Press Room

Press Clipping / Oct 02, 2020

Pharma manufacturer Hovione announces 48 new jobs for Cork

Silicon Republic, October 2, 2020

Over the coming months, Hovione will be hiring for positions in quality control, quality analysis, warehouse operations and production operations.

Hovione, a contract pharmaceutical manufacturing and particle engineering company, has announced 48 new jobs for its base in Cork.

The expansion follows a partnership agreement between Hovione and biopharma company Ligand to ramp up production of Captisol, a product that can improve the solubility and stability of drugs. Captisol is used in the Covid-19 treatment Veklury, which is produced by US pharma company Gilead.

New hires will be based at Hovione’s site in Ringaskiddy, Co Cork, which has been in operation for more than 10 years. It was acquired from Pfizer in 2009 and currently employs around 200 people.

According to the company’s talent acquisition specialist, Michelle Ahern, the vacancies will span quality control, quality assurance, process engineering, project management, engineering, warehouse operations and production operations. Recruitment for the roles is underway and the team plan to fill them by the end of 2020.

Founded in Portugal in 1959 by Diane and Ivan Villax, Hovione helps to bring new and off-patent drugs to market. The pharma manufacturing company has 1,600 staff members around the world, with facilities in the US, Ireland, China, Portugal, India, Japan, Switzerland and Hong Kong.

Jean-Luc Herbeaux, COO of Hovione, said that increased demand for Veklury has meant that Hovione will soon be producing in a month the amount of Captisol it normally produces in a year.

“This sudden spike in demand has required unique mobilisation efforts across the Hovione network to secure additional raw-material supply, execute major capital-expenditure projects at our sites, maximise operational efficiency, hire additional talent and identify external partners to expand our overall capacity,” he said.

Ligand’s president and COO, Matt Foehr, added that Captisol is a “critical component for a number of life-saving medicines”.

Hovione Cork’s general manager, Paul Downing, said that the opportunities are for people “who want to join a fast-paced, dynamic, empowering, diverse, inclusive and exciting organisation”.

To learn more about working at Hovione, visit the company’s careers portal here.

 

Read the article at siliconrepublic.com

 

 

Also in the Press Room

See All

Twenty companies presented at the annual kickoff to DCAT Week. The Drug, Chemical & Associated Technologies Association (DCAT) opened DCAT Week 2026 with its Member Company Announcement Forum. The kickoff to the annual event in New York City, underway from March 23–26, 2026, showcased 20 companies. These were selected based on their announcements’ “news priority, criticality, and interest” to DCAT member companies. The following is a summary of highlights from the presentations, supplemented by additional information provided by some of the companies. (...) Hovione Hovione’s Vice President of Technical Operations for the Americas, David Basile, delivered the company’s Member Company Announcement Forum presentation. Basile will be speaking exclusively with Contract Pharma during DCAT Week, so check back for more on Hovione’s latest.   Read the full article at ContractPharma.com    

Press Clipping
Contract Pharma, 23 March 2026

DCAT Member Company Announcement Forum 2026: An Inside Look

Mar 23, 2026

With more than six decades of experience in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing, Hovione is an international CDMO offering a comprehensive range of services for New Molecular Entities (NMEs), including drug substances, intermediates, and drug products. The company also supplies niche generic APIs and delivers advanced technologies supporting multiple drug delivery platforms, including oral, injectable, inhalation, and topical formulations.  Today, Hovione employs 2,500 people worldwide and operates 900 m3 of manufacturing capacity across four sites in Europe, the U.S. and Asia. Japan has played an important role in the company’s global strategy since its early years. Initial export activities were followed in 2017 by the establishment of a Japanese subsidiary in Osaka.   Read the full article in Japanese at Yakuji.co.jp Read the article translated in English  

Press Clipping
Yakuji Nippo Magazine, 13 March 2026

International CDMO strengthens its presence in Japan: from active pharmaceutical ingredients to formulations, all at the same location

Mar 13, 2026

In an interview with Executiva, a portuguese media outlet focused on women´s leadership, Diane Villax, co-founder and long-standing leader of Hovione, reflects on her journey and the company’s development over more than six decades. Diane Villax’s career began at a time when few women worked outside the home. At 19, she joined a trading company as a foreign languages correspondent, where she developed essential business skills — including commercial correspondence, banking and export procedures — that later proved instrumental in helping her husband, Ivan Villax, establish Hovione in 1959. From its earliest days operating in the family home in Lisbon, Hovione adopted an international outlook. The company’s first major customers were in Japan, setting demanding quality standards that helped shape its long-term position in global markets. Over the following decades, Hovione expanded its footprint with the construction of its first manufacturing site in Loures (1969), followed by expansion to Macau (1986), the United States (New Jersey, early 2000s) and Ireland (Cork). The company grew into a global organization with more than 2,500 employees — including over 300 scientists — and a reputation as a preferred supplier to leading pharmaceutical companies worldwide. Throughout the interview, Diane highlights the values that have guided the company’s development: a commitment to excellence, a strong work ethic, and a focus on quality and long-term relationships. Although she did not have formal business training, she learned “on the job” and brought discipline, precision and structure to her role — particularly in the company’s early financial and administrative leadership. Now in her nineties and an active member of Hovione’s Board of Directors, Diane Villax remains engaged with the company’s evolution and governance, reflecting a continued commitment to its long-term development. Her story reflects entrepreneurial drive, resilience and long-term leadership — and offers insight into the values that have shaped Hovione’s trajectory for more than six decades. Read the full interview at Executiva.pt (in portuguese).    

Article
Executiva, 23 February 2026

Hovione’s Diane Villax: “I was not brought up to be a business woman”

Feb 23, 2026

Also in Events

See All