The Mumbai-based Cresent Scientific Pvt Ltd, an enterprise-wide automation, system and instrument services provider to India's pharmaceuticals and life sciences industries, has signed an agreement with the US-based VelQuest Corporation to market the latter's full range of informatics solutions and services in India. VelQuest is a leader in electronic process management and compliance software and electronic lab notebook solutions for pharma industry and is currently in a global expansion spree.

Under the terms of the agreement, Crescent Scientific will offer certified local technical sales and service for all VelQuest ePMC (electronic Process Management & Compliance) based software solutions including SmartLab GMP Electronic Notebook System, SmartBatch Electronic Batch Record System, and ThinLIMS eLogbook Applications. Crescent Scientific will also provide services for requirement definitions and scoping, project implementation, systems integration, connection with lab instruments and production plant equipment, validation, and training.

The partnership will combine VelQuest's decade of experience and technology with Crescent's deep knowledge of the Indian pharmaceutical market, which is essential to meet the growing needs of Indian pharmaceutical and life science industries for automated GMP/GLP laboratory informatics and pharmaceutical manufacturing plant records, comments Vichu Iyer, managing director of Crescent Scientific.

"India is now ranked fourth in the world for pharmaceutical production, due to increased consumption in India and global export market demand. Like the US, we are developing cost effective and compliant facilities for all types of dosage forms in all major therapeutic areas," said Iyer. He added that, "With the current cost, productivity and compliance challenges facing each company, VelQuest's proven solutions are essential building blocks for India's future growth in the global life science marketplace."

"As the Indian pharmaceutical market matures, manufacturers are seeking to ensure proper regulatory execution and documentation processes for their global customers," said Jef Leemans, senior vice president, International Operations of VelQuest. VelQuest customers have reported their ability to eliminate paper-based data capture and documentation processes through automation, creating annual operational benefits yielding millions of dollars in efficiency gains. Through the partnership, the company's global pharmaceutical customers can now benefit from best-practice methodology and certified technical support for their operations based in India, he added.

The Massachusetts-based VelQuest Corporation is the leading provider of software solutions that help companies in regulated life science industries reduce operational costs and compliance risk by automating manual paper-based documentation processes with efficient electronic systems.

Crescent Scientific, which offers services in the IT compliance consulting and system integration areas with a life sciences practice specialized in the implementation, validation and optimization of laboratory informatics systems for the pharma, biotech and medical devices industries, currently has three business partners in US and one in UK. The company's services in India include user requirement definitions/scoping, project implementation, system and instrument integration and training.