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This year we are celebrating Biopharma’s 20th birthday!
Biopharma Process Systems (BPS) was set up back in 1989 by Tony Gaster. Tony had been working in the field
of freeze drying for many years and saw a need for UK-based sales and after-sales support
for freeze-drying equipment, and he set up Biopharma to provide exactly these services.
The company started with just two people: Tony and his friend Anne, using a spare room in
Tony’s house as their office. Anne managed the accounts and administration and Tony looked
after the sales. One year later Richard joined to add technical skills in maintenance and installation to the company.
The first few years for
any company are not easy and Biopharma was no different, so it is a testament to their dedication and belief in
the company that Biopharma not only survived but grew. The strong UK and Ireland pharma / biotech industries meant
that the market was there for both the equipment itself and the expert advice and service that Biopharma aimed to
provide. Many of the major players in the global pharma market were sooner regular customers.
The company quickly outgrew Tony’s spare room. Various facilities across Winchester were trialed before we
settled in our old Biopharma house in Winnall for eleven years. When Biopharma first moved in there was more than
enough room for everyone, but after a couple of years of growth we needed something bigger again. Last year we moved
on once more to our current premises, which has much more room in terms of office, warehouse/testing and laboratory
space.
With a growing client base the portfolio also expanded. A range of research freeze dryers complimented the existing
production-scale systems and opened up new markets in universities, institutes and laboratories. People buying small
machines are often first-time users and freeze drying is complicated whatever end of the scale you are at so they really
appreciated people who know what they are talking about. BPS’ sister company,
Biopharma Technology, was set up in 1997 to offer
highly specialized advice and consultancy services in freeze drying, offering potential equipment buyers the chance
to test their product and refine their processes before committing to expensive equipment. More staff were taken on to
handle increased enquiries for the equipment and the specialist maintenance services that the technical department
offer.
2006 saw the introduction of a range of general-purpose freeze-dryers, enabling us to offer a freeze dryer for
almost any application in any industry sector. Other products newly added to the portfolio include controlled-rate
freezers, high-pressure homogenisers, and processing equipment including vessels and CIP/SIP systems.
Today Tony, Anne and Richard are still here as Managing, Admin and Technical Directors. Many of you will know
our current Sales Director Peter Williams who joined us in 2001, and the R&D Director Kevin Ward who has been with BTL
since 2001. Despite the gloomy economic climate we are confident of continuing our success into 2009 and beyond – we hope
you will be there with us.
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