ITOCHU Announces Reorganization of BPO Services for Pharmaceutical Companies
September 2, 2016
ITOCHU Corporation (headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo; Masahiro Okafuji, President & CEO; hereinafter “ITOCHU”) announced today that ITOCHU and a group company, BELLSYSTEM24, Inc. (headquartered in Chuo-ku, Tokyo; Ichiro Tsuge, Representative Director, President, CEO; hereinafter “BELLSYSTEM24”) have officially agreed to restructure the business among the group companies with the objective of strengthening both companies’ outsourcing service business for pharmaceutical companies in January 2017.
The healthcare business sector surrounding pharmaceutical companies is rapidly becoming more globalized and diversified from various changes, such as the requirement for the faster implementation of investigational trials. In addition, interest in the multi-channelization of sales operations and marketing is growing, as are expectations for the outsourcing services market.
To establish a solid foundation for outsourcing services for pharmaceutical companies and to contribute to the improvement of patients’ QOL, ITOCHU resolved to implement the centralization and selection of management resources in this field, as described below.
(1) Area of pharmaceutical product development
Given the increasing need for full-service CRO companies that have the sufficient resources to handle an increasing number of investigational trials and post-marketing surveillance, A2 Healthcare Corporation (headquartered in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo; Tadashi Katori, President & CEO; hereinafter “A2”) and Bell Medical Solutions, Inc. (headquartered in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo; Hayami Shimizu, President & CEO; hereinafter “BMS”) will integrate their CRO business*1to obtain a top-class fiduciary capacity (about 1,300 total personnel) in CRO industries and strengthen the service capacity to increase the needs of clients. With this integration, 6.5% of the A2 corporate share will be allotted to BELLSYSTEM24, with the investment ratio of ITOCHU in A2 at 93.5%.
(2) Area of sales operations and marketing for pharmaceutical products
To provide appropriate and more effective information about pharmaceutical products to doctors and medical professionals, considering that the means of information transmission will be further multi-channelized, we will integrate BMS’s MIS business*2with its strength in CRM solutions, using the IT and contact center operations, and CSO business*3
of IML Corporation (headquartered in Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo; Yusuke Shiraishi, President & CEO; hereinafter “IML”) and see to provide added values for promotions in the area of sales operations and marketing for pharmaceutical products. With this integration, ITOCHU will obtain 45.0% of BMS’ corporate share.
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Hereafter, we will forge a solid foundation to enhance additional values for the outsourcing service business for pharmaceutical companies.
- ※1 CRO business: Abbreviation of “Contract Research Organization.” Outsourcing business of various work (monitoring, data management, and statistical analysis, etc.) required for the development of pharmaceutical products.
- ※2MIS business: Strength in CRM (Customer Relationship Management) solutions, which provides contact center services 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, related to medical care and health with its deployment of human resources, including qualified staff.
- ※3CSO business: Abbreviation of “Contract Sales Organization.” Outsourcing business with various functions (promotional activities for pharmaceutical products, etc.) required during the stage of sales operations and marketing for pharmaceutical products.
| Corporate profile | A2 Healthcare Corporation (as of April 1, 2016) |
|---|---|
| Corporate name | A2 Healthcare Corporation |
| Representative | Tadashi Katori |
| Address | Sumitomo Fudosan Korakuen Bldg. 1-4-1, Koishikawa, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo |
| Established | July 2003 |
| Main shareholder | ITOCHU Corporation (100%) |
| Business description | CRO business |
| Corporate profile | Bell Medical Solutions, Inc. (as of April 1, 2016) |
|---|---|
| Corporate name | Bell Medical Solutions, Inc. |
| Representative | Hayami Shimizu |
| Address | Bunkyo Greencourt Center Office, 2-28-8, Honkomagome, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo |
| Established | March 2012 |
| Main shareholder | BELLSYSTEM24, Inc. (100%) |
| Business description | CRO business, Operation of contact center for medical and healthcare businesses |
| Corporate profile | IML Corporation (as of April 1, 2016) |
|---|---|
| Corporate name | IML Corporation |
| Representative | Yusuke Shiraishi |
| Address | Sumitomofudosan Korakuen Building, 1-4-1 Koishikawa, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo |
| Established | April 2004 |
| Main shareholder | ITOCHU Corporation (100%) |
| Business description | CSO business, PET (Positron-Emission Tomography) business |