Early-phase contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) Ardena has acquired bioanalytical contract laboratory Analytical Biochemical Laboratory (ABL).

The acquisition of Netherlands-based ABL follows the merging of Pharmavize and Crystallics to form Ardena and broadens the CDMO’s preclinical and clinical offering to include bioanalytical and drug discovery services.

With the addition of ABL, the Ardena Group now employs 125 scientists.

Commenting on the announcement, Harry Christiaens CEO of Ardena, said, “Our focus is to help customers navigate the hurdles of drug development and in order to do this effectively, we need to deliver a broad and integrated service offering spanning drug discovery, preclinical, CMC and clinical services.

“With ABL’s expertise, we can now support sponsors with bioanalytical and drug discovery services to help them reach important preclinical and clinical milestones. These specialist capabilities complement our existing services, which include solid-state chemistry, analytical and formulation development, and early-phase clinical supply manufacturing.”

“This is a very exciting time for everyone at Ardena as we combine our specialist capabilities and knowledge, enabling us to develop smart, and regulatory-compliant formulations for drug development companies of all sizes,” added Harry.

The acquisition of ABL means Ardena now has three facilities in Europe, including Amsterdam (the former Crystallics facility) and Assen (the former ABL facility) in the Netherlands, as well as the company’s headquarters in Ghent, Belgium.

Harry continued, “The acquisition of ABL was a strategic decision to further our goal to become a one-source contract partner for early-phase development. We expect to continue this ‘buy & build’ strategy in the coming months and years.”

Founded in 1969, ABL specializes in the analysis of endogenous (biomarkers) and exogenous compounds (drugs) in biological matrices derived from humans and animals. The company is active in all phases of drug development, including discovery, preclinical and clinical phases I–IV.

Ep Oosting, Managing Director of ABL added, “ABL has grown significantly since I first joined the company more than 25 years ago, and it’s exciting to be part of the next stage in its evolution. We’re looking forward to combining our expertise with that of the Ardena team to be able to offer our customers a more diverse and complete range of preclinical and early-phase drug development services. Moreover, we will continue offering and even expand our standalone bioanalytical services for the pharmaceutical industry to assist customers that require a more specific service.”