innopharma quarter four newsletter 2020

 

 

Q4 STORY BY NUMBERS

Q4

Innopharma Education

LET'S BEGIN WITH SOME EXCITING UPDATES FROM THE EDUCATION TEAM 

SEPTEMBER 2020 ENROLLMENTS

Virtual recruitment, interviewing and online inductions were some of the new competencies and skillsets that our Education team adapted to for our enrolment of students for September 2020. Many programmes were over subscribed to and waiting lists were created to keep those potential learners engaged for our 2020 offerings.


Graduation

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NEW MSC IN DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION (LIFE SCIENCES)

At the start of Q4 a virtual panel met with a team from Innopharma and Griffith College to review documentation and our submission for a new MSc in Digital Transformation. Following a very engaging and collegiate discussion, this Masters has now been approved by the panel and QQI. The first intake of learners will be in February 2021 so an exciting way to start the new year and the first quarter of 2021 with a new programme offering.  

SEPT2020 ENROLLMENTS


GRADUATION 2020 

We were proud to see 584 graduate from our programmes in November and December 2020. There were 254 graduates from our programmes with TUD and 330 graduates from our programmes with Griffith College. Unfortunately, we were not able to physically see students on the day but we joined the virtual graduation and followed up with a letter of congratulations and a small gift for all. 


PHARMA INDUSTRY AWARDS 2020 

The Pharma Industry Awards 2020 took place virtually in December. We sponsored the "Partnership Alliance of the Year' award which was won by NIBRT National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training and MSD Dunboyne Biologics this year. Thanks to Luke for presenting the award and for everyone who joined the event on the day. 

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES 

In Q4, three members of our education team participated in the pilot of Innopharma Education’s newly developed module ‘Learning and Teaching in Higher Education’. The pilot followed the launch of a QQI approved Teaching, Learning and Assessment strategy for the education division, and offers staff in the education team a chance to engage with current approaches and best practices in online, learner centred and inclusive teaching for the higher education sector.

Congratulations to Paula Kearney, Ann Ryan and Michael King on being the first to complete the module and thanks for contributing to our ongoing development of teaching and learning!  

Education staff who are interested in opportunities to participate in the module in 2021 should contact Sandra Mooney for more information. 

Over the last number of months a number of staff have participated in further education, webinars and in-house training – some examples include:

Congrats to Alex Furbee on completing a Diploma in Project Management with UCD Professional Academy

Alexandra Anton, Michelle McCoy, Orla Callan, Finbarr Sheehy & Sandra Mooney attended a number of webinars organised by QQI as part of National Academic Integrity Week in October

Congrats to Danielle O’Rourke and Jelena Rusinova who graduated from Innopharma’s Higher Diploma in (Bio) Pharmaceutical & Medical Device Manufacturing

NEW PROGRAMME DEVELOPMENT UNDERWAY 

Now that our education division has had its QA procedures approved by QQI, the education division are directing their energies toward developing a suite of higher education programmes for launch in Q3, 2021. The programmes in development reflect Innopharma Education’s mission of contributing value to society through re-skilling, up-skilling and life-skilling learners in response to skills shortages across industry. They will offer opportunities to people seeking ways to re-enter the workforce and be sustainably employed in Industry 4.0 environments. They will also offer progression opportunities for graduates.  

This month, the curriculum development team have been working closely to consult with our industry partners on the programme learning outcomes, module content and assessment strategy. The consultation process ensures the skills and competences developed within the programmes will closely align with industry needs. The team have already had positive feedback from external stakeholders and the next step in this process involves review by external subject matter experts in the higher education sector in January. 


OurMission


IMPLEMENTING A  UNIVERSAL DESIGN FOR LEARNING APPROACH  

Innopharma Education’s Core Values include an emphasis on diversity and inclusion.  

Within our new Teaching, Learning and Assessment Strategy we are committed to upholding that value by integrating the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) into the curriculum. UDL encourages us to reflect on the way we present information, organise learning activities and design assessment.  

In Q4, as part of her participation in the pilot of our new Learning and Teaching Higher Education module, Innopharma Education lecturer, Paula Kearney spent time considering how UDL could improve her students’ experiences. Paula had the following to say:  

"Universal Design for Learning is a way of thinking about teaching and learning that helps give all students an equal opportunity to succeed. This approach offers flexibility in the ways students access material, engage with it and show what they know. At Innopharma we want all of our students to learn effectively, having UDL at the forefront of our minds we can ensure we are reaching out to all types of learners. UDL encourages the lecturer to plan the lessons to ensure there is flexibility in materials which can be utilized by all students. It leads to a very rewarding experience for both students and lecturers".

