RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK -- Quintiles Transnational Corp. announced that its central laboratory operation in China has earned two significant certifications -- one from the College of American Pathologists (CAP) and the other from the National Glycohemoglobin Standardization Program (NGSP).

Quintiles provides central lab services in China through an agreement with the Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH). The accreditations apply to the services provided by the Quintiles facility at PUMCH.

"Because of the significant interest in pharmaceutical clinical development in China, these certifications are important for our customers, who are seeking high quality laboratory services to support their efforts in China," said Tom Wollman, Vice President, Quintiles Global Central Laboratories. "Customers need local, high-quality central laboratory services that will stand up to regulatory requirements worldwide. Now, Quintiles is one of only two central laboratory service providers in China to receive CAP accreditation."

CAP certification follows a site inspection. The accreditation is intended to improve patient safety by advancing the quality of pathology and laboratory services through education, setting standards and ensuring laboratories meet or exceed regulatory requirements.

NGSP certification means that the lab's measurement of glycated hemoglobin is highly precise, which is critical in providing comparable results reported in a Diabetes Control and Complications Trial. This is especially important to customers conducting diabetes studies in China.

"We are very honored to be certified by two organizations whose primary concerns are quality, standardization and the safety of patients," said Alan Ong, Vice President, Quintiles Laboratories Asia.

In addition to the Beijing facility, Quintiles' Global Central Laboratories organization has CAP certified labs in Singapore; Atlanta, Ga., U.S.; Edinburgh, Scotland; and Centurion, S.A.

About Quintiles Global Central Labs
Quintiles' network of laboratories covers one of the broadest geographic areas in the industry with owned facilities in the U.S., Europe, South Africa and Singapore, operational offices in South America and China and sub-contract facilities in China, Brazil, Argentina and Australia.

About Quintiles
Quintiles is the global leader in pharmaceutical services. We improve healthcare worldwide by providing innovative, quality professional expertise, market intelligence and partnering solutions to meet the dynamic needs of the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and healthcare industries. Quintiles has about 16,000 specialized employees and offices in 50 countries. For more information visit the company's Web site at http://www.quintiles.com.