CatSci
CatSci is a UK-based contract research organisation providing integrated drug substance development services from discovery to GMP manufacturing for global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, with proprietary CHETAH digital platform and specialist capabilities in HPAPI, peptides, oligonucleotides, and hybrid modalities.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2011
- HeadquartersCardiff, United Kingdom
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What CatSci does
CatSci is a UK-based strategic contract research organisation (CRO) providing integrated drug substance development services to global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Founded in 2010 from the scientific heritage of AstraZeneca's Avonmouth site, CatSci operates across three UK locations — Cardiff (headquarters), London, and Nottingham (its largest operational hub) — and serves seven of the top ten global pharmaceutical companies alongside a growing base of biotech clients (55% of new projects). The company employs 51-100 staff, 80% of whom hold PhDs, and organises its work around six therapeutic modalities — small molecules, oligonucleotides, peptides, TACs and molecular glues, hybrid modalities, and complex synthetic medicines — spanning the full development lifecycle from design-make-test-select through IND-enabling work, clinical-phase process development, GMP manufacturing transition, and post-approval support.
The technology backbone is CatSci's proprietary CHETAH platform (Cheminformatics and Hierarchical Analysis), which integrates high-throughput experimentation (HTE), Design of Experiments (DoE), Bayesian optimisation, and Visual AI tools (delivered via partnership with Reach Industries' Lumi product) into a single decision-support workflow for solvent selection, route scouting, and process optimisation. CatSci holds granted patents in biocatalysis and catalysis, operates a SafeBridge-certified OEB-5 HPAPI laboratory, and holds ISO 27001, EcoVadis Silver, and My Green Lab certifications. The 2024 acquisition of Reach Separations extended separation science and chromatographic purification from milligrams to kilograms.
CatSci generates revenue through bespoke, project-based fee-for-service contracts with multi-year terms, priced per engagement based on scope, complexity, and duration. The go-to-market model is direct enterprise field sales targeting pharmaceutical procurement, R&D, and manufacturing teams, supplemented by participation in industry events such as CPhI Worldwide and content-driven inbound marketing. Customer segments span large pharma (primary), emerging and mid-sized biotech (growing), and fellow CROs/CDMOs seeking specialist capabilities. CatSci is privately held, backed by Keensight Capital since June 2022, and co-founded by Dr. Ross Burn (CEO) and Dr. Simon Tyler (CCO), who remain in active leadership.
CatSci firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- CatSci
- Legal name
- CatSci Ltd
- Website
- https://catsci.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2011
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- CatSci is a UK-based contract research organisation providing integrated drug substance development services from discovery to GMP manufacturing for global pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, with proprietary CHETAH digital platform and specialist capabilities in HPAPI, peptides, oligonucleotides, and hybrid modalities.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
CatSci industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Pharmaceutical Contract Research Services
- NAICS
- Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Scientific Research and Development Services (5417)
- SIC
- Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Small-Molecule API Process Development & Route Scouting (HLAGAHAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- CMC & Pharmaceutical Development (Formulation/Process/Analytical Development) (HLAIALAD), AI/ML Platforms for Drug Discovery & Experiment Optimization (HLAGAJAO), Regulatory Strategy & IND/NDA/BLA Submissions Support (HLAIALAH)
Keywords
Where CatSci is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Cardiff
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices3 records
Markets served
CatSci business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Contract Research Services: CatSci generates revenue through bespoke contract research and development services for the pharmaceutical industry. Projects are conducted under fee-for-service arrangements, typically contracted for specific stages of drug substance development (e.g., route scouting, process development, scale-up). Revenue is project-based and non-recurring in nature, with contracts ranging from short-term studies to multi-phase programmes.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom project-based pricing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels5 records
CatSci product offering
Product offeringCore offering
CatSci is a UK-based strategic outsourcing partner providing integrated contract research and development services for drug substance development, spanning from early discovery through to GMP manufacturing. Services cover route selection, process development, analytical services, purification and separation science, catalysis and enabling chemistry, GMP drug substance manufacturing, translational bioscience, and high-throughput experimentation across modalities including small molecules, oligonucleotides, peptides, TACs and molecular glues, hybrid modalities, and complex synthetic medicines. The proprietary CHETAH digital platform integrates cheminformatics, Design of Experiments, Bayesian optimisation, robotic execution, automated analytics, and visual AI to accelerate data-driven process decisions.
