There is a high-quality talent pool in the specialist area of pharma engineering design in India

As biopharma is one of the sectors where the PM Group is active, what are the biopharma manufacturing trends for 2023 that your sector leaders are observing?

Some key trends we are seeing include:

1. Sustainability – a significant challenge across industry and the supply chain with a particular emphasis on carbon, water and energy reduction;

2. SMART manufacturing, digital transformation and Industry 4.0 – how to identify and incorporate relevant new technologies for better performance and faster delivery including Augmented Reality (AR), Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics, data analytics, etc.

3. New therapies – pharma industry manufacturers are considering how Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMPs) and other traditional modalities can be combined within the same facility or within a newly constructed agnostic building. New innovations will focus on retrofitting existing facilities, ensuring increased flexibility and adaptability for new processes and regulatory requirements

4. Value-based project delivery – There is a continued focus on cost reduction; modular construction techniques as well as shortening project schedules, efficiency, single-use and improvements in quality and GMP compliance

Can you give us some idea of the business mix between the sectors serviced by the PM Group? What percentage revenue comes from biopharma companies?

PM Group is a recognised world leader in the pharma engineering industry with over 55 per cent of our business coming from the sector. We are also leaders in the MedTech, food, advanced manufacturing and mission critical sectors. Our multi-disciplinary teams are experts in the design, construction and delivery of complex projects, common to these sectors. The PM Group has been ranked by Engineering News Record among the top-five pharma engineering firms, top 100 international design firms, top five food engineering firms and top 10 data centre engineering firms for 13 consecutive years.

What has been the growth of PM Group’s first decade in India, in terms of percentage of global revenues? What is the target growth for the next financial year and how will this be achieved?

Our Asia operations of which India is a part, accounts for approximately nine per cent of our business. Total group revenues in 2021 were $500 million. In 2023, we are targetting growth in India from 100 to 150 people.

Is India’s talent pool for the biopharma vertical sufficient for PM Group’s recruitment needs?

Yes. There is a high-quality talent pool in the specialist area of pharma engineering design in India. We are very confident of attracting additional talent to our team and achieving our growth targets.

Are there any ways the Group is nurturing this talent to attract and retain the right talent?

The quality of the world-leading projects we design and deliver is highly attractive to our employees. As an employee-owned company, we also offer many perks to our employees such as a hybrid model of working, flexible working hours and maternity leave. Apart from this, employees here also enjoy international secondment opportunities and leading standards in training (internal and external), and quality conscious work ethics in our state-of-art office environment. Keeping our employees at the centre, PM Group is committed to maintaining inclusivity in the workspace and to fostering a culture of mutual respect and belonging.