In phase 1 of the cluster the work programme was divided into 5 themes namely:

1. Molecular Level Control of the structure of Pharmaceutical Solids

2. Disordered solids/High Energy Forms/Amorphous domain in Pharmaceutical Solids

3. Methods to characterise the solid state

4. In-situ methods

5. Process Scale-up and modelling

These themes were organised through 13 individual projects operated by 20 funded postgraduate students and 5 post-doctoral fellows.  A list of these projects is given in Table 1 (1-13).  The individual projects were scheduled to run for 4-5 years and to be introduced in a phased basis.  During phase 1, the SSPC successfully leveraged funding for additional PhD students (€426K) through various sources (IRSCET, SFI, UL and industry) and added an additional 14 projects to the portfolio (Table 1, 14-27).

Restructuring for Phase 2

Based on the research results from phase 1, and on input from industry and the scientific advisory board, it has been decided to streamline the work programme for phase 2 into three strands.

Strand 1 - Process Crystallisation: How batch and continuous crystallization processes can be optimally implemented under industrial conditions.

Strand 2 - Particle Engineering: Development of our understanding of nucleation and particle growth with a view to being able to control particle size, shape and phase.

Strand 3 - The API/Formulation Interface: Systematic research bridging the gap beetween the API manufacture and formulation design.