Pace Analytical
Pace Analytical is a privately held, PE-backed laboratory services company operating 100+ facilities across the US and Puerto Rico. It provides environmental testing, full-service CDMO/CRO drug development and manufacturing, and professional/scientific services to pharmaceutical, environmental, medical device, and government clients.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2006
- HeadquartersMinneapolis, United States
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Pace Analytical does
Pace Analytical is a privately held, PE-backed laboratory services company founded in 2006 and headquartered in Roseville, Minnesota. It operates a national network of 100+ laboratory and service center locations across the United States plus Puerto Rico, organized into three primary divisions: Analytical + Environmental (water, soil, air, and solid matrix testing including PFAS, asbestos, Legionella, VOCs, metals, radiochemistry, and emergency response); Pace Life Sciences (a full-service CDMO and CRO spanning drug development, formulation and process development, GMP clinical manufacturing, analytical testing, medical device testing, and regulatory services); and Professional Services (scientific staffing, instrument calibration, cleanroom certification, facility validation, and FDA regulatory consulting). The company is owned by Aurora Capital Partners and Leonard Green & Partners, with Pace Science and Technology Company as the ultimate parent.
The company's revenue model is professional services / fee-for-service testing, with quote-based project pricing and no publicly disclosed pricing. Customer segments span pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical drug developers, environmental and industrial clients, medical device manufacturers, government agencies, building/property owners, and food/nutraceutical producers. Distribution is direct enterprise field sales through local service centers, with on-site field services and mobile laboratory capabilities, supported by the PacePort client portal for secure data/report delivery. Regulatory assets include FDA registration, DEA registration, ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation, cGMP compliance, ISO 9001 certification (Professional Services), and FDA 21 CFR Part 820 alignment, providing defensible barriers to entry in pharmaceutical and medical device testing.
Strategic positioning centers on the integrated 'one Pace' model that combines environmental testing depth with a full CDMO/CRO platform for small molecules, biologics (proteins, peptides, antibodies, ADCs), gene therapies, and medical devices. Notable infrastructure includes the 50,000 ft² Oakdale CRO facility, 33,000 ft² Philadelphia GMP clinical manufacturing site, 30,000 ft² Salem CDMO with aseptic fill-finish capability, 22,000 ft² Woburn/Boston CRO, 22,000 ft² San German (Puerto Rico) facility, and a 'National Center for Analytical Testing & Innovation' in Mount Juliet, Tennessee. The August 2022 acquisition of Meridian BioGroup extended capabilities into GxP consulting, quality system development, audit remediation, validation master planning, and computer system validation, while recent FDA-compliant inspections at RTP, NC and San German validate GMP standing. Leadership consists of CEO Eric Roman and Pace Life Sciences President Greg Kupp.
Pace Analytical firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Pace Analytical
- Legal name
- Pace Analytical Services, LLC
- Website
- https://esclabsciences.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2006
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- Pace Analytical is a privately held, PE-backed laboratory services company operating 100+ facilities across the US and Puerto Rico. It provides environmental testing, full-service CDMO/CRO drug development and manufacturing, and professional/scientific services to pharmaceutical, environmental, medical device, and government clients.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Pace Analytical industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Analytical Testing Services
- NAICS
- Testing Laboratories and Services (54138), Pharmaceutical Preparation Manufacturing (325412)
- SIC
- Services-Testing Laboratories (8734), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Clinical Trial Material (CTM) Manufacturing & Supply CDMO (HLAGABAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Release Testing & Batch Certification (QC) (HLAGADAC), CMC & Pharmaceutical Development (Formulation/Process/Analytical Development) (HLAIALAD), Water & Utility Testing (PW/WFI/Steam/Gases) (HLAGADAO)
Keywords
Where Pace Analytical is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Minneapolis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices124 records
Markets served
Pace Analytical business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Analytical and Environmental Testing Services: Laboratory testing services for environmental samples including air, water, soil, and industrial materials. Services include chemical analysis, microbiology testing, and specialized environmental testing for regulatory compliance.
- Life Sciences CDMO Services: Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization services including drug product development, analytical testing, clinical manufacturing, regulatory consulting, and GMP-compliant manufacturing for pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical clients.
- Professional Services: Scientific staffing, instrument maintenance and calibration, facility validation, regulatory compliance consulting, and laboratory relocation services.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Pace Analytical product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Pace Analytical provides environmental analytical testing, pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical CDMO (contract development and manufacturing organization) services, and scientific professional services through a national network of FDA-registered, DEA-registered, cGMP-compliant, and ISO/IEC 17025-accredited laboratories. The company delivers laboratory testing for environmental samples (water, soil, air, solids), drug development and clinical manufacturing for pharmaceutical and gene therapy products, and on-site professional services including instrument calibration, facility validation, and regulatory consulting.
