Voices from Clients
Case Studies

Goryo Chemical, Inc.

Goryo Chemical, a company specializing in the development of in-vitro diagnostic agents, is one of the clients of CM Plus. In the following interview, Goryo Chemical CEO Ken-ichi Maruyama and Director Eisaku Yamauchi discuss how they came to learn about CM Plus and how effective its services turned out to be.

  • Goryo Chemical, Inc.
    CEO
    Ken-ichi Maruyama

  • Goryo Chemical, Inc.
    Director
    Eisaku Yamauchi

  • CM Plus Corporation
    Founder and Group
    CEO Tsunehiro
    Togashi

  • CM Plus Corporation
    Senior Consultant
    Mitsuhiko Sano
    * Sano is the executive in charge
    of liaising with Goryo Chemical, Inc.

1 The sharing of values facilitates project implementation.

Togashi: I’ve been looking forward to meeting you, Dr. Maruyama. I would like to ask you a couple of questions first. What were your original reasons for seeking consultancy services, and what led you to choose us for a business partner?

Maruyama:Our company was founded in 2010 as a manufacturer of fluorescent probes. We leveraged this technology to develop in-vitro diagnostic agents in recent years and later realized that the development and manufacture of these products would require a solid quality management system (QMS). At about the same time, we were moving into a new building and planned to expand our manufacturing facilities in compliance with QMS standards. Simply put, we were entering a new business venture with no experience in constructing QMS-compliant facilities. Moreover, our employees involved in the project were young, and interpreting the ministerial ordinances was tricky. So, we decided that we needed a consultancy service to support us. It happened that Mr. Yamauchi, our director in charge of pharmaceutical affairs, also served as an outside consultant of CM Plus, so he knew very well about the company’s reputation and capabilities. That’s how we came to hire you.

Togashi: I see we have Mr. Yamauchi to thank for introducing us to you, but that may be more than just a coincidence. I looked at your corporate website and found a list of 10 fundamental principles that define you as a company. Those principles seem very familiar to me. In fact, they resemble our own mission statement, which we issued to mark our 10th anniversary. Aren’t they remarkably similar?

Maruyama:You are right. They seem to be pointing to the same direction, although the wording is different. I feel that we share the same values.

Maruyama:Sharing values is very important. Our consultant–client relationship is going so well because we have a base of mutual understanding. We “get” each other, so to speak. CM Plus’s consultancy service for you is made-to-order, weighing Goryo Chemical’s scale of business and state of affairs while ensuring regulatory compliance. This is why we could build a QMS that functions well without undue constraints.

  • Ten Principles of Goryo Chemical, Inc.

  • The Mission of CM Plus Corporation

2 “All our employees are diamonds in the rough.”

Sano:I congratulate you on having excellent employees. Although young, they take ownership of their jobs. They are like white canvases on which beautiful pictures can be painted, and I love teaching them how to live up to their potential.




Maruyama:Drawing a new picture on a white canvas is exactly what our business is about. What we are doing has never been done in Japan. Therefore, of course, there is no other firm like us in Hokkaido. We may be small, but we shine through very brightly, I tell you! Because of the nature of our business, we need a steady input of new information. Luckily, our employees are very hungry for knowledge, so absorbing new information comes naturally to them. As we were putting together a quality assurance policy, for instance, we took Mr. Sano’s advice and printed it on cards and then gave them to all employees so they could carry them around. I was surprised to learn the next day that most of our younger employees had already committed the text to memory.

Togashi: Pursuing unique business ideas is something we can relate to, because CM Plus derives its competitive edge from uniqueness rather than size.

Maruyama:“Swift implementation” is another attribute that our companies share.

Sano: I’ve also noticed that internal communication runs very smoothly at Goryo Chemical. Am I correct in assuming that this culture of frankness mirrors your personality, Dr. Maruyama?

