Rich Whitworth

"The patent expiry of several major blockbuster drugs worth $150 billion between 2010 and 2017 will fuel the growth of the global generic pharmaceuticals market," so says a press release announcing new analysis from Frost & Sullivan.

Firstly, Happy New Year! Please help yourself to a slice of cake.

The results from our employment survey are in.

Where does the time go? It is very hard for me to believe that I am already writing for the final issue of the year, looking back over 2011 and planning for 2012.

The middle word in our magazine's title is technology, so I cannot fail to join the increasing numbers of people in all fields of business commenting on the passing of Steve Jobs.

As editor of Pharmaceutical Technology Europe, I often have the opportunity to visit the sites of a wide variety of companies within the industry. Though differing vastly in the technologies and staff they employ, they all share one thing in common for me: the "you learn something new every day!" factor.

Summer can often feel like a quiet month for the pharma industry in Europe.

There have been several new stories and reports lately that paint a rather gloomy picture of the state of pharma R&D.

One of the perks of my job is that I can travel to previously unvisited cities. This month, I was lucky enough to be in Switzerland.