Pharma Planning Software Maker PLAIO raises €2 million from Frumtak Ventures


PLAIO and Frumtak Ventures

“PLAIO provides the accuracy, predictability, transparency and precision forecasting missing from the current demand, manufacturing and purchase planning processes, which, until now, were shockingly manual and spreadsheet-driven, and marred by inefficiencies and human error.”

PLAIO, an Icelandic software company focused on the generic pharma industry’s demand, manufacturing, and purchase planning processes, announced today it has raised a €2 million pre-Series A round from Frumtak Ventures.

PLAIO was founded by Jóhann Guðbjargarson in May, building on a rigorous, years-long R&D process focused on the specific needs of generic pharmaceutical manufacturers. PLAIO’s planning software has attracted an experienced Pharma Supply Chain founding team and customers like MS Pharma and Coripharma, the latter of which has been validating the software for over two years.

PLAIO accounts for the many variables, and strict, but ever-evolving, regulatory and compliance requirements of pharmaceutical manufacturing processes, and has implemented them into a visual, predictive, and interactive software. PLAIO sits on top of the various ERP systems used by pharma manufacturers to centralize both internal and market forecast data for scenario analysis and planning, increasing manufacturing and financial efficiency, reducing waste and minimising stockouts of end products and raw materials. Production planners can rely on PLAIO’s inbuilt Copilot, which uses AI technology to support, rather than dictate, planning strategy with optimisation and automation suggestions, and visualises how each decision will impact the entirety of the planning processes.

“PLAIO provides the accuracy, predictability, transparency and precision forecasting missing from the current demand, manufacturing and purchase planning processes, which, until now, were shockingly manual and spreadsheet-driven, and marred by inefficiencies and human error,” says Jóhann Guðbjargarson, PLAIO’s Founder and CEO. “Having our R&D validated with strategic pharmaceutical manufacturing partners over the last 2 years has underscored the urgent need for modernisation across the pharmaceutical supply chain, amplifying the challenges of adapting manufacturing planning to meet unexpected shifts and validating the need for a service like PLAIO.”

The need for manufacturer planning and forecasting agility came to the forefront in 2020 as the pandemic created unanticipated demand for both generic over-the-counter and prescription pain relief, depression medications, antibiotics, and vitamin supplements. In contrast, the predicted pre-pandemic demand for more expensive, non-reimbursable over-the-counter nutritional products slowed significantly. Ensuring ample supplies of the right raw materials, PLAIO enables greater manufacturing agility and actionable analysis of API (active product ingredient) inventory, forecast of materials consumption and replenishment, visualisation of production time frames, factory capacities and machine availability, as well as supply chain fluctuations against current and future customer demand.

“PLAIO’s deep knowledge of Pharma Supply Chain and the cost sensitivities within the generic pharma industry will be invaluable to the digitisation and modernisation of the pharmaceutical industry,” says Svana Gunnarsdóttir, Managing Director of Frumtak Ventures. “The team’s early success in providing much needed planning visibility and transparency to pharma manufacturers has the potential to help ensure the right products get to the right places at the right time in the most cost efficient and sustainable ways possible.”

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About PLAIO

Founded in May 2021, PLAIO digitizes demand, manufacturing, and purchase planning for generic pharmaceutical manufacturers, for agile manufacturing operations and precision product output. PLAIO Copilot leverages AI to assist planners with production optimisation, catch potential demand and supply chain planning conflicts and conduct scenario analysis for the most efficient, cost effective and transparent planning advantages. To learn more, visit PLAIO.io.

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