We are a dynamic, rapidly expanding pharmaceutical company with established capabilities in the development of therapeutic formulations, marketing & sales, distribution and contract manufacturing.
Today, Anglo French Drugs & Industries is acknowledged for being the first company in India to manufacture “single vitamin” injectibles and a combination of B Complex Vitamins. We have emerged as a brand leader in the B-complex market and are positioned amongst the top 3 manufacturers in this market.
In the domestic market, our areas of focus include:
Our initiative to implement ERP has further enhanced our efficiencies has strongly complemented our domestic growth. We are well positioned to undertake more ambitious global expansions.
When Mr. Georage Albert Watkins, an Englishman & Mr. Edward Crossy Pereira, a Frenchman came together to import & distribute pharmaceutical products, they never did visualise that the operations would transform over the years to form one of India’s most reputed pharmaceutical company. On 1st February 1923, Anglo-French Drug Company, (Eastern), Limited was incorporated by the duo as a limited company in Bombay
The company continued in business of importing and selling products over the next few decades. In 1942, the firm registered its range of B-Complex tablets under the brand name “Beplex”. It became the pioneer in promoting these products to the medical practitioners. The same year saw the registration of the company logo along with other important products.
By 1955, the Company established its own manufacturing facility in and was one of the most reputed pharmaceutical organizations, manufacturing and marketing Sulpha drugs, Vitamins, Anti-Asthmatics and other ethical specialties. In 1959, Anglo-French Drugs & Industries Ltd. became an associate of F-Hoffmann-La Roche, Basle, Switzerland. In 1960 the company became a deemed public limited firm and began manufacturing Injectables in India. It was the first to manufacture "Single Vitamin" injectables and a combination of Vitamin B1 and Vitamin B12. In 1963, the company entered into the global markets with operations in Sri Lanka, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Pakistan, Burma & Thailand.
The decade from 1967 to 1977 saw the company strengthening its manufacturing capabilities by setting up of a development lab at Bombay (1967), commencing manufacturing and marketing cosmetic product “PANTENE” a hair tonic (1974) & setting up a bulk drug plant in Bangalore (1977).
The Kanoria group acquired controlling stake in the company in 1985. In 1992 an Injectables plant was set up in Pithampur, MP. In 1994, the company diversified into manufacturing of furnishing fabrics with the setting up of a plant in Kharchi, Gujarat. In 1996 a Tabletting facility was set up in Peenya, Bangalore, to meet the rapid growth plans.
On 9th May 1995 the name was changed to Anglo-French Drugs & Industries Limited.
At Anglo-French we understand that it is critical to have clear focus and strong ethical values in doing what we do. In order to further strengthen our position in the pharmaceutical industry we have embarked on an ambitious vision of "Building value with the Medicines we create from the best of our Efforts, Resources, People and Process taking us into the top 50 Indian Pharmaceutical Companies".
As a diversified business entity, we are constantly in the process of enhancing our business presence and operational areas, not only from product & geographic perspective but also from new ventures and new business models.
While our core business remains the manufacturing and marketing of our high quality pharmaceutical preparations, we are also strengthening our presence in the field of contract research, manufacturing services and being a pharmaceutical distribution service provider to other Indian & MNC firms in the pharmaceutical sector.
We have dedicated senior management team members focussing on developing our unconventional businesses (All business areas other than Domestic and Export Marketing) and we believe that in the coming years these businesses would contribute significantly to the overall turnover & profits of the company.
Our current employee strength of 620+ committed and talented will be enhanced over the coming years to propel us to be amongst the top pharmaceutical corporate in the next decade. Our robust infrastructure in manufacturing, research & development, sales & marketing and distribution is periodically upgraded to give us the edge to exceed expectations of all stake holders.
In the competitive Indian pharmaceutical market, we have adopted an aggressive marketing approach which we seek to further strengthen. Supporting the company in achieving its aggressive plans is a dedicated and committed army of marketing professionals spread across the country, comprising about 320 well-trained sales personnel, lead by 70 managers in the field.
The field personnel are ably supported at the Corporate Office by a proactive and dynamic marketing infrastructure comprising of a dedicated teams for product management, training, field administration, logistics & MIS. Our medical department in addition to guiding the new product identification also ensures that our field colleagues are armed with the latest scientific information thru continuous interactions with training & sales department.
