Background
The world has experienced three different industrial revolutions since the 18th century, and each time, it has affected the production process of multiple industries. As the activities evolved, technology followed the way.
The fourth industrial revolution is happening right now as a continuation of the third – that started in the 20th century. It means that there is a fusion within the physical, digital, and biological world. The speed of the evolution is what differentiates this revolution from the prior ones.
The technologies involved in this revolution are connected to automation in AI (artificial intelligence), Biotechnology, Robotics, Blockchain, Speed computer processing, and more.
What is Pharma 4.0?
Pharma 4.0 is the industrial revolution within the pharmaceutical industry. It is the incorporation of digital elements into the Pharmaceutical Quality System. The purpose of it is to have more control over operations, higher quality of outcomes, transparency, and connectivity in the studies. Decision-Making is also at stake to be done faster.
There is a vast amount of data collected to support R&D, drug manufacturing, vaccine approval, clinical development, product safety monitoring, and more.
In another Beaconcure article, “The Future of Statistical Computing Environment Platforms”, the new industry trends were pointed out and analyzed. The main takeaway is that all future changes are indeed technological. There is a big focus on open-source platforms, which allows faster communication, collaboration, and a faster workflow and delivery.
It is important to point out that the change in the pharmaceutical industry is going slower than in other sectors. A handful of procedures – from suppliers to patient care – are still done manually and in a decentralized approach. For example, the quality management and control process during drug manufacturing and testing. This happens for two main reasons: the extensive regulations that a study has to follow and the enduring machinery change process.
However, there are quite a few expectations for the following years regarding new trends. The two main reasons the industry is looking forward to automating and modernizing are: every second saved in the process of drug development means a big amount of money either saved or gained; in the pharmaceutical industry a drug delivered early can save a patient’s life.
How is Beaconcure part of it?
Beaconcure is an active part of Pharma 4.0, as it has developed Verify: an automated system specifically for Life Science companies. Verify converts the clinical data into a database in order to perform validation checks, looking for any possible discrepancies.
Verify brings two key factors of the Pharma 4.0: automation of manual processes and accessibility for clinical trials data.
The first step in automating the validation process is converting static clinical data into a machine-readable format. This process is done by using machine learning algorithms. Then, the second step is to analyze the data using within, cross table, and format checks.
These validation checks happen because of the accurate parsing algorithm that Beaconcure developed. The automated analysis process is done faster and with more efficiency than when done by a human. The results of the usage of this platform are extremely beneficial: a faster and accurate process that allows shortening the delivery time.
In addition to that, Verify allows coworkers to collaborate and work together in one or multiple studies together.
Verify by Beaconcure is one of the innovative tools that are part of the current pharma industrial revolution. Its benefits are connected to a better output not only for the study but also for knowledge sharing. Reducing time to market is a big concern within the pharmaceutical industry, and Verify possibilities that.
