Inspire Names Robert Savel as Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Officer
DURHAM, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 1, 2010 - Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ISPH) announced today the appointment of Robert M. Savel, II, to the position of Senior Vice President and Chief Technical Officer, effective September 20, 2010. In this role, Mr. Savel will be responsible for all manufacturing and technical operations and will report directly to Adrian Adams, President and CEO.
"We are pleased to add Bob to the Inspire leadership team in the important role of Chief Technical Officer as we continue to structure the organization for sustainable success. Bob has more than 20 years of experience in multiple facets of manufacturing and operations, including managing clinical and commercial-scale pharmaceutical manufacturing. Bob's expertise will be invaluable to Inspire as we prepare for the potential commercial launch of denufosol tetrasodium for cystic fibrosis and continue to execute against our strategic corporate objectives in both the ophthalmic and pulmonary areas of our business," stated Mr. Adams.
Mr. Savel, age 42, has extensive experience in operations, quality and supply chain management in both commercial and research and development areas. Most recently, Mr. Savel served as President of Savel Enterprises LLC and, prior to that, held the position of Senior Vice President, Technical Operations at PDL Biopharma from 2007 until 2008. At PDL, Mr. Savel was responsible for clinical and commercial manufacturing, quality and supply chain functions across multiple sites. Prior to joining PDL, Mr. Savel held roles of increasing responsibility at Johnson & Johnson from 1999 to 2007, most recently serving as North America Vice President of Quality and Compliance for the J&J Global Pharmaceutical Sourcing Group. In this capacity, Mr. Savel directed quality and manufacturing compliance for approximately 40 manufacturing, contract manufacturing, or distribution sites for multiple Johnson & Johnson subsidiary companies, including ALZA Corporation, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical, Ortho Biotech and Janssen and served on the North American Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Board. While at Johnson & Johnson, he also held the positions of Vice President of Quality, J&J (ALZA), Senior Director of Manufacturing, J&J (ALZA), Director of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing, J&J (Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical) and Director of Semi-Solid Manufacturing, J&J (Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical). Prior to that, Mr. Savel held positions as a principal consultant at PricewaterhouseCoopers and management positions at Ingersoll-Rand Corporation. Mr. Savel received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
About Inspire
Inspire is a biopharmaceutical company focused on researching, developing and commercializing prescription pharmaceutical products for ophthalmic and pulmonary diseases. Inspire's goal is to build and commercialize a sustainable portfolio of innovative new products based on its technical, scientific and commercial expertise. Inspire's clinical pipeline includes denufosol tetrasodium for cystic fibrosis in Phase 3 development and AZASITE® (azithromycin ophthalmic solution) 1% for blepharitis in Phase 2 development. Inspire receives revenues related to the promotion of AZASITE for bacterial conjunctivitis, the co-promotion of ELESTAT® (epinastine HCl ophthalmic solution) 0.05% for allergic conjunctivitis and royalties based on net sales of RESTASIS® (cyclosporine ophthalmic emulsion) 0.05% for dry eye. For more information, visit www.inspirepharm.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
The forward-looking statements in this news release relating to management's expectations and beliefs are based on preliminary information and management assumptions. Specifically, no assurance can be made with respect to: the level of responsibility for operations by specific personnel and contributions thereby; the Company's ability to build and commercialize a sustainable portfolio of innovative new products based on its technical, scientific and commercial expertise; or the launch of any particular product. Such forward-looking statements are subject to a wide range of risks and uncertainties that could cause results to differ in material respects, including those relating to product development, revenue, expense and earnings expectations, the timing of a launch of a generic form of ELESTAT, intellectual property rights, competitive products, results and timing of clinical trials, success of marketing efforts, the need for additional research and testing, delays in manufacturing, funding, and the timing and content of decisions made by regulatory authorities, including the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Further information regarding factors that could affect Inspire's results is included in Inspire's filings with the SEC. Inspire undertakes no obligation to publicly release the results of any revisions to these forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof.
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Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
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919-941-9777, ext. 219
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Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Cara Amoroso
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