In our bid to be among the top 50 pharmaceutical companies in India by 2012, we have embarked on a broad based strategy of launching innovative formulations and well-established molecules. We aim at providing our customers with a wide range of the latest quality products in the therapeutic areas of Vitamins, Nutrition, Respiratory, Cough & Cold segments. The company aims at becoming a leader and an innovator in these areas, which are our core segments.
Exports were initiated in 1997 with registrations of products in Russia. Presently our export operations cover 13 countries including Eastern Europe, South East Asia & Africa. From a pure trading oriented approach in the early years of our exports operations, the company has significantly shifted its focus to extend its marketing activities globally. In the current year we have added Sri Lanka & Myanmar to our marketing operations
We have manufacturing approvals for the tablets facility at Peenya Bangalore from NDA Uganda & Ukraine. In the financial year 2009-10 we aim to obtain approvals from MCC South Africa, NAFDAC Nigeria, and TFDA Tanzania for this facility.
At AFD exports, we have set our goals towards rapid expansion by focusing on three main areas:
» Adding new products to existing markets » Entering new markets with existing products » Entering new markets with new products offerings
We are aiming to be among the top 50 pharmaceutical exporters by steadily expanding global footprint
Our recently upgraded Tabletting plant at Peenya Bangalore has a capacity to produce 50 lakh tablets per shift in a range of sugar coated, film coated and enteric coated versions. This capacity in addition to meeting the captive demand of our branded formulations for the domestic and export markets also would be available for MNC’s and other large Pharmaceutical houses to outsource their production requirements.
Our facility meets all current international requirements on cGMP and the requirement of semi regulatory market. The Peenya plant has received WHOGMP approval and approval from other countries like Ukraine & Uganda, apart from customers from India and abroad. The facility will be subjected to various other audits for gaining approval in the year, with focus on achieving MCC (South Africa) by the end of this year. The Peenya plant houses state-of-the-art equipment, in environment controlled and employs the best systems and processes. The surrounding areas of the factory have been well-maintained to enhance the beautiful environment.
Investments made in the research lab have poised us to take up Contract Research Services for various MNC & large Indian Pharma companies. We are currently developing various innovative formulations in association with a MNC Pharma firm in the area of nutraceutical products.
The development of formulations at our labs helps our partner firms to reduce time and the associated costs with product development work. We are focussing on increasing the services provided under our contract research for customers to include, new dosage forms & novel combinations. We anticipate this business to grow significantly in the years to come and are investing in upgrading the skills and capabilities of our team to tap in the upcoming opportunities in this area.
We are all set to tap the vast potential of the rapidly growing market for Natural Products. Our decades of experience with developing formulations in the Pharmaceutical space have ensured that we are ready to meet the growing demand for Natural products.
Amalgamating knowledge from the 5000 year old Ayurvedic system of medication and modern research, we are currently manufacturing natural products catering to both domestic and foreign markets. Ayurveda is one of the oldest medical systems in the world. Since it is an ancient science, most consider Ayurveda an empirical science. All our Natural products have been formulated using various classical references as well as significant current research & development so as to ensure that all formulae are evidence based. Furthermore, there is constant investment in clinical trials to prove the effectiveness of all products.
Products are subjected to stringent quality control procedures starting from procurement of raw materials with regards to identification of herbs right till the finished products so as to ensure quality of the products remains the same from batch to batch. The safety of our Natural products is borne out in the various clinical trails conducted across the country. We aim at providing our customers with a range of quality Natural products in the therapeutic areas of dermatology, general health, cough and cold, and gynaecology.
Our endeavours to strategically upgrade our infrastructure and manufacturing facilities have served us well. With the norms of Pharmaceutical manufacturing undergoing significant positive changes, keeping pace with the infrastructure requirement is challenging.
We have constantly monitored the changing environment and invested in keeping pace with the changing times. These investments have not been limited to plant and equipment, but extended to systems upgrades, skill development and know how building across the organisation.
Today, we possess amongst the best systems, processes and production facilities. We will continue to invest in keeping ahead of the changes that our industry would see in the coming years.
