Sanofi-Aventis remodels r&d to boost creativity

French pharmaceutical group Sanofi-Aventis is to restructure its research and development division to boost productivity and increase innovation, and plans to do this through voluntary redundancies and the closure or sale of some operations worldwide.

The company is to close eight of its 27 r&d sites globally; four in France plus plants in the UK, Japan, Spain and the US.

Christian Lacroix, head of Sanofi-Aventis France, said the aim was to "achieve a flexible and entrepreneurial approach to research."

The company said the change in the pharmaceutical environment due to the "revolution in biopharmaceutical research" has forced it to restructure its r&d activities, in order "to maintain its innovative capacities".

The new r&d model, to be in place by 2013, includes regrouping researchers in more productive structures, training them to adapt to change and work more closely with "outside entities". The aim is also to deploy "reactive entrepreneurial units" to encourage innovation.

Sanofi-Aventis confirmed its intention to maintain its level of investments in research, remain "firmly rooted" in France, create partnerships with public and private research entities, academic institutions and biotechnology companies, and bring new skills to the company by recruiting "promising" researchers.

The company plans to concentrate its research on diabetes, cancer and ageing and inflammatory diseases.

In France, Sanofi is considering selling its Porcheville plant, which employs 200 people, as well as combining discovery research establishments in Paris, which will affect approximately 300 people.

At the central group level, Sanofi is also considering "voluntary departures".

In total the company employs around 13,000 people in r&d and administrative posts.

Dr Marc Cluzel, senior vice-president for r&d, said: "We are living through radical times of change for research. Tomorrow's research will be carried out through networks. We need to reinvent r&d."