Solvias, a global provider of contract research, development and manufacturing services, has completed an agreement with strategic health care investors, Water Street Healthcare Partners and JLL Partners, to fully acquire and invest in growing Solvias. The agreement is the next step in Solvias’ expansion focused on building the company into a global leader of high-quality pharmaceutical laboratory services.

Solvias will engage Water Street and JLL’s industry expertise and network of resources to extend the company’s capabilities into new and complementary areas and expand its global reach. Solvias also announced that the health care firms helped recruit two seasoned pharmaceutical services executives to join its board of directors. Michael Lehmann and Mario Rocci Jr. join Karen Huebscher, chief executive officer and director, Solvias, on the company’s board.
 
Mr. Lehmann, chairman, is the former chief commercial officer and president of global pharmaceutical development services for Patheon N.V., where he was instrumental in Patheon’s transformation to a high-growth contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO). Mr. Lehmann also spearheaded global early development for Covance Inc. Most recently, he served on the board of BioAgilytix Labs.

Mr. Rocci Jr., director, has more than 30 years of leadership experience in the pharmaceutical services industry and is the former president of ICON plc’s early phase clinical, laboratory, and scientific services division. Dr. Rocci also served as chairman of the Product Quality Research Institute and president of the American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists.

“We’re thrilled to be growing Solvias in partnership with our new investors and board,” said Dr. Huebscher. “Since Solvias’ founding, we have continuously innovated and expanded our platform of testing, specialized pharmaceutical manufacturing products, analytical kits and services to offer our customers the highest level of scientific expertise and technical capabilities. These newest initiatives support our goal of bringing greater value to our customers and positioning Solvias at the forefront of our industry.”
 
Founded in 1999, Solvias has grown to serve more than 600 biotech, medical device, cosmetic and top multinational pharmaceutical companies. In recent years, the company has extended its testing and analytical services to address biopharmaceutical products and emerging cell and gene therapies. Solvias has remained fully operational during the current pandemic crisis, providing critical services to customers, including supporting their work to develop therapeutic options and vaccine candidates for COVID-19.