“I am a 3rd  year PhD student in Maynooth University under the supervision of Associate Professor Robert Elmes and Dr Trinidad Velasco-Torrijos. By 2050 it is believed that our current set of antibiotics and antifungal agents will no longer be effective, therefore, a driving demand for new therapies and new strategies are needed to fight the rise of resistance. My PhD focuses on developing new drug delivery systems and therapeutic strategies to combat this growing issue. I utilise a combination of supramolecular, carbohydrate and peptide chemistry to accomplish this.

During my placement I worked within the process development department at Clarochem Ireland. Clarochem is a chemical manufacturer of various active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for pharmaceutical and veterinary products as well as conducting small amounts of contract manufacturing. Operating from its site in Damastown since 2009, it is part of the CFM group which include two sister sites in Italy, AMSA SpA and Cosma SpA. The CFM group has been operational since 1953 and have a long history of generic API development and manufacture including the custom synthesis of contract APIs.

Process development plays a pivotal role in Clarochem as it is responsible for the development and optimisation of new and existing API products, troubleshooting any issues that may arise from the plant, liaising with quality control and several other departments. During my time at Clarochem, I was exposed to many aspects of industrial chemistry, including SOPs, patent law and organic synthesis to pharmaceutical specifications. This was all relatively unfamiliar to me before starting the placement as I have never had any previous industrial experience.

While at Clarochem, I worked across two distinct projects. The first of which concerned the design of a process for a new API which may eventually go into production. During this time, I worked primarily on organic synthesis working my way from relatively small scale (< 5g) to large scale reactions (50g – 100g) aiming to develop a smooth process to isolate the pure target API. This also involved reporting and troubleshooting any issues that were encountered during the process to optimise and streamline the process. I also gained exposure in many analytical techniques such as polarimetry, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, loss on drying determinations and KF titrations. Essentially, this work led to the early-stage development of a process to synthesise the desired API.

The second project I was involved in concerned the optimisation of a process in development for a second new API. The goal was to essentially optimize and troubleshoot the early process that had been discovered and to expedite the development. Although, similar to my initial project, the groundwork for the process development had been done so my role mainly involved trouble shooting issues such as enhancing purification strategies, large-scale synthesis and validation of the process. During this time, I gained lots of exposure to HPLC analysis, new organic synthesis protocols and I further developed my confidence and ability performing large scale synthesis. Ultimately this led to a more complete process by the time my placement ended albeit with more development still required to make it a finished process.

Having no experience in industry before this placement I didn’t know what to expect apart from the use of SOPs. Initially apprehensive and unsure of how much chemistry and impact I would have during my placement, I was pleasantly surprised by how involved I was in every aspect of the department. This was an incredible opportunity to learn about the day-to-day operations of an industrial manufacturer especially adhering to good documentation practices. The strong reliance on team-work and strong communication in Clarochem fosters a positive environment to work in and enhance soft skills alongside the practical skills.

Alongside this I have learned so much about the requirements of process development and what makes a good and efficient process. Moreover, I learned how critical it is to monitor reactions closely especially at large scales and I gained a new approach to analysing the safety of each reaction and safer alternatives to otherwise common reagents. Also, I have gained exposure to a lot of different purification techniques and unusual solvent combinations that I previously never would’ve encountered. This alongside many new analytical techniques, particularly around NMR and HPLC, will be fruitful for the remainder of my PhD.

My time at Clarochem has been very rewarding and getting to absorb the knowledge of fantastic chemists within the department has certainly been a major highlight. This opportunity has provided so many learning opportunities and certainly opened my eyes to the possibility of working in industry in the future. The skills gained from this placement will undoubtedly be valuable for the remainder of my PhD and indeed for my future career be it in industry or academia.

Thank you to the SSPC for providing such a fantastic opportunity, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I would highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in learning more about careers in industry.”