We have a modern Tabletting unit at Peenya, Bangalore. It had been set up with world-class, sophisticated & automatic manufacturing equipments and has received WHO GMP approval. This facility has a capacity to produce 50 lakh tablets per shift in a range of sugar coated, film coated and enteric coated versions.
This plant was audited by various MNC Pharmaceuticals and was approved by them to manufacture products under Loan licence basis. Combiflam (Aventis) was one of the important brands that was manufactured from 1997 to 2007 under this arrangement.
With our recent investment in our plant of over 8 crores, the plant is ready for meeting any regulatory audits. The plan includes having MCC level approval by end of this year.
We have a well-equipped R&D Department which is recognized by the Ministry of Science and Technology. Rigorously developed over the years, the R & D Department is the think-tank, which provides us not just the cutting edge of technology but keeps it a step ahead of the rest.
The R & D team is engaged in the development of new formulations in keeping with the latest advances in medical and pharmaceutical sciences. This apart, in its efforts to enhance benefits to our customers, the R & D team continuously strives towards innovating manufacturing procedures. Over the years our laboratory has developed a wide range of Pharmaceutical and Nutraceutical products in various therapeutic groups.
Our quality control policies ensure that the products manufactured are of the highest quality, safe and effective. Our products also comply with cGMP requirements. We have been awarded the prestigious “QUALITY EXCELLENCE AWARD” by IDMA in the years 1997 and 2004, in view of good quality systems and their implementation.
We have statistical and rigid sampling and approval procedures for the various inward materials, intermediates and finished products at every stage. Our product quality is established through a well defined stability plan in line with ICH guidelines. The Quality Control Department ensures that no product bearing the Anglo-French Drugs & Industries Ltd. insignia gets off the production line without successfully undergoing the most stringent tests.
Self inspection & self audit etc. are some of the tools by which we ensure proper adherence of defined procedures. Continuous training on cGMP and other aspects, both by in-house as well as by external agencies, keep the staff updated with their knowledge on current requirements.
In-built quality system provides:
» The confidence that the customer is well protected
» Evidence that ethical, legal and regulatory obligations are fulfilled
» Protects the Company’s reputation and maintains “customer confidence”
The Quality Control Unit aggressively monitors not only the finished products but also every procedure involved in making and marketing them. The Quality Control Department with its discerning eye has earned for the company, the coveted WHO GMP approval. With the tradition of excellence in manufacturing of oral formulations & parenterals, we march towards perfection. We strongly believe that the key factor for success is QUALITY and we are committed to the same.
In the competitive Indian pharmaceutical market, we have adopted an aggressive marketing approach which we seek to further strengthen. The vitality of Anglo-French Drugs & Industries Ltd. is derived from the dedicated and committed Marketing team spread over the entire Indian terrain, which comprises about 400+ strong field force, 23 C & F Depots and 1500+ Distributors. Our marketing capabilities are further strengthened with the presence of in-house studio to meet the day to day requirements in design and development of packaging & print promotional material
In addition to marketing our own formulations, we are presently looking out for strategic alliances with international companies for marketing their brands. Our vast experience in the Indian Pharmaceutical market, make us ideally suited vehicle for MNC firms wishing to enter and tap the vast market potential.
In our bid to be among the top 50 pharmaceutical companies in India, we have embarked on a strategy of launching new as well as well-established molecules. Our marketing thrust aims at providing customers with a wide range of latest quality products in therapeutic areas of vitamins, nutrition, sleep inducers and anti-epileptics. We aim at becoming a leader and an innovator in these areas.
Our efficient distribution network boasts of over 1500 Preferred Distributors located across the country. They are serviced by 23 Clearing and Forwarding agents located at major distribution centres in India.
The entire operations are streamlined with the recent introduction of SAP based ERP system. Inventory position is monitored on a day to day basis and actions to service the market taken from our base distribution point at Bangalore.
Achieving highest level of customer satisfaction thru efficient servicing of the orders is the number one priority at our distribution network.
Our efficient distribution network boasts of over 1500 Preferred Distributors located across the country. They are serviced by 23 Clearing and Forwarding agents located at major distribution centres in India.