Process improvements cost accounting

Another point to remember, as Dr. Close said, if you are faced with essentially a production cost accounting problem, which is what process improvement or cost reduction really is, this is much more predictable than the cost of discovering and developing a new compound. Indeed, if the question is asked today, What is the cost of developing a drug for Parkinson s disease, it would be virtually impossible to answer because the length of time and manpower required are unpredictable. 

The propylene-based process developed by Sohio was able to displace all other commercial production technologies because of its substantial advantage in overall production costs, primarily due to lower raw material costs. Raw material costs less by-product credits account for about 60% of the total acrylonitrile production cost for a world-scale plant. The process has remained economically advantaged over other process technologies since the first commercial plant in 1960 because of the higher acrylonitrile yields resulting from the introduction of improved commercial catalysts. Reported per-pass conversions of propylene to acrylonitrile have increased from about 65% to over 80% (28,68—70). 

The impact of a knowledge-based application may appear in many ways improved competitive position, quality improvement, improvement in efficiency, cost reduction, and reduction in downtime, to name a few. Some of these benefits may be hard to quantify others may not be quantifiable at all. For example, the actual benefit derived from a diagnostic advisory system may not be apparent if the process behaves normally. To quantify the benefits, a careful post-audit may have to be done, taking into account the number of faults averted, and comparing the frequency of faults before and after implementation. 

Intermediates of the metabolism have so far not been identified as inhibitors or activators of PHA synthases. The only exception is coenzyme A which inhibits the PHA synthases of R. eutropha, C. vinosum, and R aeruginosa at relatively low concentrations [73,74]. It is not known whether this inhibition is physiologically relevant. The inhibition by coenzyme A has, however, to be taken into account during the design of in vitro PHA biosynthesis processes, if PHA is being prepared on a preparative scale recycling of coenzyme is then recommended not only to reduce the costs but also to improve the kinetics of PHA formation. 

The drug discovery and development processes are time consuming and costly endeavors. It has been reported that on average it takes 10 to 15 years and costs more than 800 million to bring a molecule from discovery to market.12 Compounds fail for various reasons. One that accounts for a reported 40% of failures in clinical trials is poor pharmacokinetics.3 In an effort to improve the number of compounds that exhibit optimal absorption, distribution, metabolism, elimination (ADME), and pharmacokinetic (PK) properties and reach development, drug metabolism and pharmacokinetic scientists continually implement new technologies and compound screening approaches. 

In each of the previously mentioned methods lies the possibility for improving the greenness and efficiency of existing and developing processes. This can lead to the reduction and elimination of hazardous solvents, improved process yields, and lower operation costs. However, it is important to note that each method requires a significant amount of data in order to evaluate a pharmaceutical process and appropriate process alternatives. To date, there is not an all-inclusive method that accounts for every possible environmental, human safety, and economic factor of interest. 

---