UK Life Sciences & MedTech Payments: A Mixed Bag, But Generally Better Than Average

While the UK Life Sciences and Medical Technology sector shows promise in payment practices, there's still room for improvement. Overall, the sector is paying better than the UK average, but a significant spread in performance reveals inconsistencies.

The Numbers

• Companies analysed: 118
• Average PaymentCheck Score: 59.8/100
• UK average: 50.0/100 (Life Sciences And Medical Technology is 9.8 points above)
• Average score difference between Top 5 and Bottom 5: 63.24 points

What Stands Out

The concentration of top payers within the Catapult network suggests that public funding and a focus on innovation may correlate with better payment performance. However, the wide gulf between the best and worst payers – 63.24 points between the top 5 and bottom 5 average – shows huge inconsistencies that are unlikely to be explained by genuine economic downturns.

Best Payers

1. MEDICINES DISCOVERY CATAPULT SERVICES COMMERCIAL LIMITED - 100/100
2. MEDICINES DISCOVERY CATAPULT LIMITED - 98.2/100
3. CELL THERAPY CATAPULT LIMITED - 94.6/100
4. ASTEX THERAPEUTICS LIMITED - 93.3/100
5. CHIESI LIMITED - 87.4/100

Worst Payers

1. AVENTIS PHARMA LIMITED - 21.6/100
2. QUANTUM PHARMACEUTICAL LIMITED - 33/100
3. BESPAK EUROPE LIMITED - 33.1/100
4. BARCLAY PHARMACEUTICALS LIMITED - 33.26/100
5. SYNERGY HEALTH (UK) LIMITED - 33.73/100

Regional Patterns

The North West, with an average score of 72.9 across 13 companies, significantly outperforms the sector average of 59.8, suggesting a more positive payment culture in that region. The South East, while hosting the largest number of companies (36), shows a more typical average of 60.5, highlighting how sample size doesn't necessarily guarantee better performance.

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While the sector beats the UK average by 9.8 points, the bottom five payers are dragging the whole sector down, proving consistency is still a major issue.