Indian Pharma Machinery Manufacturers Association (IPMMA), “the future prospects for the pharma machinery in Gujarat seems to be very bright having wide scope of development with the infrastructure availability and support from the Gujarat government”.

“Pharma machinery manufacturing industry in Gujarat has started consolidating and combining the skills available in the broader engineering sector and with that it has created world-class players with the scale and resources required to tap the global as well as local demand. Pharmaceutical-machine makers and their Western counterparts increasingly are exploring collaborations and partnerships with each other to innovate or share new technology”

“Gujarat is emerging as one of the largest state when it comes to pharma machinery. Gujarat already accounts for the production of around 45 to 50 percent of India's pharma machinery business”, he adds.

“The most significant aspect of the Indian pharmaceutical industry is that at the time of Independence, the foreign machinery manufacturers had stranglehold on the market, but today the Indian pharma machinery manufacturers have turned the table with the market share close to 85 per cent”, he says.

According to Indian Pharma Machinery Manufacturers Association (IPMMA), there are around 1500 machinery manufacturing units in the country out of which half of them are in the organised sector. Around 800 small and medium sector units are in manufacturing and allied utility service. The majority of these companies are situated in two states, Gujarat and Maharashtra. These two states being the two major pharma hubs together contributing almost 80 per cent of the total pharmaceutical production in the country, has eventually become the favourite spot for the machinery manufacturers too. About 40 per cent machinery for pharma sector is manufactured in Gujarat.

The estimated turnover of the Indian pharma machinery industry comprising small, medium and large scale companies is more than Rs 1500 crore. Out of the total turnover, around 40 per cent is being exported to more than 80 countries around the world, according to the IPMMA. The export of pharma machinery is experiencing a growth of 15 to 20 per cent per annum.

With the new opportunities in the overseas markets, the Indian pharma machinery and packaging machinery industry has emerged as developers of international quality products with advanced technologies. The Indian advantage of low cost manufacturing capacities - offering the machines in almost one fifth of the cost of products from Germany and such pioneers - and the key skills to develop quality products has captured international attention.

While Gujarat manufactures about 40 per cent of the machinery used in India's pharma industry, it also has a strong and diversified chemical industry base, which meets the demands for a continuous supply of APIs and drug intermediates.

The close proximity of the allied industry helps pharma companies to get a faster response and service when they need spares. The user can also visit the machinery manufacturer units easily for trials. Moreover, in the case of machine breakdown, spares can be replaced quickly thus saving time, energy and money.

Since Gujarat is in close proximity to Mumbai, the financial capital of India, its real-estate prospects are attractive for machine manufacturers. Moreover Gujarat has high quality management personnel which is an added attraction for top - level managements. And there are excellent working conditions and infrastructure in Gujarat. Naturally the highly efficient allied industry in Gujarat is luring pharma companies from Mumbai to Gujarat.

As the pharma industry is growing at 15 per cent annually with a focus on exports, high quality packaging has become a necessity. This will definitely give a boost to packaging units which are located nearby and can provide better quality packaging in the current scenario where pharma companies are reducing capex investment due to the current recession and slowdown.

The allied sectors will be definitely benefited by the newer opportunities coming on their way. They should cash in on this and convert them to excellent business opportunities. The fact that Gujarat has a strong base for finished formulations, active pharmaceutical ingredients (API), dyes and pigment manufacturers for a long time has helped to develop allied industries like machinery manufacturers.

According to the Gujarat State Food and Drug Control Administration (FDCA), the state is the largest manufacturer of medical devices with more than 100 manufacturing licenses issued for the segment. The administration has issued 11 licenses for units manufacturing orthopedic implants, 25 for IV and BT set manufacturing units, nearly 50 for cotton benders and gauze manufacturers, six for intraocular lenses, four for cardiac stents and another four for catheter manufacturing, said H G Koshia, Commissioner, FDCA.

The state accounts for 50 per cent of the orthopaedic implants, 35 per cent intraocular lens and more than 30 per cent of the cardiac stents produced in the country, he informed.

Further, the state is expected to increase its performance in the segment, as the central government, through the Department of Pharmaceuticals, is working on a cluster project to set up common facilities for medical devices industry near Ahmedabad with the support of the state government.

Anticipating a huge upsurge in medical devices production in the state, the FDCA has also initiated a project to set up a laboratory for testing quality of devices in the premises of its existing food and drug testing laboratory at Baroda

The Gujarat State FDCA, which has initiated efforts to achieve expertise and facilities to effectively monitor and regulate the medical devices industry, is expected to receive tips from the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) on the latest technology developments in the segment, it is learnt.

"USFDA, country director (India) Bruce Ross has assured us to provide assistance on training and knowledge sharing for medical devices in Gujarat," said commissioner Food and Drugs Control Administration HG Khosia .

Though allied sector in Gujarat is doing a great job of fulfilling the needs of domestic pharma sector, market observers opine that they should take their expertise overseas. The economic downturn in the US and Europe has provided greater opportunities for pharma machinery exports which is now two decades old. The recession has forced the US and European companies to reduce capex which provides the Indian machinery to fill the gap by offering machines with almost the same features at half or even lower prices of European machines.

In order to create world-class players with the scale and resources required to tap the global as well as local demand, the pharma machinery manufacturing industry in Gujarat needs to consolidate and synergise skills and complementarities available in the broader engineering sectors, he adds.