 

We value Diversity. We are committed to inclusion, equity and mutual respect. That means actively working to eliminate bias and create an environment where every member of our community can excel

Innopharma Education - Diversity & Inclusion  

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WOMEN IN STEM

Innopharma Education’s Sandra Mooney and Innopharma Tech Services Suvriti Bali and Trish McEneaney spoke about Women in STEM in this weeks Irish Independent. 

The article focuses on the importance of upskilling for careers within STEM and how there are a rage of career opportunities within the industry for women.

Read the full report here

report


LEARNERS VIEWS ON OUR RESPONSE TO COVID-19

Throughout October and November, for the first time, we rolled out our own Class Rep Training which was coordinated by Alexandra Anton and Sandra Mooney. Alexandra engaged with NSTep who are the national student engagement forum and was able to deliver their class rep training to all Innopharma Class Reps. It was another opportunity to engage with students and to thank them also for taking on the class rep role. Feedback was sought earlier in the year from our students on their experience to  online learning – from a scale of one to 5 (One being very poor) all students rated this question at 4 and 5. Some direct feedback included:

 

COVID19

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NEW MODULAR COURSES

We received a number of funded places in line with the HEA July Jobs Stimulus Initiative. We received 300 funded places across 6 new modular courses. This initiative launched in November with courses to be filled by the end of December. With such a short timeframe to fill these places and with the courses being new to our audience, Ann Ryan presented 6 Webinars over 6 weeks. These webinars were very successful in explaining the benefits of modular learning and the funding that was available. Almost 300 leads registered for these webinars over the 6 weeks with almost 120 attending. Great work has been done across these courses in a very tight timeframe. 

 


PHARMA INDUSTRY

REGIONAL UPDATES

We said goodbye to Karen Toomey and Louise Cosgrove from our Limerick team and Welcomed ex student Nora Nelligan and welcomed back to our fold Michelle Ryan for our Level 8 programme.  We had our socially distanced team meeting where we said our farewells to Karen and Louise.  

We also partnered with Mid West Regional Skills and IDA to launch a new Level 6 programme which we are commencing in Jan 2021 in response to demand in the region.  See photo as it appeared in the local papers – Clare Champion, Limerick Post and Nenagh Guardian to which we had a great response. 

Technology

  GREAT NEWS FROM THE TECHNOLOGY TEAM 

ADAPTING AND FINDING SUCCESS THROUGH NEW WAYS OF WORKING

Since the beginning of the pandemic, a big concern within the Technology division has been how to replace the valuable in-person contact with customers that up-to-now has been such a significant part of our sales process. Visits to customer sites and on-site demos of our sensors, as well as visits to our process lab in Sandyford, have been our most powerful tool in conveying what our sensors and control technologies can do for them. 

In response to this, we started developing a “broadcast rig”, consisting of high-quality microphones, lighting, two cameras, and the ability to remotely switch between them and to clearly display the contents of the relevant screens within the lab, all live via the webcam feed in Teams or other applications like WebEx. Our aim was to be able to “bring the customers into the lab” in a virtual manner that rivalled or even improved upon the experience and clarity of an in-person visit. 

CHRIS

ROB'S GRADUATION 

This quarter saw another Technology member reach a new academic feat. In November, Rob graduated from his Master of Engineering  Electronics / Electronic System Design from TU Dublin. Although he didn’t get to attend the ceremony in person, I’m sure he found a way to celebrate it wholeheartedly! We wish him a massive congratulations on his achievement.  


SOFTWARE TEAM HITTING NEW MILESTONES THIS QUARTER
 

It has been a busy 2020 for the software team with some significant milestones being achieved in Q4.  The team showcased the new “advanced scripting engine” for the SmartX Cloud platform which is being rolled out to automate fluid bed, twin screw and crystallization processes.  The SmartX HMI/Dashboard is also receiving a facelift with new ways to create data visualisations and charts for real-time monitoring.  These updates provide users with the ability to easily automate processes, gives deeper insights into how well a process is performing, both in terms of quality and efficiency, and really strengthens our portfolio of Industry 4.0 technology solutions. 


FIRST DEMONSTRATION

We conducted our first full demonstration using this system in November, walking a team of potential customers through the details of a SmartX – controlled fluid bed coating process. This demo was very well received, with plenty of insightful questions about the SmartX system, and other possible control approaches that could be implemented through it. 

While it’s probably never going to be possible to do better than the experience of an in-person lab demo, one significant advantage was apparent from this virtual one. It was attended by 6 people from two of the customer sites, including their C.S.O. A level of commitment that would not have been possible if all of those people had needed to board planes and loose hours or days travelling, even in pre-pandemic times! 

