Bioprocessing

Merck and Stelis Biopharma opened a joint bioprocess scale-up lab in May of 2017 in Bengaluru, India. Located in the Jigani industrial park, the facility will provide end-to-end solutions from process development to scale-up manufacturing for pre-clinical, clinical, and commercial supply of biological APIs (active pharmaceutical ingredients). A cGMP manufacturing plant featuring Merck's portfolio of Mobius® bioprocessing equipment is also under construction at the site. 

Samsung Biologics is constructing a 1.3 million-sf pharmaceutical production facility in the Songo International Business District in Incheon, South Korea. Accommodating twelve 15-liter bioreactors, the five-story facility will be the world’s largest biologics manufacturing plant when it opens in 2018. Ground was broken on the project in November of 2015.

Just Biotherapeutics is integrating PODs® made by G-CON Manufacturing into the construction of its biologics manufacturing building in China. Located in the Hangzhou Economic & Technology Development Area (HEDA), the cGMP plant will utilize the prefabricated cleanroom units to create a highly flexible and efficient facility. Completion is expected by early 2018.

Sanofi and Lonza initiated a joint venture in March of 2017 to create a $285 million biologics manufacturing center in Visp, Switzerland. The strategic partnership leverages Lonza’s expertise in designing, constructing, and managing large-scale mammalian cell culture facilities with Sanofi’s strength in the discovery and launch of biologics-based treatments. Construction is expected to begin in 2017 on the initial phase of the project, with full operations commencing by 2020.

Mayo Clinic’s Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology (DLMP) has relocated and consolidated three laboratories—Endocrine, Toxicology and Drug Monitoring, and the Proteomics Core Mass Spectrometry Development Lab (CMSL)—into a singular core mass spectrometry laboratory. The two-story, 65,000-gsf addition to the Superior Drive Support Center (SDSC) is 10 to 15 minutes from Mayo Clinic’s downtown Rochester, Minn., campus.

The International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE) announced the annual winners for the Facility of the Year Award (FOYA) program in February of 2017. The category winners were:

Zymeworks opened a 10,000-sf biopharmaceutical laboratory in January of 2017 in Vancouver, British Columbia. The facility will provide a centralized location for the company’s discovery research operations, including antibody generation, medicinal chemistry, bioconjugation, and the development of multifunctional proteins. Zymeworks is a producer of therapeutic agents for clinical-stage research on the treatment of cancer.

ImmuCell broke ground in October of 2016 on a $20 million pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Portland, Maine. The two-story, 16,800-sf facility will provide fermentation, processing, laboratory, and warehouse space for the production of Nisin, the active ingredient in one of ImmuCell's leading animal health products. Stantec is providing architectural and engineering services for the project, which is being built by Consigli Construction. Completion is expected in late 2017 with manufacturing operations commencing in early 2018.

Global pharmaceutical manufacturer Lonza is expanding its production facilities in Pearland, Texas. Work began in March of 2016 on a 100,000-sf clinical manufacturing center, which will begin operations in late 2017. A second phase of construction will begin in fall of 2016 at the site, providing an additional 150,000 sf of office, laboratory, and manufacturing space.

GE Healthcare is planning to create a $167 million biopharmaceutical manufacturing campus in Ringaskiddy, Ireland. Featuring GE's prefabricated KUBio™ facilities, GE BioPark Cork will include four KUBio factories owned by independent biopharma companies. GE will manage the campus as well as providing centralized shared utilities and site services. Construction is expected to begin in mid-2017.

AstraZeneca is building the £750 million Global R&D Centre and Corporate Headquarters on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus in the United Kingdom. Providing advanced facilities for pharmaceutical discovery and development, the 580,000-sf project will include space for biologics research, high throughput screening, medicinal chemistry, pre-clinical research, and clinical studies. Designed to optimize interaction and connectivity, the collaborative 11-acre campus will accommodate approximately 2,000 employees and will include an on-site energy center.

Pfizer broke ground in June of 2016 on a $200 million clinical manufacturing facility for complex biologics and vaccines in Andover, Mass. The five-story, 175,000-sf facility is expected to be fully operational by January of 2019 and will accommodate 75 employees. Designed for maximum flexibility, the project will feature five independent production suites that utilize next-generation manufacturing strategies including single-use bioreactors and disposable process technologies.

JHL Biotech opened a biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility in May of 2016 in Wuhan, China. Featuring single-use bioprocessing technologies, the cGMP facility utilizes GE Healthcare's prefabricated KUBio system to produce biosimilars and monoclonal antibodies for late–stage clinical trials and commercial supply. The project was completed in just 18 months.

Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies opened a 62,000-sf biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility in May of 2016 in Morrisville, N.C. Accommodating collaborative research and development, the three-story BioProcess Innovation Center supports the creation and production of advanced proteins, vaccines, and monoclonal antibodies. The project team included Alexandria Real Estate Equities and KBR Building Group. Ground was broken on the project in January of 2015.

Valent BioSciences is planning to construct the Biorational Research Center at Innovation Park in Libertyville, Ill. Enabling the consolidation of the company's chemistry, biology, microbiology, fermentation, and formulations labs in a single location, the $22 million project includes the buildout of 65,000 sf to create labs and offices as well as the construction of a 10,000-sf research greenhouse. Completion is expected in mid-2017. Valent BioSciences is a subsidiary of Sumitomo Chemical Company.