Maruyama: There have been times when I would sense a gap between myself and our lab researchers, which made me realize that my ideas and messages as CEO were not getting through to the employees. So, I changed my way of running the company; organizing office parties, creating opportunities to get to know the employees’ families, and so on.

Togashi:I think your company has a good office vibe. I noticed a bicycle at your desk, Dr. Maruyama. I assume you commute by bicycle?

Yamauchi:Oh, he is very active indeed! He also loves trail running, often going up into the mountains all alone. In fact, the biggest threat to our business is that our CEO might be attacked by a brown bear one of these days!


3 Articulate and client-friendly consulting assists in the expansion into unfamiliar sectors.

Yamauchi:As Dr. Maruyama explained at the beginning, we started as a manufacturer of fluorescent probes before entering the segment of in-vitro diagnostic agents. We had to clear the barrier of pharmaceutical regulations before making this transition, of course, and CM Plus helped us greatly by explaining the issues at hand in a very comprehensible manner. As a result, we could clearly explain our position to other executives and managers. Furthermore, CM Plus helped us draw the roadmap to achieving our goals and overseeing the progress. These services were particularly useful to us who were new to the sector.

Togashi:Thank you for your positive appraisal. We started out as an engineering service provider specializing in plant construction projects, and the project management expertise we have cultivated over the years has been proven valid in other types of projects as well.

Maruyama:We are planning to expand our product line from in-vitro to in-vivo diagnostic agents, which means we have to satisfy good manufacturing practice (GMP) requirements as well. We would like CM Plus to continue guiding us through this transition.

Togashi:Sano is an exceptional consultant whose expertise covers both QMS and GMP. He’ll keep helping you with your current and future needs.

Sano:I’ll also get to keep enjoying the beautiful seasons and tasty food in Hokkaido! (Laughter.)

Togashi:In conclusion, could you sum up the strengths and future plans of your company?

Maruyama:We have the flexibility to develop, manufacture, and sell products all by ourselves, which is rare for a bio-venture company. In addition, our employees are young on average, can think out of the box, and are eager to tackle new challenges. I think these qualities are working in our favor.
We will continue supplying fluorescent probes to the life science market. In the field of medical care, we plan to keep developing in-vivo and in-vitro diagnostic agents as “navigation drugs” to help revolutionize surgery.

Togashi: It’s a pleasure to partner with such an inspiring company. Thank you both for talking with us today.

Profile of Goryo Chemical, Inc.
Established:
2010/7/16
Business activities:
Sale of fluorescent probes for bio applications
Custom synthesis of fluorescent probes
Development of diagnostic agents based on fluorescent probes
Head office:
EAREE Bldg., 5th floor, Kita 8 Nishi 18-35-100, Chuo-ku, Sapporo, 060-0008 Japan
Representative:
Ken-ichi Maruyama, CEO

Products and services of Goryo Chemical, Inc.

Fluorescent probes for acidic pH detection
Fluorescent probes for calcium ion detection
Fluorescent probes for glycosidase activity detection
Fluorescent probes combined with HaloTag® ligand
Fluorescent probes for detecting protease activity in cancer cells
Fluorescent probes for human iPS/ES cell detection
Fluorescent probes for super-resolution imaging
Fluorescent probes for metal ion detection
Fluorescent probes for nitric oxide detection
Fluorescent probes for hypoxia detection
Fluorescent probes for reactive oxygen species detection
Original fluorescent labeling services
Custom synthesis of fluorescent probes
Small fluorescence imaging device


CM Plus’s consulting services for Goryo Chemical, Inc.

Listing the requirements of manufacturer/marketing authorization holder (MAH)
QMS consulting
 1. QMS training
 2. Support for designing a QMS organization
 3. Documentation support
 4. Revision of design and development
 5. Risk management
 6. Supplier management support
 7. Technology transfer support
Depending on the client’s situation, other consulting services may be provided as needed.

* The information contained in this article is those at the time of the interview.

トップページへ