A Network Which Makes a Difference

A Network Which Makes a Difference

Pharma Waldhof is an innovative German biochemical supplier pioneering the fascinating field of DNA, RNA, nucleotides and nucleosides and related substances. We spoke to Lukas von Hippel to find out more about the firm and its fascinating discoveries.

Founded in 1947, Pharma Waldhof was originally part of a chemical company before its own legal structure was founded. Later, Boehringer Mannheim and Roche owned the company. Aceto, a US American company listed on NASDAQ, acquired the firm in 2004, and in 2017 this pioneering company celebrated its 70th anniversary. Lukas discusses the firm’s history in more detail and outlines how the company has worked to ensure that through this it has remained at the forefront of the latest market innovations.

‘Throughout our long history Pharma Waldhof’s dedicated team have worked on state of the art knowledge to support our customers in the various regulations applicable for our products, including full cGMP and the different ISO regimes, Kosher and Halal. These products are widely used in different customer segments, including the pharmaceutical industry using our APIs, and biotech companies using our cell culture ingredients and cofactors both for R&D and diagnostic applications. Other customers are utilizing our products as cosmetic active ingredients or they formulate our substances into infant formula and nutritional products.

‘Fundamentally, we focus on two core areas; the first focus lies on our products, Nucleotides and nucleosides and relevant other substances including coenzymes. The other focus is supporting our customers by providing them with the very best possible quality and service. We are never satisfied and strive to become better and better, every day.

‘Alongside these two main focuses, we also believe that knowledge, and bridging disciplines (biology, biochemistry, chemistry and analytics) is important. This is why we continuously invest in our people. We have been pleased to be the first German biotech company awarded with the seal of excellence by Deutscher Bildungspreis, an appreciation supported by the German government for companies that are best in training and development of their employees.’

Operating in such a highly competitive market, Pharma Waldhof has to work hard to differentiate itself from other biochemical suppliers, and Lukas believes that this can only be achieved through a focus on quality and service.

‘As in every market in the world, there is a lot of competition within the bio-pharmacy space. However, we strongly believe that quality, reliability and excellent service are strong differentiating factors. Not all of our customers buy on the basis of cost of goods, but on price per kg. Various customers are happy that they did not have any complaints for more than one decade. If the cost of goods would be properly calculated we may have been the cheapest, however that is not our aim- quality is always our focus.

‘After all, it is always possible to buy more products, but it is not possible to buy back customer loyalty, and in our industry that can be lost quickly and irretrievably if they are provided with a poor quality product. We serve our customers with our products worldwide. There are various requirements from customers regarding quality and quality management systems. Dealing with all requirements does mean a high responsibility for the use of our products for our customers, and the customers of our customers. Taking this responsibility seriously makes us truly unique.’

Overall, Lukas believes that an interdisciplinary approach is vital to ensure Pharma Waldhof’s enduring success, as he explains in his concluding comments.

‘With the speed biology develops, we see an even wider range of uses for our products and believe that while science develops, the use of our products will develop as well. As a company that is able to bridge disciplines like chemistry and engineering with biological understanding we will be well positioned to deal with future opportunities. We do not know many companies that are able to combine the skills on this level we offer, and as such we are able to remain true innovators within the market, and will continue to adapt to ensure that we are consistently meeting our clients need as we look towards a bright future.

Company: Pharma Waldhof GmbH

Contact: Lukas von Hippel

Address: Hansaallee 159, 40549 Duesseldorf, Germany

Phone: 0049 0211 52602 52