Meet Our Team
Improved Pharma is a research and information company dedicated to improving pharmaceutical methods, formulations, and processes.
Stephen R. Byrn, Ph. D. is Charles B. Jordan Professor of Medicinal Chemistry in the Department of Industrial and Physical Pharmacy, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana. Dr. Byrn set in motion the development of the field of Solid State Chemistry of Drugs with his books, short courses, and papers on the subject the first of which were first published in the mid-1970’s. He has also educated over 50 Ph. D. students and postdoctoral fellows and taught a wide range of courses at Purdue. Dr. Byrn has had numerous grants including one of the first 13 NIH Centers for AIDS Research. Dr. Byrn is cofounder of Purdue’s graduate programs in regulatory and quality compliance. These programs now constitute the Biotechnology Innovation and Regulatory Science (BIRS) MS program. He is also cofounder of the Purdue-Kilimanjaro School of Pharmacy Sustainable Medicines in Africa project in Moshi, Tanzania. Dr. Byrn has served as chair of the Pharmaceutical Sciences Advisory Committee to the FDA and chaired several USP committees. Dr. Byrn is also cofounder of SSCI, Inc. (Solid State Chemical Information) a cGMP research and information company. SSCI, Inc. is now owned by AMRI. Dr. Byrn has taught a range of courses and short courses involving Medicinal Chemistry, Industrial Pharmacy, Physical Pharmacy, and Solid State Chemistry. Dr. Byrn is an elected Fellow of the AAPS and has received several awards for his research and entrepreneurial activities including the AAPS David Grant Award for Research Achievement and the AAPS Wurster award in pharmaceutics and formulation. Dr. Byrn also received the Purdue University Morrill Award.
Dr. Pamela A. (Martoglio) Smith has joined Improved Pharma as COO. Dr. Smith was most recently Vice President of Analytical Services for AMRI, where she was responsible for 300 employees at four global sites. One of those sites included SSCI, the cGMP contract research organization founded by Dr. Steve Byrn and Sally Byrn. She has a long history with SSCI, having joined it in 1999 as a Research Scientist specializing in vibrational spectroscopy and solid state method development. When SSCI was acquired by Aptuit in 2006, she assumed P&L responsibility for the analytical division of SSCI. In 2009, Dr. Smith was asked to become a Lean Six Sigma black belt and she generated over $2M in benefits during her tenure in this role. Eventually, she assumed the role of General Manager for SSCI, where she led the site to record performances for multiple years, culminating in the successful sale of SSCI to AMRI for $36M. Upon joining Improved Pharma, Dr. Smith states “I’m very pleased to have the opportunity to work once again with the Byrns. Steve is a highly respected leader in his field, and I am confident that Improved Pharma will be another successful endeavor. I’m looking forward to growing the company as we expand upon our offerings with cutting-edge developments in the pharmaceutical development space, and I look forward to working with our clients to help them succeed in their projects.”
Sarah (Sally) R. Byrn co-founded SSCI, a company dedicated to providing high quality solid state chemical information, in 1991 with her husband, Stephen R. Byrn. She served as CEO, and under her leadership, the company grew from 1 to 100 employees, acquired a 45,000 sq ft building in the Purdue Research Park, and earned the Growth 100 Award each year from 1999 to 2003. SSCI also received Inc 500 Awards in 2001 and 2002 as one of the 500 fastest growing privately held companies in the United States. SSCI was acquired in 2006 by Aptuit, and Sally became the Vice President of Physical and Analytical Chemistry for Aptuit. She oversaw operations with 700 employees in Kansas City, 300 employees in Edinburgh Scotland, and SSCI. Sally’s driving passion which led to the success of her businesses was a focus on quality and employee satisfaction.
In 2010, she became CEO of Family Services, a non-profit organization in Lafayette. Sally served on the Board of Directors of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and chaired the Entrepreneurship Committee which managed the 21 Fund. She also served on the Board of Directors for Family Services Inc., Wabash Center, and Greater Lafayette Commerce. She was awarded the iWoman Visionary Award in the Trailblazer category in Oct 2003, and The Salute to Women by the YWCA in 2011.
In 2010, she became CEO of Family Services, a non-profit organization in Lafayette. Sally served on the Board of Directors of the Indiana Economic Development Corporation and chaired the Entrepreneurship Committee which managed the 21 Fund. She also served on the Board of Directors for Family Services Inc., Wabash Center, and Greater Lafayette Commerce. She was awarded the iWoman Visionary Award in the Trailblazer category in Oct 2003, and The Salute to Women by the YWCA in 2011.
“Solid state chemistry is the underpinning of many of the most exciting advancements in drug development and quality in the past two decades. By utilizing synchrotron technology many new advances are possible, as we move into a new golden age of pharmaceuticals and attack many of the most difficult and troublesome diseases. By attacking these diseases, we have a chance to improve longevity and quality of life on a global scale”
Solid-State Form Studies
“Strategies for understanding the solid-state landscape of a drug”
Analytical Testing Services
“Testing, understanding, monitoring, and controlling drug development”
Microscopy
“Combining microscopy and analytical instrumentation to probe drug substances and
products on a micron level”