Pharmaceutical Processing World Archives

Bruker to acquire NanoString business

Bruker this week announced it entered into a definitive acquisition agreement with NanoString Technologies.

Under the agreement’s terms, Bruker will substantially acquire all of the assets and rights associated with NanoString’s business for approximately $392.6 million in cash and the assumption of certain liabilities.

The transaction was approved under a court-supervised Chapter 11 sale process pursuant to Section 363 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. It is expected to close in the second quarter of 2024 and is subject to customary closing conditions.

NanoString develops life science tools for discovery and translational expression analysis. Its revenues were $168 million in 2023.

“The acquisition of NanoString will add gene expression profiling and spatial transcriptomics solutions and products to Bruker’s spatial biology portfolio,” Mark Munch, President of Bruker Nano Group, said in a news release. “NanoString’s innovative platforms ar…

Schreiner MediPharm adds RFID label customization to manufacturing line

Schreiner MediPharm this week launched its late-stage customization capabilities for its RFID-Labels series.

The new offering allows the company’s smart labels to be supplied quickly with order-specific programming for integrated RFID chips.

Schreiner MediPharm’s RFID functional labels give pharmaceutical companies the flexibility and agility to provide the best possible security of supply and quality assurance as the industry continuously changes with market conditions.

The labels are preproduced in larger volumes with RFID inlays and then warehoused as semi-finished goods. When a customer requests RFID labels, the preproduced labels are customized through digital printing and delivered on an expedited basis, the company said. The manufacturing method allows for the flexible production of smart labels and ensures a fast response to customer inquiries.

RFID chips can be individually programmed as needed. Versions with preproduced funct…

Eli Lilly acquires new injectable medicine manufacturing plant

Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY) announced today that it agreed to acquire a manufacturing facility from sterile manufacturer Nexus.

Buying the FDA-approved facility in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin, further expands Lilly’s global parenteral (injectable) manufacturing network. It also supports increased demand for the company’s medicines, Lilly said in a news release. The company expects that production at the Wisconsin facility could begin by the end of 2025.

“The acquisition of this state-of-the-art facility underscores our unwavering commitment to growth and innovation, and we look forward to welcoming talented new Nexus colleagues to Lilly from the Pleasant Prairie facility,” said Edgardo Hernandez, EVP and president, Lilly Manufacturing. “We are investing boldly to serve our patients, to meet product demand and to build capabilities for our robust pipeline of the future.”

The Pleasant Prairie facility doesn’t provide contract manufacturing servi…

Ferring Pharmaceuticals, SK Pharmteco enter commercial gene therapy manufacturing deal

Ferring Pharmaceuticals and SK pharmteco today announced an agreement to scale up commercial manufacturing capacity for Ferring’s drug substance intravesical non-replicating gene therapy, Adstiladrin.

The deal will help ensure the long-term future supply of gene therapy. Following the technology transfer, SK pharmteco will be qualified as another source for manufacturing, testing and release of the medicine, subject to FDA approval.

Ferring’s Adstiladrin was FDA-approved in December 2022 for adult patients with high-risk Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-unresponsive non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) with carcinoma in situ with or without papillary tumors.

“SK pharmteco is proud to partner with Ferring Pharmaceuticals as a manufacturer of the breakthrough gene therapy Adstiladrin,” CEO Joerg Ahlgrimm said. “Our integrated approach, incorporating customizable clinical and commercial GMP manufacturing solutions with comprehensive in-proce…

TriLink BioTechnologies opens new mRNA manufacturing facility

TriLink BioTechnologies today announced it opened its new cGMP mRNA manufacturing facility.

The new 32,000 sq. ft. facility, based in San Diego, is specifically designed for mRNA manufacturing. Using the company’s mRNA manufacturing capabilities, it will support late-phase drug developers from Phase 2 to commercialization. TriLink said the opening is expected to help advance the field of mRNA-based medicine.

TriLink’s new facility has individual Grade C cleanroom suites for mRNA manufacturing, increased mRNA capacity, comprehensive in-house analytical services and laboratory space for on-site quality control testing. The manufacturing site is also outfitted with “state-of-the-art” equipment and is ready to onboard clients with late-phase manufacturing needs.

“This facility is expected to help move the needle for life-saving breakthroughs in mRNA therapeutics,” Kevin Lynch, VP and GM of TriLink’s GMP operations, said in a new…

Novartis begins $256M Singapore expansion

(Left to right) : Ms Cindy Koh, Executive Vice President, Economic Development Board (EDB); Ms Ana Locatelli, Site Head, Novartis Singapore; ⁠Mr Heng Swee Keat, Deputy Prime Minister and Coordinating Minister for Economic Policies; Mr Steffen Lang, President of Operations at Novartis; Mr Christoph Buerki, Chief Financial Officer Operations, Novartis. [Image courtesy of Novartis]

Novartis announced last week that it broke ground on a biopharmaceutical manufacturing plant in Singapore.

The company put forward a $256 million investment to begin the project, which will lead to the deployment of digital and automation solutions to enhance manufacturing productivity, improve operational efficiency, and upskill the workforce. Novartis said this site will focus on manufacturing therapeutic antibody drugs to deliver breakthrough treatments to patients globally.

