Objekt 2202
Prosperity and dependence – Basel and the life sciences
Description
The life sciences consist of the sectors of pharmacology, biotechnology, agrochemicals, medical technology and nanotechnology.
In the Basel region there are more than 700 life sciences companies.
32% of the total value added in the Basel region is generated by life sciences firms.
33,000 people work in the life sciences sector in the Basel region, of which some 86% work for a pharmaceutical company.
Every full-time job in the pharma sector creates 3.2 additional workplaces in other industries.
Tax-favoured ‘Status Companies’ – to which the large life sciences corporations belong – generated direct tax revenue to the Basel City Canton of 782 million francs.
In the Roche corporation, 50.01% of the shares are family-owned, while a further 33,3% belong to Novartis.
In 2018 one woman sat on the board of the Roche Corporation. At Novartis there were two women out of 13 members.
At Basel University around 20 professorships are funded by private sponsors, two of which by the pharmaceutical sector directly.
At 32%, the chemical and pharmaceutical sectors employ the highest share of cross-border commuters.
In 2015 Roche opened the highest building in Switzerland, the 178-metre high Roche Tower.
In 1859 the silk dyer Alexander Clavel produced the first synthetic colouring agent in Switzerland.
Object description
<h4>Blockbuster and jump-start</h4>
<p>In 1996, shortly before the fusion with Sandoz, Ciba-Geigy launched a
highly promising drug against high blood pressure, Diovan. The pharmaceutical
product rapidly proved a success and gave the newly merged conglomerate
Novartis a great start. In 2010, it achieved a record turnover of
six billion dollars. While such ‘blockbusters’ are valuable goldmines for the
pharma companies, they also carry a risk. As soon as the patent protection
runs out, imitation products will bring down the price, which in turn can
result in a major sales slump.</p>
<p class="adddivider">
<span>Diovan packaging for the European market</span>
<span>Basel</span>
<span>loan: Novartis AG company archive</span>
<span>cardboard</span>
<span>Inv. 2019.336.</span>
</p>