Corporate Magazine 2012 - Boehringer Ingelheim

usiness year 2012group management report(EMU) government bonds with top credit ratings andshort-term investments at selected banks.Boehringer Ingelheim is exposed to risks arising fromlegal disputes and proceedings as well as official investigations.As the legal or administrative decisions in ongoingor future proceedings cannot be predicted, wehave made appropriate provisions for the resultant riskswhere appropriate.Protection of innovations through trademark, brand andpatent rights is of particular importance to BoehringerIngelheim as a research company. These commercialprotective rights are increasingly the target of attacksand breaches. We have taken the necessary precautionsto allow us to detect threats at an early stage and, bycommencing appropriate countermeasures, defend ourlegal position using all legal means available to us whereapplicable.Risks in the area of Environment, Health and Safety areminimised preventively by adherence to our own extremelyhigh safety standards. Appropriate emergencyplans have been drawn up for possible incidents of anykind and are practised and subjected to comprehensivequality testing at regular intervals. To provide protectionagainst the financial impact of potential damage or lossevents and liability risks, Boehringer Ingelheim has concludedappropriate insurance coverage for the company’srisk profile. The scope and amount of this coverage areregularly monitored.There are currently no indications of any risks above andbeyond this that could jeopardise the continued existenceof the Boehringer Ingelheim group.REPORT ON EXPECTEDDEVELOPMENTSOur satisfactory business performance in the 2012 financialyear confirmed our long-term orientation. The measurestaken to reduce costs and enhance efficiency haveprovided us with a strong starting point for the comingyears.Following the transitional year of 2010 with the expiryof exclusivity protection for our blockbuster productsflomax® and mirapex® in the USA – something we hadbeen aware of for some time and planned for – and theimpact on operating income from the extensive investmentsin R&D and marketing for the planned new productlaunches, we successfully continued the new periodof organic growth initiated in the 2011 financial year in2012 as well.In addition to the further growing blockbusters spiriva®and micardis®, this upturn was driven by the launch ofour innovative oral anticoagulant pradaxa® (dabigatranetexilate) for the indication of stroke prevention in patientswith atrial fibrillation, which exceeded the salesmarker of EUR 1 billion for the first time in the past financialyear.Boehringer Ingelheim is also exposed to business risksspecific to the pharmaceutical industry. In addition tothe loss of exclusivity of products established on themarket and risks associated with the development andregistration of new products, these risks increasingly includechanging and restrictive requirements relating topricing and reimbursement on many sales markets. Frequently,the prices of pharmaceutical products are subjectnot only to state monitoring and regulation, but alsoto price pressure from cheaper generic drugs caused bythe state reimbursement systems.trajenta® (active ingredient linagliptin) for the treatmentof type 2 diabetes also offers significant sales potential.trajenta® is being marketed as part of a strategic alliancebetween Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly. Thelong-term collaboration for the joint development andmarketing of diabetes active ingredients also comprisesother active ingredients that will be ready for market inthe next few years.In the Biopharmaceuticals business, we have manyyears of expertise in the development and production ofReport on post-balance sheet date events / Risk report / Report on expected developments 37