This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on Schwarz Pharma AG is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:
Related Sponsors
| UCB | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Type | Public |
| Founded | 1928 |
| Headquarters | Brussels, Belgium |
| Key people | Karel Boone (Chairman of the board), Roch Doliveux (Chairman of the Executive Committee and CEO) |
| Industry | Pharmaceuticals |
| Products | Biopharmaceuticals |
| Revenue | €3.6 billion (2007) |
| Employees | 12,000 |
| Website | www.ucb-group.com |
UCB (Euronext: UCB), is a global biopharmaceutical manufacturer headquartered in Brussels. It focuses on novel therapeutic solutions for patients with severe diseases treated by specialists, particularly in the fields of central nervous system disorders (including epilepsy), inflammatory disorders (including allergy) and oncology.
History
UCB was founded in 1928 by Emmanuel Janssen, a Belgian businessman. Initially focused on industrial chemicals, the company also included a small pharmaceutical division based around Meurice Laboratories.
In the early 1950s, UCB set up a research centre where new medicines such as Atarax (hydroxyzine) were developed. Successful sales enabled the pharmaceutical division to expand, and led to the discovery of another important compound, called piracetam. This was marketed in the 1970s as Nootropil and used to treat memory and balance problems. It remains one of UCB's key products. At this time, UCB was a company focusing on three core areas: pharmaceuticals, chemicals and films.
The success of Nootropil made it possible for UCB to build a modern pharmaceutical site in Braine-l'Alleud, south of Brussels (Belgium). There, UCB developed Zyrtec (cetirizine), a blockbuster antihistamine. Other important products have followed including Keppra (levetiracetam), Xyzal (levocetirizine) and Cimzia (peg-antiTNF alpha antibody fragment).
At the end of 2002, the chemicals and films divisions were merged and UCB added the resins, additives and adhesives activities of Solutia, to form the surface specialties division. The films part has since been sold to Innovia Films (in September 2004). The chemicals division, Methylamines and Derivatives was spun off and later sold to form the company Taminco.
In May 2004, UCB acquired the British biotechnology company Celltech, followed in March 2005 by the sale of the surface specialties business to Cytec Industries. By divesting all of its non-pharmaceutical activities, and acquiring Celltech, UCB has transformed itself into a global biopharmaceutical company.
On 25 September 2006, UCB announced the purchase of the German pharmaceutical company Schwarz Pharma for €4.4 billion [1]. As of July 2007 UCB holds approximately 87% of Schwarz's outstanding shares.
28 august 2008 the company announced it will abolish 2000 jobs worldwide.
External links
|
|||||
.svg){kind=small}
Wikipedia content modification information:
- This page was last modified on 5 September 2008, at 01:43.
Wikipedia Authorship and Review
Wikipedia content provided here is not reviewed directly by MedLibrary.org. Wikipedia content is authored by an open community of volunteers and is not produced by or in any way affiliated with MedLibrary.org.
Wikipedia Usage Guidelines
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article on "Schwarz Pharma AG".
The URL for this specific entry is:
All Wikipedia text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights for details). Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.