Product overview
CatSci is a UK-based strategic outsourcing partner offering integrated R&D services for drug development, spanning from early discovery through to GMP manufacturing. The company operates as a unified platform combining multiple scientific disciplines including chemistry, bioscience, analytical science, process development, and purification. The core offerings include: CHETAH (digital integration platform), Route Selection Services, Analytical Services, Purification and Separation Science, Process Development, GMP Drug Substance Manufacturing, Catalysis and Enabling Chemistry, High-Throughput Experimentation, and Translational Bioscience. These are organized around therapeutic modalities including Small Molecules, Oligonucleotides, Peptides, TACs and Molecular Glues, Hybrid Modalities, and Complex Synthetic Medicines. Additional integrated workflows include Design-Make-Test-Select and digital tools like the Route Costing Calculator. CatSci expanded its capabilities through strategic acquisitions (Reach Separations for purification expertise) and facility expansions (HPAPI labs, peptide labs, bioscience labs).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Route Selection Services Synthetic route selection and evaluation service that balances cost, chance of technical success, sustainability, and manufacturability using retrosynthetic planning, parallel route scouting, and PMI modelling. Designed for pharmaceutical and biotech customers developing novel small molecule APIs.
- Analytical Services
- Purification and Separation Science High-quality chromatographic solutions spanning analytical purification, preparative chromatography, and SFC for small molecules, oligonucleotides, peptides, and complex synthetics from milligrams to kilograms. Enhanced by the 2024 Reach Separations acquisition.
- Process Development
- GMP Drug Substance Manufacturing
- Catalysis and Enabling Chemistry
- High-Throughput Experimentation (HTE)
- Translational Bioscience Assay development and screening services including target engagement, functional cell-based and phenotypic assays, translational models (2D/3D, iPSC), Direct-to-Biology screening, and data integration for drug discovery decision-making. Supports biotech and pharma customers across multiple therapeutic modalities.
- Small Molecule Development
- Oligonucleotide Development Services
- Peptide Development Services Complex peptide synthesis, modification, and purification for linear, cyclic, constrained, stapled, and conjugated peptides using automated SPPS platforms and advanced analytical support. Supports the peptide R&D group established January 2025 and dedicated peptide laboratory opened June 2025.
- TACs and Molecular Glues
- Hybrid Modality Development Services
- Complex Synthetic Medicines
Quantifiable outcome
- HP API market projected to exceed $75 billion by 2030, indicating significant growth opportunity for integrated drug substance service providers like CatSci.
Companies that use CatSci
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
CatSci technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability7 records
Feature5 records
CatSci partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and supporting.
- Reach SeparationscoreCatSci acquired Reach Separations in 2024, significantly expanding its separation science capabilities. The acquisition strengthens CatSci's ability to offer integrated drug substance development including advanced purification and separation services.
- AGC Pharma Chemicals Europe S.L.U.majorAGC Pharma Chemicals Europe S.L.U. is a strategic manufacturing partner for GMP manufacturing of HPAPIs and potent compounds. The partnership complements CatSci's process development capabilities with large-scale GMP manufacturing capacity, enabling end-to-end drug substance services for clients.
- Reach IndustriessupportingCatSci partners with Reach Industries to integrate visual AI tools into its high-throughput experimentation and process monitoring workflows. This partnership enhances CatSci's digital chemistry capabilities by applying AI-driven visual analysis to chemical processes.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves11 records
Expansion highlights7 records
CatSci competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Hovione: Hovione is a closely comparable contract development and manufacturing organisation focused on small molecule API process development, particle engineering, and GMP manufacturing. Like CatSci, it serves global pharma and biotech customers with integrated drug substance services and emphasises enabling chemistries.
