Scientists at Toronto-based Connaught BioSciences, and Institut Merieux S.A., of Lyon, France, both pharmaceutical companies, have nothing to fear from the recently announced merger of the human health care divisions of the two firms— indeed, they may have much to cheer, according to Gerald Wood, Connaught’s vice president and chief financial officer. In fact, Connaught’s desire to strengthen its research efforts “is the main reason we wish to enter into the agreement,” says Wood. He adds: “Both sides think that independently they aren’t big enough to take on the necessary research goals.” If all goes as planned, the venture will be called Merieux-Connaught N.Y. and will have its administrative headquarters in the Netherlands, while the research labs of each company will remain where they are.
Not all will continue status quo for the scientists, however: Some cutbacks will be made initially to eliminate duplicate efforts, especially regarding the running of ...