Both webinars were both highly attended and highly praised, showcasing the interest surrounding our products!  



INDUSTRY 4.0 

Speaking of Industry 4.0, the Technology team has also been busy exploring the use of AI/Machine Learning in our software.  A prime candidate for this technology is our EyePASS particle sizer technology where materials which we want to measure can come in many different shapes, sizes and colours e.g. from cellets to fertilizers.  Where traditional image analysis techniques often struggle to deal with a broad range of materials, AI has shown to be more accurate and adaptable.  This opens up some exciting new possibilities and sets us up nicely for more exciting updates in 2021! 


PARTICLES

(AI/Machine Learning – measure particle size – left is actual image, right is a measured image created by AI) 


WEBINAR

CONTINUED SUCCESS WITH OUR WEBINARS

November marked our 2-part SmartX webinars series, as well as our joint webinar with HORIBA on image analysis earlier this month. Chris’ webinar explored using the next-generation control strategies of SmartX to overcome common Pharma OSD challenges, highlighting the features of SmartX through real-world application study. Watch it here! 

Darren’s webinar with HORIBA focused on image analysis, and the principles, methods of application and benefits of using the technique that forms the basis of Eyecon2. Watch it here! 


NEW ROLES AND VENTURES

In a new venture for Innopharma, and in his new capacity as Principal Data Scientist and Digital Transformation Lead, Gareth has been working on the development of novel product offerings around Industry 4.0. These products will help companies evaluate where they are on the journey, identify the gaps in skills and resources, and provide them with a road map to the next generation of pharma manufacturing. At the same time, Gareth has started working with Finbarr Sheehy, generating content for Level 6 certificates relating to Process Digitisation in preparation for validation in April, the first such awards to be delivered solely by Innopharma Education as a QQI-accredited institute. 

Technology
INNOPHARMA TECHNICAL SERVICES

TECHNICAL SERVICES UPDATES    

Q4 has been an extremely busy time in the Technical Services division with some of the highlights as follows:

  • 5 new validation engineer starters (taking up roles in cleaning validation and instrument qualification at Regeneron – meet our new team members below)
  • The successful delivery of our 2nd QC programme, which was run face to face under covid restrictions
  • The successful delivery of our 13th validation programme which was run mainly online with 2 visits by the participants to our process and analytical labs at Sandyford
  • The recruitment and commencement of our 14th validation programmes, including one visit to Sandyford by the participants to date
  • The recruitment for our 3rd QC programme which will commence in January
  • The shooting and development of video footage of the technology platforms in our process lab -Dispensing, Blending, Fluid Bed Granulation and Compression – video footage of the testing capabilities in our QC laboratory is planned for early 2021
  • Ongoing business development
  • We welcomed Paul Hession who has joined Innopharma as a Client Relationship Manager and HR Business Partner.  Paul will spend a large portion of his time developing the Services business.
  • We ran a very enjoyable on-line Technical Services Table quiz with Trish, Irene and Apurva taking the spoils.
  • We look forward to Caroline’s return from maternity leave in January.


tech-servcies

Validation

MARKETING

Our Technical Services LinkedIn page has surpassed the 1000 followers.  Thanks to Lauren who has come on board to keep the page active.  Follow us for updates on activities and topics of interest within the (bio)pharmaceutical and Med Tech industries.  Don’t forget to like and share!


Technical Services

Validation Resourcing

INNOPHARMA TECHNICAL SERVICES NEW STARTERS 


NEW STARTER

Malvika Desphande

Malvika holds a Bachelors of Science in Biotechnology, from SavitriBai Phule Pune University, in Pune, India and has completed her Master of Science in Molecular Medicine at Trinity College Dublin.  Malvika held a number of Trainee/intern positions both in Hospital and research facilities before relocating to Dublin to complete her Masters.  She has joined Regeneron in their Instrumentation qualification team where she joins Katy and Kisore.

Kisore

Kisore Venkatesh

Kisore holds a Bachelors of Technology in Biotechnology, from K.S. Rangasamy College of Technology, India and has completed his Master of Science in Biological and Biomolecular Science at UCD.  Kisore spent 1 year in a Quality Control Analyst role with Sri Venkateswara Chemicals and Polymers before relocating to Dublin to complete his Masters. He has now joined Regeneron in their Instrumentation qualification team where he joins Katy and Malvika.

