Conversations That Matters
ISPE Facilities of the Future Conference in San Fransisco
Mobilizing a Digital Engineering Program: Practitioner View
Speaker: Joydeep Ganguly, Gilead Sciences, Inc.
Gilead Sciences: Rebuilding for Innovation and Digital Transformation
Gilead’s ambition to lead pharmaceutical innovation drove its strategic decision to accelerate drug development and optimise operational efficiency. By creating an advanced, co-located research infrastructure and implementing a value-driven digital strategy, Gilead ensured that scientific breakthroughs translate into real-world treatments faster and more efficiently, ultimately benefiting patients worldwide.
Rebuilding with a Focus on Flow, Technology Integration, and High Utilization
Gilead undertook a bold initiative to demolish and rebuild its campus to establish a research infrastructure that expedites technology transfers and improves drug delivery efficiency at a lower cost. This strategic decision aimed to create a seamless, co-located environment that supports the entire arc of drug development. The newly built campus spans over 2 million square feet and represents a significant investment in science-driven infrastructure. Unlike traditional real estate economics, Gilead prioritised design principles emphasising flow, technology integration, and high utilisation. The initial $3 billion master plan was followed by an additional $1.2 billion investment to consolidate biologics infrastructure into the Foster City site.
Key Principles Driving the Rebuilding
- Following the Molecule
The new campus was designed to support every stage of drug development—from discovery research to scale-up, process development, and formulation. This holistic approach ensures that scientific innovations transition seamlessly through the pipeline.
- Enabling Collocation
By consolidating operations into a world-class research infrastructure, Gilead fostered an environment where multidisciplinary teams collaborate more effectively, accelerating innovation.
- Improving Timelines
The redesigned infrastructure facilitates faster technology transfers, particularly in molecule development, enhancing Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls (CMC) timelines. This strategic shift brings new therapies to market more efficiently.
- Increasing Efficiency
Collocating R&D functions eliminates redundancies, optimizes workflows, and reduces operational costs. This streamlined approach enhances overall drug development efficiency.
- Supporting Rapid Response
During the COVID-19 pandemic, this revamped infrastructure played a crucial role in enabling Gilead to develop remdesivir within just six months, demonstrating the impact of an agile research ecosystem.
Through its rigorous approach, Gilead has successfully implemented digital strategies focusing on value creation rather than cost reduction.
Digital Solutions That Fail to Deliver
Many digital solutions promise significant savings but often fail to deliver due to operating in silos and lacking integration. To counter this, Gilead took a different approach. Beyond physical infrastructure, the company shifted its digital transformation strategy to focus on measurable outcomes rather than indiscriminate technology adoption. They paused all digital investments except for essential infrastructure and established a lighthouse portfolio of programs indexed against standardized Key Performance Indicators (KPIs).
Rather than adopting digital tools in isolation, Gilead aligns its digital strategy with the company’s overall innovation and value index, ensuring that each investment contributes meaningfully to scientific progress.
Key KPIs Driving Digital Transformation
- Cycle time per batch
- Experiment runtime reduction
- Increased large molecule assay throughput
- Number of studies conducted
- Cost savings per square foot
- Energy efficiency improvements
By prioritizing these metrics, Gilead ensures that its digital transformation initiatives drive meaningful impact in both scientific innovation and operational efficiency.
Results That Speak for Themselves
- Focus on Throughput and Efficiency
Gilead measures success through quantifiable metrics such as increased assay throughput, reduced processing times, and improved experiment efficiency. A key achievement includes leveraging machine learning for automated data collection, reducing sample sequencing processing time from 45 days to just 12.5 days.
- Deferral of Capital Expenditure
By optimizing existing infrastructure with digital solutions, Gilead deferred the need to build a new facility for four years, effectively increasing working capital and reducing unnecessary expenditures.
Key Takeaways from Gilead’s Digital Strategy
- Standardized KPIs for Measurable Success
Gilead uses a uniform set of KPIs to evaluate every digital investment, ensuring consistent assessment and value generation.
- Deep Business-IT Partnership
A key aspect of Gilead’s strategy is fostering strong collaboration between engineering, IT, and scientific teams. This partnership ensures that digital initiatives directly enhance research and operational workflows while keeping the end user in mind.
- Impact on Innovation Index
Gilead focuses on aligning digital tools with the company’s overall innovation and value index rather than adopting tools in isolation. This ensures meaningful contributions to scientific progress.
