Hey, Pfizer’s hiring! (Isn’t it tempting?)
It was the drug that launched a thousand quips. It not only propelled Pfizer into the public consciousness but put the company’s Irish headquarters and production facility at Ringaskiddy in Cork Harbour on the map internationally. Some 15 years on from its launch, Viagra is about to come off patent, opening up the market to generic copies. The mood among Pfizer’s workforce involved in the manufacture of the drug’s active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) sildenafil, in Ringaskiddy, is cautious. Part of the reason for this caution – as opposed to outright pessimism – is the fact that, despite its headline grabbing profile as the Pfizer Riser, Viagra was never as dominant a drug in Ringaskiddy’s product portfolio as it was in the public consciousness.
