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Abstract:
Current drug production in batch cannot adapt rapidly to market demands,} evidenced by recent shortages in many markets globally of essential medicines. Flow chemistry is a valuable tool for on-demand production of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs). Here{,} we reveal a new concept to develop and produce APIs{,} where an automated synthesizer that works with discrete volumes of solutions is employed at the discovery stage to identify the optimal synthetic route and conditions before a commercially available continuous flow system is used for scale-up. This concept is illustrated by the synthesis of nifedipine and paracetamol{,} in short supply in Germany during the COVID-19 pandemic{, and the local anesthetic lidocaine.