What is Good Manufacturing Practice?

What is Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)?

Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP), also sometimes referred to as current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP), are a collection of guidelines and regulations to ensure quality assurance for pharmaceutical product development. They are put in place to ensure that pharmaceutical products are consistently produced and controlled, maintaining their intended quality standards. GMP covers both production and quality control aspects with an emphasis on the importance of defined, validated, and documented processes. These guidelines encompass elements such as personnel, premises, materials, and distribution responsibilities all, with the aim of ensuring the safety, effectiveness, and quality of medicinal products. These guidelines are accepted by global agencies to ensure the development of high-quality pharmaceutical products. Adhering to GMP guidelines is more than just meeting regulatory requirements. It is critical to safeguard public health and maintain the integrity of the pharmaceutical supply chain.

Elements of Good Manufacturing Practices

One of the key elements of the GMP is having a robust quality management system in place which involves the definition and implementation of processes and documents which cover pharmaceutical manufacturing. These processes cover the steps that are involved in pharmaceutical product manufacturing (including storage, handling, and distribution). Having the appropriate documents in place is a critical aspect of GMP as it communicates transparency and traceability with respect to manufacturing steps. These include Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and Batch Records. Documents must be written in a clear & concise manner. A document control system is also required which delineates processes to be followed for developing, reviewing, approving, distributing, and archiving important documents. GMP documents must be reviewed regularly and if any changes are required then they must be approved and documented appropriately.

Quality control is critical in GMP and involves the testing and validation of raw materials, intermediates, and finished pharmaceutical products. Rigorous testing of these makes sure that the finished pharmaceutical products meet the specifications and comply with regulatory standards. It is also important to validate analytical technical that were used as well as systems for managing non-conformances and/or deviations. Employees at manufacturing sites that are involved the manufacturing processes of pharmaceutical products must be trained adequately to ensure they perform their tasks in accordance with GMP guidelines.

Maintaining compliance with GMP

Maintaining GMP compliance is critical for pharmaceutical product development as it ensures the highest standards of safety and quality on a global scale. Indeed, GMP guidelines can be seen as a “blueprint” for pharmaceutical companies to follow to ensure high-quality products. GMP compliance is instrumental in obtaining regulatory approvals allowing smooth market access.

The consequence of GMP non-compliance can be severe. Global regulatory agencies may impose certain sanctions which can be in the form of heavy fines, warning letters, suspension of manufacturing licenses, and even pharmaceutical product recalls. The damages to pharmaceutical companies for these sanctions go well beyond financial- they can affect the pharmaceutical company’s reputation in the market and decrease the trust that various stakeholders may have placed in the company and its products. Regulatory hurdles that stem from GMP non-compliance can significantly contribute towards product delays and can hinder market entry. Therefore, it is imperative to maintain GMP compliance.

DDReg’s Capabilities

DDReg has supported its customers for maintaining GMP compliance including audits for quality management systems, root cause, and vendors (including 3rd party audits). Reach out to the team for more supporting on GMP compliance.