Welcome to the Material Science Focus Group
Who We Are
The Focus Group steering committee has representation from industrial scientists and academics and the many shades in between (so all are welcome). We have representation from a number of large pharma companies including AstraZeneca, GSK, BMS, Novartis and Pfizer. We also have representation from academics. Through its membership the Focus Group provides a pre-competitive forum that promotes scientific education and training in the field of pharmaceutical material science. This includes topics such as new materials, new analytical techniques and new considerations for known materials in order to meet the needs of novel processing techniques. The Focus Group provides an active community of practice for those interested in pharmaceutical material science and through this network seeks to develop opportunities for cross-sector pre-competitive collaboration. The Focus Group will contribute to the scientific programme for the annual APS PharmSci meeting and organise additional symposia to promote awareness of innovative approaches across material science; often in collaboration with other Focus Groups.
What is Material Science?
Material Science covers a range of scales (from molecular to impacting on tonnes of powder) and directly affects the ability for a novel medicine to work in the body and how it is produced so it can get there. i.e. Dictating how you will make and deliver a medicine. Material science covers a very broad range of topics from solubility and rheology to mechanical properties across the whole range of medicines manufacture. So consideration of the material science properties of an active molecule, and the medicine it is part of, is essential to the delivery of new and improved medicines to patients; along with many other considerations (dealt with by other APS Focus Groups). As such material science is a highly collaborative discipline which works across many areas of drug development. This is reflected in the makeup of the Focus Group and the range of meetings we have organised over the group’s history to provide a forum for discussion and learning in the current issues.
Meet the Group
why you should get involved…
You should get involved if you are interested in accessing and shaping novel materials science approaches and their application in
pharmaceutical products in an open pre-competitive forum.
We are very happy to have members who are there to listen and learn as well as those who contribute and drive the agenda;
the only requirement for getting involved is a passion for materials science.