“In the next phase of growth for the biopharma sector…

W.R. Grace expands manufacturing plant in Michigan

W.R. Grace announced that it opened an expanded fine chemical contract development and manufacturing plant in Michigan.

The Columbia, Maryland-based specialty chemicals company opened the facility in South Haven, Michigan. Following a 21-month project, more than 200 employees joined executives and community leaders for a ribbon-cutting ceremony this week.

Grace’s facility has 25% more capacity, with more room for a 4,000-gallon Hastelloy centrifuge and three 4,000-gallon, multi-use chemical reactors. This strengthens Grace’s ability to serve growing demand for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs).

The company’s South Haven facility produces APIs, regulatory starting materials (RSMs) and drug intermediates in quantities from kilos to tons. It lands in compliance with the FDA’s current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) regulations. The site integrates with Grace’s Tyrone, Pennsylvania facility, the company said. It offers custo…

Schott Pharma commits $371 million to new U.S. manufacturing facility for GLP-1, mRNA therapies

Pharma packaging company Schott Pharma has unveiled plans to establish a new manufacturing facility in Wilson, North Carolina. Schott Pharma says the $371 million investment in the U.S. facility will create more than 400 jobs in the region and significantly expand the company’s presence in the U.S., an increasingly important strategic market for the German company.

Schott also announced an expansion of its Müllheim manufacturing plant in February, which is shown on our map of 2024 facility openings and expansions.

Polymer syringe production a focus

The new site will be the first in the U.S. to manufacture prefillable polymer syringes, which are stored under deep-cold storage in the case of mRNA medications. It will also produce glass prefillable syringes for GLP-1 therapies used to treat diabetes and obesity. The company expects the facility to triple Schott Pharma’s contribution of glass and polymer syringes to the U.S. market by 2030.

Schott P…

Could pharma production someday move to space?

The International Space Station, on which astronauts used Redwire’s lab-in-a-box. [Image courtesy of the ISS National Laboratory]

Four astronauts ended a six-month science expedition that evaluated the potential of Redwire technology to produce certain crystals for pharmaceuticals.

In November, Redwire Corporation announced that its “lab-in-a-box” was installed in an orbiting laboratory following a launch on SpaceX’s 29th Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) mission. The pharmaceutical in-space laboratory (PIL) biocrystal optimization experiment (BOX) aimed to crystallize small organic molecules in microgravity.

Redwire believes its lab-in-a-box can enable the growth of small-batch crystals for protein-based pharmaceuticals. These include aspirin and antihistamines. PIL-BOX can support 10 experiments at a time, and the company plans to cycle through different conditions and different sampl…

Telix Pharmaceuticals to buy ARTMS and its isotope production platform

Telix Pharmaceuticals announced that it agreed to acquire radioisotope production technology firm ARTMS Inc.

ARTMS also brings with it an advanced cyclotron-based isotope production platform and manufacturing plant. It has a stockpile of ultra-pure rare metals required for consumable target production, too, according to a news release. The company specializes in the physics, chemistry and materials science of cyclotron-produced radionuclides. It spun out from TRIUMF, Canada’s particle accelerator center.

Telix expects the acquisition to further enhance the vertical integration of its supply chain and manufacturing. It expects to gain a greater level of control and security over each of its diagnostic isotopes.

The company said the reasons for the acquisition stem from four key areas of commercial synergy. First, it supports the rollout of the company’s Zircaix kidney cancer imaging offering. Telix also said it …

Generic drugs maker Noumed Pharma announces new Australia plant

Noumed Pharmaceuticals says it started construction on a $100 million purpose-built facility in South Australia’s northern suburbs.

According to a news release. the company expects this facility to become the most modern of its kind in Australia. The state-of-the-art pharmaceutical manufacturing plant enhances the country’s sovereign supply into the pharmacy and health networks. Noumed plans to manufacture certain over-the-counter pharmaceuticals on domestic soil, rather htan overseas.

During the first stage, Noumed plans to manufacture liquid-based products like cough mixtures, children’s suspensions and nasal perforations. Other products include creams, while the company plans to pack solid dose tablets. The second stage is set to enable the company to manufacture those solid dose tablets as well.

Noumed says it placed the construction on a 43,000-square meter site with a floor area of 26,000 square meters. It e…

Pfizer gives up on Washington state manufacturing plant project

Pfizer recently announced that it will wind down the construction of an Everett, Washington cancer therapies manufacturing plant that it inherited through its $43 billion acquisition of Seagen last year.

Over the summer before the acquisition closure in December 2023, Seagen had inked a $215 million deal with contractor Skanksa to build the 270,000-square-foot facility, according to the Herald in Everett. But Pfizer now plans for the product manufacturing intended for the site to take place at its expanding Sanford, North Carolina facility instead.

In a statement shared with Pharmaceutical Processing World, Pfizer said that roughly 120 employees who have been working on the initial set-up of the site will be impacted. “We will make every effort to place impacted colleagues within open roles at the Bothell site, and all impacted employees can apply to relevant open roles within Pfizer.”

The company said: “Pfizer regularly evaluates our …