Pharmaceutical

Quotient Clinical announced the completion of a major expansion of its pharmaceutical sciences facilities in March of 2011 in Nottingham. The GMP manufacturing suite has doubled in size and now incorporates six independent manufacturing rooms supporting oral, inhaled, and parenteral drug products. The formulation development and pharmaceutical analysis laboratory areas have also been significantly increased and now occupy an 11,000-sf purpose-built facility.

University College Dublin opened the National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training in March of 2011. The 70,000-sf facility was created in partnership with Trinity College, Dublin City University, and Sligo Institute of Technology. The center includes research space, a pilot plant, and a complete bioprocessing manufacturing operation for training programs.

Pharmaceutical manufacturer United Therapeutics is planning to build a 177,000-sf facility on its existing campus in Research Triangle Park, N.C. The addition will provide manufacturing, packaging, labeling, and warehouse space. Construction could begin in mid-2011 with completion slated for 2012. A 173,635-sf parking deck will be constructed adjacent to the facility.

AstraZeneca is planning to build a $150 million pharmaceutical manufacturing facility near Moscow in Russia. Construction will begin in April of 2011 with production beginning in spring of 2013. The facility will manufacture treatments for cancer, cardiovascular health, and other conditions.

Stanford University School of Medicine will begin construction in spring of 2011 on the $21 million Jill and John Freidenrich Center for Translational Research in Palo Alto, Calif. The three-story, 30,690-sf facility will house 250 cancer researchers and space for clinical trials. Occupancy is expected in August of 2012. The center was designed by WRNS Studio and will be built by Devcon Construction.

GlaxoSmithKline will build a 205,000-sf facility in the Philadelphia Navy Yard. The four-story building will be developed by Liberty Property Trust and Synterra Partners and is expected to achieve LEED Platinum sustainable design certification. Robert A.M. Stern Architects (RAMSA) is providing design services for the $81 million project. Site work will begin in March of 2011 with construction commencing in summer of 2011. Completion is expected by early 2013.

The Medical Center of the Americas is in the design stage in El Paso, Texas. Created by a consortium of academic and industry partners including the University of Texas and Texas Tech, the planned 140-acre biomedical research complex will support commercialization of pharmaceutical therapies. The first phase of the project will include construction of an 80,000-sf facility on 10 acres in central El Paso. A subsequent phase of construction will deliver two additional buildings at the site.

DSM Pharmaceutical Products is building a $65 million biologics manufacturing facility in Brisbane. The 6,500-sf project is part of the Translational Research Institute at the Princess Alexandra Hospital campus. Completion is expected by 2013.

Genzyme Corp. initiated construction in January of 2011 on a $344 million pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in Geel, Belgium. The facility will provide 8,000 liters of production capacity for biologics and a complete purification installation. Completion is expected in late 2014. Genzyme is based in Cambridge, Mass.

Agensys began construction in January of 2011 on a $95 million biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Santa Monica. Designed by HLW International, the 160,000-sf complex will house research labs, offices, and manufacturing space. Completion is expected in early 2013. The building will enable Agensys to consolidate operations from three existing sites in Santa Monica. Agensys is a subsidiary of Japan-based Astellas Pharma.

Novartis International AG will begin construction in 2011 on a pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in St. Peterburg, Russia. The project is part of a five-year, $500 million investment by Novartis in local infrastructure, healthcare initiatives, and partnerships with academia and industry.

CMC Biologics has completed construction of a disposable biopharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Seattle. The project will support early-phase clinical production of mammalian cell culture-based recombinant proteins. The single-use facility represents a trend in bioprocessing to eliminate the costly sterilization procedures associated with traditional steel tank manufacturing, as well as decrease cross-contamination risks, by utilizing disposable processing equipment and bioreactors.

The Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute (Mtech) is initiating an expansion of the Bioprocess Scale-Up Facility in College Park, Md. Supported by $200,000 in funding from the Maryland Biotechnology Center, the project will double Mtech’s existing footprint with additional bioprocessing laboratories, fermentation facilities, and tissue culture suites. The new facility is located in the University of Maryland’s Institute for Bioscience and Biotechnology Research (IBBR) and will support bioprocessing and protein purification training programs.

The Methodist Hospital Research Institute (TMHRI) will open its 440,000-sf research facility in Houston in October of 2010. Housing 90 principal investigators and 800 staff, the interdisciplinary facility will include a GMP bioprocessing facility and an infectious disease research lab.

CSL Limited will construct a biopharmaceutical R&D facility in Broadmeadows, Victoria. The $235 million project includes infrastructure improvements to CSL’s existing manufacturing campus to enhance integration with the new building. The R&D facility will support late stage development of treatments for cancer, bleeding disorders, inflammation, and infection.