Sourcing and Cost of Raw Materials

Costing is a notoriously ambiguous [endeavor] in which the inexperienced chemist can get into difficulties. costs...based on... a laboratory synthesis may mislead senior personnel.. . which may be detrimental. ( Laird, 1990 italics added) 

In one sense, process chemists concerned with cost reduction and synthesis choice have some flexibility. The overall cost of a manufacturing synthesis can accommodate long plant occupancies if starting materials are inexpensive. Costly starting materials, however, demand short residence times. The overall cost depends on both expenses, so one may be high if the other is low. 

Some countries like Ireland bestow favorable tax treatment on companies that establish themselves within their boundaries. Consequently, the site of manufacture can help reduce the overall cost of drug synthesis. Pharmaceutical companies that export manufacturing encounter fluctuating exchange rates that can abolish (or augment) these savings. 

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