PyongSu - Pyongyang Pharmaceuticals

Who we are

The PyongSu Pharmaceuticals Joint Venture Company was set up by the Pyongyang Pharmaceuticals Factory, the leading North Korean company under the Ministry of Public Health with the longest experience in the production of traditional and modern medicine, and a group of foreign investors with a high expertise and a long experience in the field of manufacturing and distributing quality pharmaceuticals in Asia and elsewhere.

Partner of Choice for Aid Organisations and Individuals supporting Hospitals and patients in the DPRK

- Legal Entity: Equity J.V. Company
- Investors: The Pyongyang Pharmaceuticals Factory, the leading pharmaceutical company under the Ministry of Public Health with the longest experience in the production of traditional and modern medicine, and a group of foreign investors with a high expertise and a long experience in the field of manufacturing and distributing quality pharmaceuticals in Asia and elsewhere.
- Plot size: 4000 sqm
- Production building 1000 sqm
- Manufacturing environment: Class 100.000, HVAC,
- Production capacity per year in one shift: 187 mio. tablets or 93 mio. blisters. Upto 3 shifts possible.
- Launch in Summer 2004 by the Minister of Foreign Trade, the Vice Minister of Public Health, other senior government representatives and representatives of the foreign investors’ group
- Trial Production Start: September 2004
- 1st international GMP (WHO)-acknowledged pharmaceutical company in the DPRK
- 1st pharmaceutical company in the DPRK to win contracts under tenders against international competition
- Quality Testing Equipment suitable to do chemical-analytical tests according to KP, BP, EP
- Products at the beginning of 2007: aspirin, paracetamol, cotrimoxazol, metronidazol, ciprofloxacin, cimetidin, diazepam, vitamin C. Further products can be made according to customer’s wishes.
- Import and distribution license available
- Solely appointed agent and distributor for quality pharmaceuticals by 1st class pharma companies in Europe and Asia (no middlemen used)
- Strategy: Substitution of donated import pharmaceuticals, Substitution/displacement of imported products of lower quality, sold in shops, by safe and quality products made in the DPRK
- Sales team consisting of medical doctors and pharmacists which have been undergoing the necessary product training, partly by trainers sent by foreign pharmaceutical manufacturers to Pyongyang, to enable them to correctly detail the products to prescribers and shop assistants.
- PyongSu provides not only product information and training to prescribers but also to pharmacies/shops selling its products to promote the correct use of the drugs and avoid accidents. PyongSu also has a product tracking and re-call system in place.
- Services: contract manufacturing for charity and donor organizations as well as individuals and pharmaceutical companies; also complementary import and distribution of not (yet) locally manufactured pharmaceuticals on behalf of charitable organizations and individuals as well as pharmaceutical companies.
- PyongSu’s mission: reaching and maintaining internationally competitive quality and service standards, contributing to the development of a strong domestic pharmaceutical industry, contributing to the society by expanding the business, hiring and training more well paid staff and sourcing more products locally and by making a reasonable profit allowing the company to pay taxes to the state.
- President: Felix Abt, Vice-President: O Song Gun
- More info on: www.pyongsu.com (internationally) or www.pyongsu.co.kp (domestically)

Whom we serve

On behalf of donors we are prepared to provide needy hospitals throughout the DPR of Korea with safe and high quality medicine either produced by ourselves or imported from reliable sources.
To the Asian and international pharmaceuticals industry we offer contract manufacturing as well as regulatory, (pre-)marketing and distribution services to facilitate a cost-effective market entry and business operation.

Our production facilities

Our foreign investor has made sure that state-of-the-art stainless steel facilities and equipment are used in the production processes in accordance with the highest international standards.
In addition, he also introduced a powerful air-conditioning system with a highly efficient filter system (HEPA) to all production areas for unpacked drugs which guarantees a dust-free environment.
This air conditioning system also provides all of our production and storage areas with optimum temperature, humidity and pressure as well as particle control, and helps to maintain higher pressure than outside. Pressure differences between rooms prevent cross-contamination of various products. Moreover, a new reverse osmotic technique system had to be installed which thoroughly purifies the water both used in drug production and in the cleaning of the equipment.
We also have a laboratory with newly imported quality testing equipment from Germany and Japan. Although Pyongyang City is supplying power to the factory, the Joint Venture has its own supplementary power generating and back-up systems in case of power shortages as well as voltage and frequency stabilisers to protect motors and other sensitive equipment from fluctuating voltage and frequency.
All drug manufacturing processes, hygienic requirements for working, cleaning and maintenance of production facilities are in full conformity with highest international Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) guaranteeing highest possible quality of drugs in serial production.
To maintain international quality standards, a stringent management system and regulations have been established to monitor maintenance and quality supervision. An important contribution to this goal is the systematic development of the skills of our staff through training and coaching by highly qualified foreign and Korean experts.

Contact:
Felix Abt, President, PyongSu Pharma J.V. Co. Ltd., Daehung-dong, Songyo District, Pyongyang / Democratic People´s Republic of Korea (North), Tel. 850-2-381-5252, Fax 850-2-381-7968, pyongsupharmayahoo.com