(20a) Best Practices for Accelerating Process Development with External R&D Partners

Chemical process development continues to deliver value across the spectrum of chemistry-related industries, including petrochemicals, bio-based chemicals, specialty chemicals, energy, and pharmaceuticals. Process development provides a focus for reducing costs, both CAPEX and OPEX, and improving product quality and process robustness. However, the investment to have the necessary capabilities in research and development can be significant. This is a challenge for start-up companies who are raising capital to develop their technologies; it is also a challenge for established corporations trying to maximize the efficiency of their work force. Recently, more companies address these challenges through external research and development programs, such as joint programs with research universities, other companies, or through contract research and development organizations.

External research programs allow companies developing new technology to leverage their internal resources with additional expertise and infrastructure that is already in place at the partner’s laboratories. Process development can require deep knowledge in various fields, for example corrosion, crystallization, and new cutting-edge technologies, and requires the experience and knowledge of the challenges that are typical of new technology implementation. Maintaining these skills, even in large organizations but certainly in small start-ups, may not be cost efficient or possible. These skills can be contracted on an individual basis, but this often does not provide the deep understanding of the process that a dedicated technology development team provides. In addition to the expertise, the infrastructure for the facilities requires nearly as much investment as the technology development. This investment in infrastructure, although critical to the technology development, does not generate additional value to the technology and will not be recoverable after the technology has been implemented.

However, contracting outside one’s organization for the technology development can leave a company open for value loss. Technology value can be lost through the loss of intellectual property ownership – either due to inadvertent exposure outside the parent organization or contractually through joint IP ownership between the technology owner and the external organization. Other opportunities for value loss include losing important aspects of the technology as the development is handed-off between different external organizations as the technology progresses through the various stages, the so called “white spaces”.

This presentation will discuss the challenges of process development and how the various external research organizations can improve the efficient usage of investment dollars in new technology commercialization.