Bayer Schering Pharma AG
Encyclopedia
Bayer Schering Pharma AG
Aktiengesellschaft
Aktiengesellschaft is a German term that refers to a corporation that is limited by shares, i.e. owned by shareholders, and may be traded on a stock market. The term is used in Germany, Austria and Switzerland...

is a research-centered pharmaceutical company
Pharmaceutical company
The pharmaceutical industry develops, produces, and markets drugs licensed for use as medications. Pharmaceutical companies are allowed to deal in generic and/or brand medications and medical devices...

 that was formed by the merger of Schering
Schering
Schering AG was a research-centered German pharmaceutical company. It was founded in 1851 by Ernst Christian Friedrich Schering and merged with Bayer's pharma sector in December 2006. The company's headquarters was in Berlin-Wedding, Germany...

 with Bayer
Bayer
Bayer AG is a chemical and pharmaceutical company founded in Barmen , Germany in 1863. It is headquartered in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and well known for its original brand of aspirin.-History:...

 on 29 December 2006. The company was originally founded in 1851 by Ernst Christian Friedrich Schering
Ernst Christian Friedrich Schering
Ernst Christian Friedrich Schering was a German apothecary and industrialist who created the Schering Corporation. The company split into Schering AG and Schering-Plough after US assets were seized during World War II....

 (1824-1869). The company employs more than 26,000 people in 140 subsidiaries all over the world. The company's headquarters are in Berlin-Wedding, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 and the forerunner company Schering's annual gross revenue was nearly € 5 billion (2003). They retain the largest German manufacturing facility which is located in Bergkamen
Bergkamen
Bergkamen is a town in the district of Unna, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated near the river Lippe, approx. north-east of Dortmund and south-west of Hamm....

.
The company focuses on the business areas of gynaecology
Gynaecology
Gynaecology or gynecology is the medical practice dealing with the health of the female reproductive system . Literally, outside medicine, it means "the science of women"...

 and andrology
Andrology
Andrology is the medical specialty that deals with male health, particularly relating to the problems of the male reproductive system and urological problems that are unique to men. It is the counterpart to gynaecology, which deals with medical issues which are specific to the female reproductive...

, oncology
Oncology
Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with cancer...

, and also special therapeutics, diagnostical devices, and nuclear medicine
Nuclear medicine
In nuclear medicine procedures, elemental radionuclides are combined with other elements to form chemical compounds, or else combined with existing pharmaceutical compounds, to form radiopharmaceuticals. These radiopharmaceuticals, once administered to the patient, can localize to specific organs...

. Schering's best-known product is their line of combined oral contraceptive pills.

Through Bayer Healthcare AG, Bayer Schering Pharma is a full member of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations
European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations
European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations is a Brussels-based trade union founded in 1978 representing the research-based pharmaceutical industry operating in Europe....

 (EFPIA).

Collaborative research

In addition to internal research and development activities, Bayer Schering Pharma is also involved in publicly funded collaborative research projects, with other industrial and academic partners. One example in the area of non-clinical
Pre-clinical development
In drug development, pre-clinical development is a stage of research that begins before clinical trials can begin, and during which important feasibility, iterative testing and drug safety data is collected....

 safety assessment is the InnoMed PredTox. The company is expanding its activities in joint research projects within the framework of the Innovative Medicines Initiative
Innovative Medicines Initiative
The Innovative Medicines Initiative is a European initiative to improve the competitive situation of the European Union in the field of pharmaceutical research...

 of EFPIA and the European Commission
European Commission
The European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....

.

Bayer's takeover bid

On 13 March 2006, Merck KGaA
Merck KGaA
Merck KGaA is a German chemical and pharmaceutical company. Merck, also known as “German Merck” and “Merck Darmstadt”, was founded in Darmstadt, Germany, in 1668, making it the world's oldest operating chemical and pharmaceutical company. The company was privately owned until going public in 1995...

 announced a €14.6bn bid for Schering http://inter-x.info/en/web/index.html. The offer document was due to be issued in early April 2006.

Merck's takeover bid was surpassed by Bayer
Bayer
Bayer AG is a chemical and pharmaceutical company founded in Barmen , Germany in 1863. It is headquartered in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany and well known for its original brand of aspirin.-History:...

's $19.5B white-knight
White knight (business)
In business, a white knight, or "friendly investor," may be a corporation or a person that intends to help another firm. There are many types of white knights...

 bid for Schering on 23 March 2006. In June 2006 Bayer finally bought the majority of shares, over 96%. A domination agreement using the code name "Step One" was used for the take-over. On 17 February 2007 the company publicly announced that 1,000 jobs would be cut through voluntary redundancy
Voluntary redundancy
Voluntary redundancy is a financial incentive offered by an organisation to its employees with the purpose of attracting volunteers to leave the organisation, due to downsizing or restructuring situations. The purpose is to circumvent union employee regulation laws.-Reasons:A Voluntary Redundancy...

from the Berlin operations with effect until March 2008.
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