Jean-Luc Herbeaux to become Hovione CEO

Lisbon, Portugal, 25 February 2022 – Hovione today announced that the Board of Directors and the shareholders have approved the appointment of Dr. Jean-Luc Herbeaux as Hovione’s Chief Executive Officer, effective 1st April 2022.

Guy Villax, who has been Hovione’s CEO for the past 25 years will now serve as a Member of the Board and shareholder. During his tenure, Hovione grew tenfold.  The company currently employs 2000 team members, serves the global market from four production sites in 3 regions, and is recognized as a leader in its field.  

The Board of Directors expresses its thanks to Guy Villax for his dedication and outstanding achievements. During his career at Hovione, Guy Villax was also involved with the EFCG and Rx-360 associations and contributed to legislation being passed on both sides of the Atlantic to fight fake medicines and to level the playing field for GMP manufacturing.

“It has been a privilege and honor to lead Hovione over the last decades. Hovione is a great company because of its people and its clients. It has been an amazing entrepreneurial and human journey with so many projects and unforgettable success stories. I have seen this company, founded by my parents, growing, evolving and constantly re-inventing itself”, said Guy Villax. “Dr. Herbeaux joined Hovione nearly two years ago as COO and from day 1 brought change and contributed to financial and business successes.  We have worked together both on the strategy which will take Hovione to the next level and on making this transition smooth. I am certain that both the company and our Team-Members will continue to thrive under his leadership”, added Guy Villax.  

“I am honored to be entrusted with the role of Hovione’s CEO and I am deeply motivated to lead this team of talented professionals. Building on Guy Villax´s legacy of innovation and customer intimacy, we will continue to work to drive long-term growth for both ourselves and our customers maintaining the Hovione values. Hovione puts customers and patients at the center of everything it does and this focus will not change. Our customers can expect us to continue to deliver on what we promise and to offer innovative approaches to their project needs.”, said Jean-Luc Herbeaux.

Before joining Hovione in May 2020, Dr. Herbeaux held multiple high-level leadership positions at Evonik, where he last headed the Health Care Business Line Dr. Herbeaux holds both a Master of Science and a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering with a research focus on Rheology from the University of Houston.

About Hovione: Hovione is an international company with over 60 years of experience as a Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) and is currently a fully integrated supplier offering services for drug substance, drug product intermediate and drug product. With four FDA inspected sites in the USA, China, Ireland, and Portugal and development laboratories in Lisbon, Portugal and New Jersey, USA, the company provides branded pharmaceutical customers services for the development and compliant manufacture of innovative drugs including highly potent compounds and customized product solutions across the entire drug life cycle. In the inhalation area, Hovione offers a complete range of and services, from API, formulation development and devices. Hovione was the first Chemical/ Pharmaceutical Company to became a Certified B Corp, is a member of Rx-360, EFCG and participates actively in the industry standard setting process.