Services

The Services segment comprises logistics services for the Swiss healthcare market from Alloga (pre-wholesale), Galexis, Unione Farmaceutica Distribuzione and Pharmapool (wholesale), as well as Medifilm, which is active in drug blister packaging. These are complemented by services from HCI Solutions, which provides master data for the Swiss healthcare market and offers management software solutions for pharmacies. HCI Solutions also develops tools to securely manage, communicate and distribute sensitive health data and improve patient safety.

The Services segment generated net sales of CHF 2,501.8 million in 2017. Sales growth of 7.4% was due in particular to the successful integration of Pharmapool, which accounted for 6.3%. This was achieved in an overall market whose growth (+4.2%, IQVIA) was driven especially by the sales performance of hospitals (hospitals: +8.1%, IQVIA) as well as by high-priced special medications that are for the most part not supplied via wholesale but directly to specialist doctors (doctors: +4.9%, IQVIA).

The operating result (EBIT) improved by 26.7% to CHF 50.6 million. Included in EBIT are one-off positive effects from the sale of the rights of the Triamed^® medical practice software to Swisscom and the sale of a non-operational building in Schönbühl (canton of Bern), which totalled CHF 7.0 million. Return on sales (ROS) was 2.0%. Excluding the one-off effects mentioned, ROS remained unchanged from the previous year at 1.7%.

Investments in 2017 amounted to CHF 27.0 million (previous year: CHF 20.2 million). The increase on the previous year was used notably to finance the new ERP software that will progressively be rolled out at Alloga and Galexis over the next few years.