2026-07-07

Sachin Joshi, Managing Director and Co-Founder, PharmNXT, discusses biologics supply chains, single-use technologies, localisation, and the future of biologics manufacturing, in an exclusive interview with Pharma Industrial India.

Q. What are the key vulnerabilities in the current biologics supply chain, and how can companies build resilience without compromising on quality or compliance?

Sachin Joshi: As biologics manufacturing scales globally, supply chains are becoming increasingly specialised and interconnected. Critical inputs such as single-use consumables, tubing assemblies, manifolds, buffer bags, mixer bags, and sterile fluid management components require highly controlled manufacturing environments and stringent quality standards. Estimates project the global biologics market to exceed USD 600 billion by the end of the decade, making continuity, traceability and regulatory alignment across supply chains even more important. Over the last few years, the industry has seen a strong shift to ward building more resilient and regionally diversified supply chains. Companies are increasingly qualifying multiple suppliers, strengthening inventory visibility and investing in local manufacturing capabilities for critical consumables. The focus is not only on availability, price, but also on ensuring globally benchmarked quality systems, documentation standards and compliance readiness.

India is also seeing growing momentum in this space as the country expands its footprint in biologics, biosimilars and advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing. Our focus has been on building integrated capabilities in single-use systems, single use consumables, chromatography systems, filtration systems and fluid management solutions, underpinned by strong quality frameworks. We believe the future of biologics manufacturing will be defined by supply chains that combine resilience, localisation and global quality standards seamlessly.

Q. How are ongoing geopolitical tensions in West Asia reshaping global biologics supply chains? What steps are biologics manufacturers taking to recalibrate their cost structures?

Sachin Joshi: Geopolitical developments in regions such as West Asia have reinforced the importance of resilient and diversified supply chains across the life sciences sector. Biologics manufacturing depends on timely access to highly specialised inputs, and fluctuations in freight costs, transit timelines and energy-linked logistics can influence operational planning and cost structures globally. As a result, companies are increasingly moving toward distributed supply chain models with greater emphasis on regional sourcing and manufacturing flexibility. India is emerging as an important part of this transition, supported by its growing biotech ecosystem, manufacturing base and scientific talent pool. India’s bioeconomy is projected to reach USD 300 billion by 2030, reflecting the scale of opportunity across advanced manufacturing and bioprocessing.

At the same time, biologics manufacturers are recalibrating costs throughprocess optimisation,modularmanufacturing and adoption of single-use technologies. The global single-use bioprocessing market is projected to cross USD 30 billion over the coming years as manufacturers prioritise flexible and cost-efficient production systems. We are seeing increasing demand for locally manufactured, globally compliant consumables that help customers improve supply reliability while remaining competitive in an increasingly dynamic global environment.

Q. How do single-use systems contribute to operational flexibility and sustainability in today’s high-cost environment?

Sachin Joshi: Single-use systems have become a key enabler of modern biologics manufacturing because they offer flexibility, speed and operational efficiency. Unlike conventional stainless-steel infrastructure, single-use technologies reduce cleaning requirements, minimise downtime between batches and allow faster product changeovers. This is particularly valuable in biologics and biosimilars manufacturing, where production environments need to remain agile and adaptable.

In today’s high-cost environment, these efficiencies translate into meaningful operational advantages. Single-use systems can significantly reduce infrastructure requirements while lowering water and energy consumption associated with cleaning and sterilisation processes. The global market for single-use bioprocessing technologies is projected to cross USD 30 billion over the coming years, reflecting rapid adoption across vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, cell therapies and next-generation biologics manufacturing.

Sustainability is also becoming an important consideration. While single-use systems involve disposable components, lifecycle assessments increasingly indicate that reduced water usage, lower energy consumption and smaller facility footprints can improve overall resource efficiency significantly. Our focus is on designing efficient single-use assemblies, customised manifolds bioprocess bags and fluid management systems and solutions that support both operational performance and responsible manufacturing practices.

Q. In a phase where companies are under pressure to cut costs, how do you balance innovation with affordability, especially in high-spec consumables?

Sachin Joshi: In biologics manufacturing, affordability and quality must go hand in hand. High-spec consumables operate in tightly regulated environments where performance, sterility, consistency and documentation standards are critical. The challenge therefore, is not simply reducing cost, but improving efficiency across design, engineering and manufacturing.

One important trend shaping the industry is the localisation of advanced manufacturing capabilities. By building globally compliant products closer to the end market, companies can reduce logistics costs, lead-time uncertainty and currency-related volatility while improving responsiveness and scalability. Innovation also becomes more sustainable when products are designed around modularity and process efficiency. Standardised platforms combined with application-specific customisation can improve scalability while maintaining flexibility for customers. India’s biosimilars segment is expected to see strong long-term growth over the coming years, creating increasing demand for high-quality consumables manufactured at globally competitive price points. We are focused on integrating design, engineering and manufacturing to deliver reliable single-use solutions that balance performance, affordability and compliance in a scalable manner.

Q. Do you see India evolving into a global hub for biologics manufacturing and consumables? What policy, infrastructure, or ecosystem changes are still required to accelerate this shift?

Sachin Joshi: India has strong fundamentals to emerge as a major global hub for biologics manufacturing and bioprocessing consumables. The country already contributes significantly to global healthcare supply chains and supplies nearly 60 percent of global vaccine demand. With India’s bioeconomy projected to reach USD 300 billion by 2030, there is increasing momentum around advanced manufacturing, biosimilars and biologics infrastructure.

India benefits from a strong scientific talent base, manufacturing experience and growing domestic demand. The next phase of growth will likely come from expanding capabilities across specialised areas such as single-use systems, single use consumables, filtration technologies, fluid management, specialised materials and advanced bioprocessing solutions. Encouragingly, there is increasing policy focus on biotechnology innovation, advanced manufacturing and strengthening domestic capabilities across strategic sectors. Continued in vestment in R&D, logistics infrastructure, cold chain systems and industry-academia collaboration will further accelerate this transition. We see ourselves contributing to this evolving ecosystem by building indigenous capabilities in advanced single-use technologies and integrated bioprocess solutions. India is well positioned to become a trusted global partner in the next phase of biologics manufacturing growth.

Q. Looking ahead, what key trends will define the biologics manufacturing landscape in the next decade, particularly in terms of supply chain design, technology adoption, and regionalisation?

Sachin Joshi: The next decade of biologics manufacturing will be shaped by 3 defining themes: resilience, flexibility and regionalisation. Global companies are increasingly adopting distributed manufacturing models to create more agile and dependable supply chains, and India is well positioned to play a larger role within this evolving global network.

Technology adoption will accelerate significantly across the sector. Single-use systems, modular facilities, automation, real-time process monitoring and AI-driven optimisation are expected to become increasingly mainstream. The global market for single-use bioprocessing technologies is projected to cross USD 30 billion over the coming years as manufacturers prioritise efficiency, speed and scalable production models.

At the same time, the biologics pipeline itself is evolving rapidly with increasing focus on biosimilars, monoclonal antibodies, cell therapies and precision medicine. This will require manufacturing infrastructure that is more flexible, scalable and contamination-controlled than traditional pharmaceutical facilities. Sustainability will also become an important operational consideration, influencing facility design, material selection and resource efficiency strategies. Companies will increasingly be expected to balance operational excellence with environmental responsibility. Our focus remains aligned with these long-term industry shifts through investments in advanced single-use platforms, local manufacturing capabilities and integrated bioprocess solutions designed for the future of biologics manufacturing.