14 January 2020 - - US-based contract research organization PPD, Inc. has expanded its operations and leadership team in China to provide enhanced clinical development, laboratory, regulatory, site conduct, patient access and post-approval services for international and China-based biopharmaceutical companies, the company said.

PPD's expansion includes enlarging its clinical development offices in Beijing and Shanghai and opening new offices in Guangzhou and Shenyang.

In 2020, PPD Laboratories plans to open a multifunctional lab in China offering bioanalytical, biomarker and vaccine sciences services.

In addition, the company's Accelerated Enrollment Solutions business which offers distinctive site conduct and patient access solutions added China to its global footprint for delivery of performance-based enrollment solutions for chronic ambulatory trials, leveraging its partnership with more than 300 hospitals in China.

PPD's growing operations in China are being led by a new in-country leadership team with extensive experience across the pharmaceutical and biotech industry and in China and the Asia-Pacific region.

To oversee the expansion in China, PPD named Ding Ming, Ph.D., as vice president and general manager of the company's China operations, bringing more than 20 years of industry experience.

Dr. Ming provides leadership for the spectrum of PPD services within China, including global clinical development, PPD Laboratories, AES, Evidera PPD's peri- and post-approval business and China-based commercial and functional support teams.

Di Cindy Wu has been named executive director of PPD Laboratories to provide direct oversight of the company's lab operations in China and Singapore, maintain global consistency and continuity across the company's lab operations, and ensure high-quality data for trials. Wu has 18 years of contract research organization experience.

PPD renovated and significantly enlarged the size of its clinical development operations in Beijing and Shanghai, and opened new offices in Guangzhou and Shenyang last year to support the increased number of ongoing clinical trials and help develop optimized regulatory and access strategies.

In August 2019, PPD launched a pharmacovigilance hub in Shenyang to provide centralized services, such as full lifecycle safety monitoring capabilities and extensive expertise in China's regulatory environment, to support growing clinical research needs in the country.

PPD's regulatory affairs team is experienced with the continuing regulatory reforms in China and has a strong track record in helping customers achieve success in the country.

The company's established foundation of full-service support in conducting trials in China for more than 20 years positions PPD to facilitate efficient and robust generation of the evidence of value, safety and effectiveness needed to obtain approval and access in the Chinese market.

PPD contributed to more than 25 regulatory approvals in China last year.

PPD is a leading global contract research organization providing comprehensive, integrated drug development, laboratory and lifecycle management services.

The company has offices in 46 countries and approximately 23,000 professionals worldwide.