A ClinIntel-ligent transaction

BOSTON—Global clinical research organization PAREXEL International Corp. has announced its acquisition of all outstanding equity securities of ClinIntel, a privately owned provider of clinical randomization and trial supply management (RTSM) services based in Crawley, U.K. ClinIntel, which was founded in 2009, will be integrated into PAREXEL’s Informatics segment. PAREXEL does not expect this transaction to have a material impact on its fiscal year 2015 revenue and earnings per share, which are currently forecast at $2.07 billion to $2.11 billion and $2.58 to $2.77 (GAAP earnings per share), respectively.

While no terms for the transaction were disclosed, Xavier Flinois, president of PAREXEL Informatics, notes that both companies “are confident that this transaction presents good value for all PAREXEL and ClinIntel stakeholders involved, especially existing and future clients. Existing and prospective ClinIntel clients will now benefit from PAREXEL’s global footprint in life sciences and operational scale together with ClinIntel’s RTSM solution.”

“As the use of technology has expanded in the conduct of clinical research, PAREXEL has been a leader in randomization and trial supply management,” Josef von Rickenbach, chairman and CEO of PAREXEL, commented in a statement. “By combining the trial supply management technologies from ClinIntel with our existing ClinPhone solutions, we believe we have an opportunity to further advance our position as a clinical technology leader and grow market share by bringing enhanced speed, efficiency and simplicity to our RTSM offering.”

Flinois calls the deal “primarily a complementary acquisition,” adding that “PAREXEL Informatics will operate the service globally in all current RTSM locations, including the previous ClinIntel office near London in Crawley, Sussex.” Though the companies have not worked together before, he says ClinIntel’s approach and technology made them an attractive acquisition target.

“ClinIntel offered a highly innovative approach that we consider to be absolutely best-in-class. Study design and delivery is simplified and accelerated through the use of rapid prototyping and visual configuration tools. PAREXEL acquired ClinIntel to accelerate development of their IRT technology and, at the same time, to leverage our operational expertise and global presence to bring the benefits of this solution to our customers. This is complementary to PAREXEL’s ongoing drive towards clinical trial data management solutions focused on speed, simplicity and service,” Flinois explains. “The solution is well suited to markets which complement our current RTSM markets, providing an additional opportunity to continue to expand our leading market position. The solution has been well architected by a team that has many years’ experience in delivering supplies management and RTSM solutions to clinical trials.”

ClinIntel’s service offerings, which are designed to make patient randomization and clinical supply chain solutions more efficient, will be combined into PAREXEL’s ClinPhone RTSM suite. ClinIntel’s capabilities include advanced RTSM technologies for planning, forecasting and supply chain eLogistics. Flinois notes that “The new service aligns very well with PAREXEL’s technology offerings through PAREXEL Informatics.”

This isn’t the only growth spurt for PAREXEL in recent months. On Nov. 11, the company announced the opening of its new European Coordination Hub and Distribution Center in Berlin-Schönefeld, Germany. The new facility, which features more than 65,000 cubic meters of storage space, will offer lab-kit assembly as well as storage and distribution of ancillary materials.

“To safely and efficiently conduct clinical trials, our customers need highly specialized clinical supply and logistics services for studies that can span dozens of countries and hundreds of sites around the world,” said Mark A. Goldberg, president and chief operating officer of PAREXEL, in a statement. “Our new European distribution center reflects a commitment to simplify the important end-to-end supply-management aspect of the drug-development journey.”

PAREXEL is also opening the doors to new full-service clinical trial supply depots in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and São Paulo, Brazil.