INC Research Announces Multi-Year Strategic Clinical Development Alliance with Astellas

INC Research announced that the company has entered into a Functional Service Provider (FSP) alliance with Astellas Pharma Global Development, Inc.(Astellas), to drive global consistency, save time, and reduce costs for multiple clinical development programs across several therapeutic areas. In an initial three-year agreement, INC Research will deliver key functional services to Astellas, including Clinical Monitoring,Clinical Data Management, Trial Master File Management, Site Start-up and Study Feasibility activities. Work began April 2 and is being conducted globally.

"INC Research has worked with Astellas on several full-service development programs where our teams have created strong bonds and deep level of trust, and we are excited to extend that relationship through our FSP alliance," said James Ogle, CEO, INC Research. "With mutually agreed expectations and insight into Astellas' development pipeline, our dedicated teams will utilize our innovative tools and proprietary processes to efficiently manage these clinical development elements and drive global consistency across development programs."

INC Research established a dedicated business unit for delivery of the FSP services to Astellas, allowing for independent, cross-functional resource management and training of Company staff committed to the partnership. An executive governance structure has been implemented for management of the relationship, with plans to leverage key metrics to drive decision making and ensure continuous improvement across the alliance. Success will be measured based on operational delivery, effectivecollaboration and process and technology innovation.

INC Research is among the pioneers involved in development of the FSP model, providing more than a decade of FSP experience and the expertise of hundreds of dedicated and highly experienced FSP employees. The Company's FSP model uses strategic commitment and performance-based measures to improve productivity in key service areas for its biopharmaceutical customers. The end result is greater cost predictability and delivery of consistent services across all protocols. INC Research's FSP model has proven to reduce costs by up to 40 percent and generate time savings of 10 to 20 percent over the course of a relationship.