Pharmaceutical Product Development

Pharmaceutical Product Development, known as PPD, is a contract research organization (CRO) and provider of clinical research and drug development services. Founded by Fred Eshelman in 1985 as a one-person consulting firm, the company developed into a global provider of clinical research, laboratory and lifecycle management services. PPD’s clinical research business is now part of Thermo Fisher Scientific, which completed its acquisition of PPD in December 2021. PPD’s service portfolio supports drug development programs across clinical research, laboratory services and related areas. Its current website describes end-to-end development solutions, therapeutic expertise spanning more than 20 therapeutic areas, functional partnership services, solutions for small- and mid-sized biotech and pharmaceutical companies, and digital tools for study planning. The company also offers comprehensive laboratory services intended to support clinical trial performance and regulatory success. These are service offerings for pharmaceutical and biotechnology customers rather than medicines marketed directly to consumers. The business has built an international operating footprint over several decades. PPD’s history records expansion into Europe, the Middle East and Africa in 1995, Latin America in 1996, and Asia-Pacific beginning in the late 1990s. The company says its clinical research business has conducted trials in more than 100 countries. Its headquarters are in Wilmington, North Carolina. PPD presents its value proposition around quality, customer-aligned service, therapeutic and operational expertise, technology, and efforts to improve the time and cost profile of drug development. PPD has had several ownership and public-market phases. It completed an initial public offering in 1996, was acquired by affiliates of The Carlyle Group and Hellman & Friedman in 2011, and returned to public trading in 2020. Thermo Fisher Scientific announced its planned acquisition in 2021 and completed the transaction in December of that year. PPD now operates as Thermo Fisher Scientific’s clinical research business, drawing on its CRO capabilities and the parent company’s broader scientific and healthcare infrastructure.

PPD began in 1985, when pharmacist Fred Eshelman founded a one-person consulting firm in Maryland. In 1986, the business expanded its scope to include development services and relocated its operations to Wilmington, North Carolina. It incorporated in North Carolina in 1989. These early steps established the company’s focus on services supporting pharmaceutical development rather than on marketing a proprietary drug portfolio. The company expanded internationally and broadened its capabilities through acquisitions and new offices. In 1995 it entered Europe, the Middle East and Africa through the acquisition of U.K.-based CRO Gabbay Group. In 1996 it completed an initial public stock offering, acquired Applied BioScience International—which included Pharmaco and several European regional drug development companies—and expanded into Latin America through the acquisition of a Brazil-based CRO. PPD added drug discovery services in 1997 and opened an office in Australia as part of its Asia-Pacific expansion. In 2002, the acquisition of Medical Research Laboratories International added central laboratory services in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Africa; the acquisition of Asian-based CRO ProPharma further expanded its Asia-Pacific presence. PPD continued to add capabilities and research networks in the following years. In 2010, it spun off its compound partnering division as the independent public company Furiex Pharmaceuticals. In 2011, affiliates of The Carlyle Group and Hellman & Friedman acquired PPD in an all-cash transaction. Subsequent developments included the acquisition of Acurian in 2013, an agreement with SNBL in 2014 to form a joint venture offering clinical development services in Japan, and strategic research-site relationships with Radiant in 2015 and Synexus in 2016. PPD also acquired Evidera in 2016. In 2017, its owners entered into recapitalization agreements that broadened the ownership group to include an Abu Dhabi Investment Authority subsidiary and an affiliate of Singapore’s GIC Private Limited. The company announced additional offerings and partnerships from 2018 onward, including a new site solution, a data-science-driven research-solutions agreement with China’s HLT in 2019, and acquisitions by Evidera and Accelerated Enrollment Solutions in 2019. PPD returned to public markets in February 2020, listing on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol PPD. In April 2021, Thermo Fisher Scientific announced plans to acquire the company; it completed the acquisition in December 2021. PPD is now described by its official website as the PPD clinical research business of Thermo Fisher Scientific. The business provides global CRO solutions, and the company reports that its clinical research business has conducted trials in more than 100 countries.

• Fred Eshelman founds PPD as a one-person consulting firm in Maryland.

• PPD adds development services and relocates operations to Wilmington, North Carolina.

• The company incorporates in North Carolina.

• Acquires U.K.-based CRO Gabbay Group and expands into Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

• Completes its initial public offering, acquires Applied BioScience International and expands into Latin America.

• Adds drug discovery services and opens an Australian office as part of Asia-Pacific expansion.

• Acquires Medical Research Laboratories International and ProPharma, adding central laboratory services and extending its Asia-Pacific footprint.

• Spins off its compound partnering division as Furiex Pharmaceuticals.

• Acquired by affiliates of The Carlyle Group and Hellman & Friedman.

• Acquires Acurian.

• Announces an agreement with SNBL to form a clinical development joint venture in Japan.

• Establishes a strategic relationship with Synexus and acquires Evidera.

• Owners agree to recapitalize PPD and expand its ownership group.

• Returns to public markets on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under ticker PPD.

• Thermo Fisher Scientific announces plans to acquire PPD.

• Thermo Fisher Scientific completes the acquisition; PPD becomes its wholly owned subsidiary.

A global CRO partner offering integrated clinical research, drug development and laboratory capabilities, with an emphasis on therapeutic expertise, quality, customer-aligned delivery and technology-enabled development.

• Clinical research and CRO solutions

  Global contract research services supporting clinical trials and drug development.

• Laboratory services

  Comprehensive laboratory services designed to support clinical trial performance and regulatory success.

• Functional Partnership Service Solutions

  Resources and expertise scaled to project needs.

• Biotech Solutions

  A service model designed for small- to mid-sized biotech and pharmaceutical companies.

• Drug Development Digital Solutions

  Digital tools using real-time data, predictive analytics and AI-powered algorithms to inform study planning.

1. 1PPD official homepageppd.com
2. 2Our History | PPDppd.com
3. 3Company Resources | PPDppd.com
4. 4Corporate Responsibility | PPDppd.com
5. 5PPD, Inc.en.wikipedia.org
6. 6Pharmaceutical Product Developmentwikidata.org