Product overview
Pace Analytical is a multi-divisional laboratory services company operating under two primary divisions: Analytical + Environmental Services (environmental testing for water, soil, air, and solid matrices) and Pace Life Sciences (a full-service CDMO). The portfolio includes core divisions for analytical/environmental testing, life sciences CDMO services, and professional services (staffing, instruments, facilities). Key products/modules span drug development and manufacturing, analytical testing (raw materials, microbiology, impurities, extractables/leachables, stability storage, packaging/distribution testing), medical device testing, and building sciences. The company operates a national network of FDA-registered, GMP-compliant, ISO/IEC 17025-accredited laboratories across the United States.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Analytical + Environmental Testing Services
Companies that use Pace Analytical
Customer profileSegments6 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Pace Analytical technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
Pace Analytical partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Meridian BioGroupcoreAcquisition of Meridian BioGroup, a Maryland-based validation, regulatory, and compliance contract service provider to the biotechnology and pharmaceutical communities. Meridian brings qualified specialists from manufacturing, quality control, quality assurance, regulatory affairs, engineering, and validation backgrounds. The acquisition expanded Pace Life Sciences' capabilities in regulatory guidance and strategy, quality system development, audit remediation, validation master planning, facility and utility system validation, computer system validation, and third-party auditing services.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Pace Analytical competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- SGS SA: SGS is a global testing, inspection, and certification giant with environmental, life sciences, and pharma testing practices. It is a broad incumbent that competes with Pace on environmental testing and pharma quality/analytical services but operates at a much larger global scale.
- Avantor: Avantor distributes life sciences products and offers manufacturing services through its acquired CDMO businesses (including VWR and prior clinical manufacturing assets). It is a broad incumbent that overlaps with Pace's pharma materials and bioprocessing services.
- Bureau Veritas: Bureau Veritas is a global TIC (testing, inspection, certification) company with environmental and life sciences testing offerings. It overlaps Pace's environmental and compliance testing but is a much broader conglomerate with significant non-lab businesses.
- Thermo Fisher Scientific: Through its Patheon CDMO and PPD clinical research businesses, Thermo Fisher is a dominant global CDMO and life sciences services company. It competes with Pace Life Sciences across pharma development, clinical manufacturing, and analytical testing at much larger scale.
- Labcorp (Labcorp Drug Development / Fortrea): Labcorp operates clinical laboratories and a drug development business (now Fortrea) spanning central lab services, bioanalytical, and early development. It overlaps with Pace Life Sciences in pharma analytical testing and CDMO-adjacent services.
Direct peers
- Eurofins Scientific: Eurofins is the largest global testing services network with deep environmental, pharma, and life sciences testing capabilities. It directly overlaps Pace's Analytical + Environmental division and increasingly competes in pharma bioanalytical and CDMO-adjacent testing, making it Pace's closest direct competitor by service breadth.
- Charles River Laboratories: Charles River operates a Discovery & Safety Assessment, Manufacturing Solutions, and CDMO business, providing non-clinical CRO, biologics testing, and cell/gene therapy CDMO services. It directly competes with Pace Life Sciences in pharma/biologics testing and early-stage manufacturing.
- Catalent: Catalent is one of the largest CDMOs globally, offering formulation, clinical and commercial manufacturing, and drug delivery technologies for small molecules and biologics. It competes directly with Pace Life Sciences in pharma drug development and clinical supply manufacturing.
- WuXi AppTec / WuXi Biologics: WuXi is a global CRO/CDMO with extensive small molecule, biologics, and cell/gene therapy capabilities. It directly competes with Pace Life Sciences in pharma R&D services, formulation, and clinical manufacturing.
Emerging players
- ICON plc: ICON (post-PRA Health Sciences) is a global CRO with growing bioanalytical and laboratory services. It competes with Pace Life Sciences in pharma lab services and clinical development support and is expanding CDMO-adjacent capabilities.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Pace Analytical social profiles
Digital presencePace Analytical compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance7 records
Pace Analytical financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Pace Analytical leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Pace Analytical subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Pace Analytical funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Pace Analytical M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Pace Analytical
What does Pace Analytical do?
Pace Analytical provides environmental analytical testing, pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical CDMO (contract development and manufacturing organization) services, and scientific professional services through a national network of FDA-registered, DEA-registered, cGMP-compliant, and ISO/IEC 17025-accredited laboratories. The company delivers laboratory testing for environmental samples (water, soil, air, solids), drug development and clinical manufacturing for pharmaceutical and gene therapy products, and on-site professional services including instrument calibration, facility validation, and regulatory consulting.
Is Pace Analytical a public or private company?
Pace Analytical is a private company. It is classified as private equity controlled and is currently operating.
When was Pace Analytical founded?
Pace Analytical was founded in 2006. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is Pace Analytical based?
Pace Analytical is headquartered in Minneapolis, United States, in the North America region.
How does Pace Analytical make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Analytical and Environmental Testing Services are the primary driver. The others are life Sciences CDMO Services and professional Services.
Who are Pace Analytical's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are SGS SA, Avantor, Bureau Veritas, Thermo Fisher Scientific and Labcorp (Labcorp Drug Development / Fortrea). Direct peers are Eurofins Scientific, Charles River Laboratories, Catalent and WuXi AppTec / WuXi Biologics. ICON plc is listed as an emerging player.
Does Pace Analytical have an API?
No public API is recorded for Pace Analytical.
What industry is Pace Analytical in?
Pace Analytical's product category is Analytical Testing Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HLAGABAK, Clinical Trial Material (CTM) Manufacturing & Supply CDMO, with a secondary code of HLAGADAC, Release Testing & Batch Certification (QC). Its NAICS code is 54138 and its SIC code is 8734.