SGD Pharma, announces its goal to become the global market leader in primary pharmaceutical glass packaging. CEO Olivier Rousseau explains that SGD Pharma intends to significantly grow in 2024, with a sustained and consistent approach to its commercial, innovation, industrial, sustainability, HR and M&A strategies.

Underpinning this objective Rousseau outlines the investment achievements already notched up in 2023, to illustrate how SGD Pharma has paved the way for this planned growth: “The start of 2023 brought a new partnership, with the announcement of our joint venture with Corning, supported by investment from the Telangana state in India. This collaboration combined Corning’s state-of-the-art coating technology with SGD Pharma’s glass-converting expertise to manufacture Velocity Vials, Type I borosilicate glass tubing.” The construction of a new tubing plant officially began with a celebratory ground-breaking ceremony at the plant in Vemula, India in June 2023. On completion, this new facility will expand pharmaceutical packaging manufacturing in India and access to the Corning Velocity Vial technology in the region.

Another key area of progress for SGD Pharma last year was the company’s sustainable efforts and decarbonization strategy. SGD Pharma was awarded a gold EcoVadis sustainability rating and made a number of modifications throughout the year to improve its high score for the 2023 award. EcoVadis assesses companies in four key areas – Environment, Labour and Human Rights, Sustainable Procurement and Ethics – rating a company relative to its peers. High scores across the board put SGD Pharma in the top 5% of glass product manufacturers, with particularly high scores for sustainable procurement. 

SGD Pharma released its 2023 CSR report in June, outlining the three pillars of its sustainability strategy: to become industry leader in decarbonization, (with planned reductions in emissions by -65% by 2040) as well as leadership in sustainable compliance and sustainable H&S and HR practices.  At the end of the year, SGD Pharma joined the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) as part of the company’s sustainability drive. The SBTi is a global body enabling businesses to set ambitious targets for emissions reductions in line with leading climate science. SGD Pharma’s plants in France, Germany, India and China plan to cut CO2 scope 1 and 2 emissions by 35% by 2030 and by 65% by 2040 (compared with a 2020 baseline). 100% of all SGD Pharma-owned glass manufacturing plants are ISO 45001 certified and that 79% of all waste is recycled.  The company also received awards for its efforts towards decarbonization and mangrove advocacy at the CCI Event in Guangzhou, China.

As well as the new line for Vemula, India, other site investments include the renovation of one of two furnaces at SGD Pharma’s Saint Quentin Lamotte (SQLM) plant in France. This rebuild will contribute to a two-thirds reduction in the company’s total carbon emissions by 2040 and will cut the SQLM CO2 emissions by almost 20%. Furthermore, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed with the Zhanjiang Mayor in China for SGD Pharma to invest in the rebuilding of the plant furnace at Zhanjiang and a new siliconization operation line will become operational at the SQLM plant to increase flexibility and capacity.

In terms of products, SGD Pharma launched the extension of its Clareo range to include 10ml as well as its Sterinity range of ready-to-use vials in sizes 10ml and 20ml. The second half of the year saw the announcement of the company’s pharmaceutical vial thermosealing offering, PROSEAL+. As many oral pharmaceutical products are sensitive to moisture and oxygen, PROSEAL+ provides a resistant hermetic seal that protects both the content and the user as the seal is also tamper evident.  

Additionally, SGD Pharma celebrated 30 years in China at its Zhanjiang manufacturing plant, which produces molded glass and is market leader in glass for cosmetics and beauty packaging.  Multiple product introductions for the eco cosmetics packaging market have been launched from China, where SGD Pharma is market leader in glass packaging for beauty.  Eclipse, SGD Pharma’s re-fillable jar and new mini fragrance samplers were showcased at Luxe Pack New York and its new NOVA lightweight glass bottle launched at Cosmoprof Asia.

To round up the investments in 2023, SGD Pharma CEO Olivier Rousseau is looking ahead to a number of strategic developments for 2024, which will start with announcements at Pharmapack 2024 on booth B60 & B62.