Overview of Pharmaceutical Validation and Process Controls in Drug Development

It has always been known that facilities and processes involved in pharmaceutical production impact significantly on the quality of the products. The processes include raw material and equipment inspections as well as in-process controls. Process controls are mandatory in good manufacturing practice (GMP). The purpose is to monitor the on-line and off-line performance of the manufacturing process, and hence, validate it. Thus validation is an integral part of quality assurance. This overview examines the need for pharmaceutical validation, the various approaches and steps involved, and other pertinent considerations.