Combino Pharm Manufacturing (Malta) Ltd, which will start operating in Malta later this year, has appointed Joseph Spiteri-Gonzi as plant manager for its Maltese operations.
Combino Pharm forms part of Corporación Medichem, a family-owned Spanish group founded in 1971. For over 30 years, this group has manufactured raw materials and finished dosage forms for the pharmaceutical industry in Spain and other countries.
Mr Spiteri-Gonzi graduated in Chemical Engineering from the University of South Bank (London) in 1987. He has held various posts in top management both locally and abroad, in the private sectors and in industry, and has been responsible for a number of start up operations, particularly in the pharmaceutical finished dosage form. He has also worked in close cooperation with the World Health Organisation on projects such as Access to Aids drugs.
Combino Pharm was created in 1996 with the goal of developing and commercialising top-quality generic medicines to put therapeutic solutions of proven effectiveness at a lower treatment cost within the reach of the pharmacy and hospital sectors.
Based at Hal-Far Industrial Estate, Combino Pharm Manufacturing (Malta) Ltd will be a state of the art production facility for the production of finished dosage form. It has been designed according to the latest European safety, environment and quality standards and will be seeking FDA acceptance in 2006.
Furthermore, the company also plans to be certified according to ISO 9001 and 14001 in line with the same high quality and environmental standards adopted by the mother company in Spain.
The company will be managed by Maltese staff and will initially employ about 25 employees. To ensure the highest standards of its operation in Malta, Combino Pharm is currently providing specialised training of Maltese personnel in Spain.
“All the raw materials used in our products, and the finished products themselves, are subject to strict controls in the company’s laboratory, which is equipped with the latest instrumentation managed by expert professionals dedicated solely to quality control,” said Mr Spiteri-Gonzi. “At our laboratories, our R and D teams are working on innovative solutions for the continued development of new generic medicines.”
Combino Pharm’s headquarters are located in Barcelona. The company serves both the hospital and the retail market and the sale of its products are carried out by its own sales force in Spain, and through licensing and supply agreements with the major pharmaceutical companies abroad.