Brain McNamara

Brian holds a BSc in Drug and Medicinal Product Analysis from Limerick Institute of Technology and has completed a number of certificate and diploma programmes in Lean six sigma. Quality Engineering and profession competence in Medtech.  Brian is an extensive traveller having spent time in the US, Australia and Denmark.  He has now joined Regeneron in their cleaning validation team where he joins Stacey, Suvriti, Pragya, Ayushi, Apurva and Myles.



Brian

Apurva Shirgupikar

Apurva holds a Bachelors of Pharmaceutical Science, from KLE College of Pharmacy, Belgaum in India and has completed her Master in Pharmaceutical Business & Technology with Griffith College and Innopharma Education.  Apurva spent 6 months in a Quality Control Analyst role with Srivari Pharmaceuticals before relocating to Dublin to complete her Masters. She has now joined Regeneron in their cleaning validation team where she joins Stacey, Suvriti, Pragya, Ayushi, Brian and Myles.

Apurva Shirgupikar
Myles Corrigan

Myles Corrigan

Myles is a 2020 graduate with a BA in Medicinal Chemistry from Trinity College Dublin.  While this is his first role in industry, he did work his way through college in the hospitality industry.  Myles has now joined Regeneron in their cleaning validation team where he joins Stacey, Suvriti, Pragya, Ayushi, Apurva and Brian.



Meet Paul Hession Client Relationship Manager and HR Business Partner

See Introduction below. 

INNOPHARMA
A WARM WELCOME TO OUR NEWBIES 

James

James Kearney

I graduated from the Postgraduate in Pharmaceutical Business & Technology in 2019 with Innopharma Education. I have been a Faculty Administrator in the Faculty of Business in Griffith College and spent many years in Customer Service and Technical Support.  I love emerging technologies, adventure, great food, music, and life. I enjoy being active and have traversed many mountains across the Country.


Nora Nelligan

I'm an Education Coordinator in the Limerick region. I completed the Level 6 Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Operations certificate 2 years ago and from there went on to work in the Medical Device industry. I am really enjoying being on the other end of it now and supporting students in their studies to advance in their careers. I love travelling and usually spend Christmas in Asia somewhere on a beach, which couldn't happen this year so it will be great to be at home with family. I love hiking and anything outdoors. I'm very excited to be part of the team. Innopharma has given me so many wonderful opportunities and I'm very grateful.

 
 
Nora

Deirdre

Deirdre Finn 

I joined Innopharma in October 2020 and have been working with the Education Division presenting lectures and building scientific content for E-modules. The plan is to work with the Technology team down the line so I'll be between the two teams. I hold a PhD in Pharmaceutical Chemistry from the School of Pharmacy, Trinity College Dublin. I have been working in the pharmaceutical industry for 7+ years as part of the Analytical Team.


Brigid Harney

I have run my own photography business for 25 years before retraining in accounts after the 2008 recession. I went to work in KPMG for a couple of years. I am delighted to have joined the accounts team in Innopharma. I am interested in all aspects of running a successful business, the basis of which starts with good accounting! My interests are jogging, hiking in the Wicklow mountains and recently sea swimming brrrrrrrr…..

Brigid

Paul


Paul Hession 

I have worked in the Medical Device and Automobile industry both in Ireland and the UK for the last 30 years. Previously I worked for TE Creganna Medical and Medtronic as a Senior HR Business Partner and both Cregg Recruitment and Kelly Services Ireland as their Service Delivery / Country Manager. I have a Master in HR Leadership and he lives in Galway and I am married to Jacqui with 2 grown up children. My main interests are all types of sport, music (big Elvis fan), travelling and reading. I took up golf this year, so my challenge is to reduce my handicap over the next 12 months. I am looking forward to working with everyone in Innopharma, first impression is very positive and welcoming.

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VIRTUAL FUN!


SOCIAL CLUB 

Our Social Club returned with a Family and Friends Recipe Sharing Evening at the end of November. This night involved a number of recipes and wine recommendations. The evening was great fun with many easy family favorites shared and lots of laughs along the way. If you would like some new recipes that were discussed on the evening just ask Mary Jane. 


BOOK CLUB 

The Innopharma Film/Book club has been very active over the last quarter with regular meetups. Great discussions have taken place on the various books and films/documentaries. It is great to share recommendations and opinions! We look forward to continue this in the new year. 

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xmas-2020

CHRISTMAS PART

We hope you are all looking forward to the Christmas party tonight! Don't forget to add some Christmas spirit with a festive outfit, hat or background. While it's not the party we hoped for, lets make the best of a bad situation and finish off the year with some virtual bingo, Christmas music and a few surprises along the way. 


WISHING EVERYONE AT INNOPHARMA A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR

2020