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One of the oldest pharmaceutical companies with nearly 240 years of existence, Takeda has grown internationally while maintaining its values of integrity, respect and patient focus. With a presence in 80 countries and over 50,000 employees worldwide, it is in the top 10 of pharmaceutical companies. In Belgium, the company is the 5 th largest employer in the sector, with a factory in Lessines and commercial and administrative headquarters based in Zaventem.

A major innovative employer

By acquiring the pharmaceutical company Shire in January 2019, Takeda grew its global sales to $30 billion per year. This visionary capacity is also reflected in the three major therapeutic fields in which Takeda is active in Belgium: oncology (with a current focus on specific blood cancers such as multiple myeloma and Hodgkin lymphoma), gastroenterology (with highperformance products to treat inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn's disease) and rare diseases (with a leading position in haemophilia and metabolic diseases such as Fabry disease and Gaucher's disease, which are highly debilitating hereditary illnesses). The common thread: these diseases require innovative solutions in order to improve patient quality of life. In addition to these specialist care products, Takeda offers a wide range of primary care products (prescription and over-the-counter), including medications for the treatment of reflux and osteoporosis. Laurent Henaux, General Manager at Takeda Belgium © Takeda Belgium Pierre Dorignaux, Head of Lessines production site © Takeda Belgium

Unmet medical needs

Takeda is always looking for new and innovative solutions for patients. Currently, the company is running 40 new product projects, which are in various stages of development. Here, Belgium plays a leading role with 20 clinical studies in various hospitals. In the field of research, Takeda has entered into more than 100 partnerships worldwide with scientific teams, start-ups, university laboratories and biotechnology companies that adopt innovative approaches, particularly in cell and gene therapy.

Laurent Henaux, General Manager at Takeda Belgium explains: “It is about meeting unmet medical needs, for example in lung cancer and immunology, or for disabling orphan diseases such as hereditary angioedema. For this indication, we already have three products in our product portfolio to treat this disease, which affects approximately 300 people in Belgium, and we hope to introduce this year another treatment to change the course of the disease and thus strongly contribute to a higher quality of life for these patients.” In support of this policy, Takeda's Lessines plant is dedicated to rare disease patients and is part of a global network, GMS (Global Manufacturing Supply).

“1,100 employees work 24/7 in this centre of excellence, which is active in immunoglobulin G purification, aseptic filling and packaging for immunoglobulin products and even biological (haematological) products. The immunological products manufactured in Lessines (Kiovig for the European market, Gammagard Liquid for the American market, Cuvitru and HyQvia) are indicated for the treatment of primary immune deficiency and distributed in over 80 countries including the United States, Canada, Brazil, Germany, France etc.,” explains Pierre Dorignaux, Head of the Lessines production facility.

Takeda's plant in Lessines is ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 certified, which clearly illustrates its quality of service, strategic choice of safety and desire to work more with renewable energies and to increase the recyclability of its production process. In addition, it has an active recruitment policy, with 193 staff hired in 2019 alone (including 74 external hirings, 54 internal job switches and 65 temporary contractors on an interim contract). This search for new talent is far from over, as the factory is continuing to hire.

“This strong growth is easily explained by the fact that 90% of patients with primary immune deficiency lack one protein, immunoglobulin G, which is purified in the Lessines plant to provide patients with lifelong treatments. In addition, the biopharma industry has estimated that, for the period 2016-2024, the annual growth rate in demand for immunological products will be at least 6.7%,” Pierre Dorignaux explains.

© Takeda Belgium

Working perfectly alongside Takeda's plant in Lexington, Georgia (USA), Takeda's Lessines plant is currently finalising a major investment in a new purification unit to manufacture a new plasma protein. And that's not all: the plant is investing in continuous improvement (quality, compliance, shorter production times and delivery of crucial products classified in the “life savers” category) and in increasing its capacity with regard to purification, aseptic filling and packaging.

At the service of patients

“Takeda’s investments, strategy and marketing are always patientfocused. This commitment translates into finding solutions in cooperation with patients, far beyond the simple provision of treatment,” explains Laurent Henaux. In a similar vein, the company has set up a support and services program to help patients in their daily lives. To drive this patient-centric way of thinking it has developed the “In Their Shoes” application to allow its employees and health care professionals (nurses, gastroenterologists etc.) to empathise with the experiences of patients suffering from Crohn's disease and other inflammatory bowel diseases. The application includes simulation exercises that make it possible to recreate the everyday constraints of the pathology as realistically as possible. This application should soon be available for other conditions.

IIn relation to the same diseases, Takeda has co-created with the patient associations blogs that give patients a voice: these life stories allow solutions to be shared in a spirit of mutual support with family and friends. With 30,000 affected persons in Belgium, these blogs have 120,000 unique visitors each year. This is proof that the interest and added value is there for patients and their families. And there is more: every year, 150 patient associations around the world are consulted to contribute to the assessment of Takeda's 400 top managers: they feed back on their perception of Takeda, the quality of its collaboration and partnerships with them.

In this way, Takeda is continuously strengthening its commitment to supporting patients and building with them the best possible quality of life, for today and tomorrow. This ambition is firmly based on the contributions of employees, who create value but also a sense of meaningfulness, in accordance with patient needs and expectations. All in all, a winning corporate culture!

Takeda Belgium s.c.a. | c.v.a. Leonardo Da Vincilaan, 7 - B-1930 Zaventem Tel.: +32 2 464 06 11 Email: be-info@takeda.com http://www.takeda.be