It has been three years since our Kawagoe site became part of the Adragos family, and it is a milestone that fills me and our entire team with immense pride. This journey has been one of transformation, growth, and partnership. Looking back at where we started and seeing where we are today, I wanted to share some reflections on this journey from a time of uncertainty to becoming a flagship site within our global network.
A Time of Transition
To truly appreciate the journey, it’s important to remember the landscape before the acquisition. Our team was navigating a period of significant change, which brought both challenges and opportunities.
Before the acquisition, Kawagoe was going through transformation which included downsizing driven by our previous owner. Our legacy business of solid oral dosage manufacturing had already been transferred out of the site, and some team members were understandably uncertain about the future of the business. At the same time, we tried to see these changes as the last opportunity to secure Kawagoe’s long‑term business continuity, and the team was making a conscious effort to approach this period in a positive and proactive way.
There were several potential owners under consideration, and I felt it was a good outcome that Adragos was selected, as its culture seemed most closely aligned with our site and our site’s values. I also expected that joining a highly specialized CDMO group would allow us to utilize Kawagoe’s strengths. My hope was that we could provide a stable working environment for our team while receiving investment in equipment and people that would help the site take the next step in its development.
That hope quickly turned into reality. With Adragos, the philosophy for operations is that the local site develops and executes its own plans. While this certainly increases our level of responsibility, I strongly felt the benefit of having more freedom and flexibility to act quickly based on decisions made close to the production – and I thought, ‘this will be a very positive change for us.’
Investment in People and Know-How
Since joining the team, we have been receiving continuous investment in people and know‑how – for example, by dispatching digital experts to the site and giving us opportunities to participate in cross‑group projects. We also receive global sales and marketing support to win new projects. All these forms of support have helped drive Kawagoe’s growth. The initiatives and direction set by the group in the digital area have clearly accelerated digitalization at Kawagoe. As a result, we will be able to visualize quality and production data in near real time, which is helping us reduce issues such as defects and downtime, and to improve our safety, quality, and productivity indicators.
From New Acquisition to a Core Global Contributor
Three years on, Kawagoe is no longer a ‘new’ site. We are a fully integrated and core part of the global network, contributing not only to business targets but also to the group’s collective knowledge. Our experience and know‑how in successfully taking over assets from Big Pharma have also been shared within the group as best practices. Looking ahead, we would like to continue to be a ‘flagship plant’ that demonstrates how long‑term business growth and stable operations can be achieved together within the greater team, and in doing so, contribute to strengthening trust globally.
Looking Forward with Ambition
Our journey is far from over. We are excited and motivated to build on our success and play an even larger role in serving the healthcare needs of Japan. My ambition is not only to grow, but also to have our site contribute to improving the overall healthcare environment in Japan through strengthening partnerships. To achieve this, we plan to expand our solid dosage manufacturing capabilities as planned, and further reinforce Kawagoe’s role as a site that combines stable supply with high flexibility.