- Sai Life Sciences: Sai Life Sciences is an India-headquartered CRO/CDMO offering drug substance development, process R&D, and GMP manufacturing for global pharma and biotech. Its integrated discovery-to-manufacturing model and customer base of large pharma are directly comparable to CatSci's positioning.
- Syngene International: Syngene is an India-based contract research and manufacturing organisation providing discovery, process development, and GMP manufacturing services to global pharma. Like CatSci, it serves top-tier pharma clients with integrated scientific and digital capabilities.
- Carbogen Amcis: Carbogen Amcis is a Swiss-headquartered CDMO providing API development, process R&D, and GMP manufacturing for highly potent and conventional APIs. Its service scope (route scouting, process optimisation, GMP scale-up) closely mirrors CatSci's core offering.
- Pharmaron: Pharmaron is a global CRO/CDMO offering integrated drug discovery, process chemistry, API development, and GMP manufacturing for small molecules and biologics. Its end-to-end service portfolio and global pharma/biotech customer base directly parallel CatSci's offering and growth model.
- Ascensus Specialties: Ascensus Specialties (the former Johnson Matthey Health Materials business) is a US-based CDMO focused on small molecule API development, custom synthesis, and GMP manufacturing. Its scope of services around route scouting, process optimisation, and HPAPI handling closely overlaps with CatSci's.
Broad incumbents
- Eurofins CDMO: Eurofins CDMO provides API development, process R&D, and GMP manufacturing services as part of the broader Eurofins scientific services portfolio. It competes with CatSci in small molecule process development while operating at considerably larger scale across global sites.
- Cambrex: Cambrex is a major CDMO providing small molecule API development, process optimisation, and commercial GMP manufacturing for global pharma. It represents a larger, established incumbent competing with CatSci for the same route scouting and process development programmes.
- Piramal Pharma Solutions: Piramal Pharma Solutions is a large global CDMO offering API development, HPAPI manufacturing, and commercial-scale GMP services. It is a broader incumbent in the same drug substance development space as CatSci, with substantially greater scale.
- Lonza: Lonza is one of the world's largest CDMOs, offering API development and manufacturing across small molecules, biologics, and emerging modalities. While much larger, it competes with CatSci for outsourced small molecule process development work and represents the upper bound of CDMO scale in the space.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
CatSci social profiles
Digital presenceCatSci compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
CatSci financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
CatSci leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
CatSci subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
CatSci funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
CatSci M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about CatSci
What does CatSci do?
CatSci is a UK-based strategic outsourcing partner providing integrated contract research and development services for drug substance development, spanning from early discovery through to GMP manufacturing. Services cover route selection, process development, analytical services, purification and separation science, catalysis and enabling chemistry, GMP drug substance manufacturing, translational bioscience, and high-throughput experimentation across modalities including small molecules, oligonucleotides, peptides, TACs and molecular glues, hybrid modalities, and complex synthetic medicines. The proprietary CHETAH digital platform integrates cheminformatics, Design of Experiments, Bayesian optimisation, robotic execution, automated analytics, and visual AI to accelerate data-driven process decisions.
Is CatSci a public or private company?
CatSci is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was CatSci founded?
CatSci was founded in 2011. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is CatSci based?
CatSci is headquartered in Cardiff, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does CatSci make money?
One revenue line is on record: contract Research Services.
Who are CatSci's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Hovione, Sai Life Sciences, Syngene International, Carbogen Amcis, Pharmaron and Ascensus Specialties. Broad incumbents are Eurofins CDMO, Cambrex, Piramal Pharma Solutions and Lonza.
Does CatSci have an API?
No public API is recorded for CatSci.
What industry is CatSci in?
CatSci's product category is Pharmaceutical Contract Research Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAGAHAA, Small-Molecule API Process Development & Route Scouting, with a secondary code of HLAIALAD, CMC & Pharmaceutical Development (Formulation/Process/Analytical Development). Its NAICS code is 54171 and its SIC code is 8731.