Dekapenta Labs, a CRO providing physicochemical analysis for the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, cosmetic and food sectors, has opened its doors in the Barcelona Science Park. The company is committed to a proactive, professional team, communication with clients and flexibility in providing innovative solutions custom designed for each project.

Dekapenta Labs is a contract research organisation (CRO) founded by chemists Ruth Vellvé (Laboratory manager), with over 18 years of experience in the pharmaceutical industry -seven as director of a physicochemical analysis laboratory-, and Anna Domènech (Analytical Developemnt Technician), with experience in R&D and validation and transfer of analysis methods using complex chromatography techniques.

“Having been on the other side for years as the one contracting third-party services has given me a good understanding of the successes and the areas for improvement of current providers. I know what I would have wanted to be offered, and it’s what we offer now through Dekapenta”, reveals Vellvé. “We want to get back to personalised service and client care, to be transparent and honest, and to offer the very best quality in everything we do. It sounds easy, but we think that many of these values have been lost over time”.

And Dekapenta was created to address this need, she highlights: “We wanted to create a totally different model of CRO for small and medium-sized companies that want to get away from the big CROs. We want to take non-essential, routine tasks off these companies’ plates, so they can focus on their core business. Knowing how they work, getting involved in their projects and always adapting to their timings and their needs and situation”.

The company’s lab at the Barcelona Science Park boasts cutting-edge equipment  -modular potentiometric titrators to ultra-microbalances, UHPLCs and UPLCs (Ultra High Performance Liquid Chromatography) with MS/MS and PDA detectors, and other small devices-giving them the technical resources required to offer high value-added services in a flexible, agile manner, such as development of new analysis methods, validations and transfers, nitrosamine analyses, stability testing, in-use stability testing, batch release, and more.

“The Barcelona Science Park provides a great environment for our work and for forging synergies in a highly interactive community of professionals working in the life sciences sector that share science platforms, services and technology. We’re very happy to be part of this community and to learn about new projects where we can contribute our expertise and experience”, notes Anna Domènech.

Now, they are looking into possible investments for 2023, assessing current market needs and seeking collaboration projects with third parties to acquire new equipment.

Custom solutions

Dekapenta is committed to communication with clients and flexibility to provide the best quality solution that adapts specifically to any needs that may arise. Its main goal is to forge team synergies to achieve the goals set, transcending the initial objectives.

“Our clients are one-of-a-kind for us. We want them to feel at home, as if they were in their own lab. We are committed to their needs and proactively offer the best solution for each project. We want to help their companies grow and anticipate any issues that could pose a problem for them in the future,” remarks Domènech.

And to face this challenge, both entrepreneurs are convinced that the size does matter. “We plan to grow, but our top priority is to maintain our values, and we firmly believe that we won’t sacrifice our initial principles for growth. We know from experience that it is hard to maintain the essence of what you want to offer if you opt for disproportionate growth”.