Investment & Innovation

New: Thermo Fisher Introduces New Cell and Gene Therapy Integrated Commercial Packaging and Distribution Services

Thermo Fisher is introducing Commercial Packaging Services for Cell and Gene Therapies (CGT), an end-to-end solution combining the GMP storage, serialization, ultracold and cryogenic packaging, and global distribution developers need to support their logistics strategies. With the cell and gene therapy market expected to hit a commercialization inflection point by 2025, these types of services are critical to help new cell and gene therapies seamlessly transition from clinic to commercial launch. Thermo Fisher’s Commercial Packaging services complement the company’s fully integrated development and manufacturing capabilities, representing a continued investment in supporting the cell and gene therapy market. Read the Press Release

Now Open: Plasmid DNA Manufacturing Capacity and Capabilities in Carlsbad

To accelerate commercialization of plasmid-based medicines and vaccines, Thermo Fisher is constructing a new cGMP plasmid DNA manufacturing facility in Carlsbad, CA. The new site will expand the company’s clinical and commercial capabilities for cGMP plasmid DNA used as a critical raw material to develop and manufacture cell and gene-based therapies including life-saving cancer treatments and mRNA vaccines. The site will also have the capability to produce large-scale plasmid DNA as a primary drug substance for DNA therapies. The 67,000 square foot facility, completed in the first half of 2021, advanced technologies, including single use equipment with up to 1,000L scale, digital connectivity and data visibility to enable operational efficiencies and operator training, and add approximately 150 jobs over the next 12 months. Read the Press Release Read about Carlsbad expansion Learn more about our cGMP Plasmid DNA capabilities

Enabling accelerated cell therapy development – UCSF partnership

Thermo Fisher Scientific and the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) have formed a strategic alliance to accelerate the development and manufacturing of cell-based therapies. Under the partnership, Thermo Fisher will build and operate an approximately 44,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art cell therapy development, manufacturing and collaboration center in leased space on UCSF’s Mission Bay campus. The site, expected to open in 2022, will offer clinical and commercial cGMP cell therapy manufacturing services, along with associated technology development support, to UCSF and other partners. Read the Press Release

Credit: Matt Beardsley/UCSF

Thermo Fisher Acquires Henogen S.A.

To accelerate demand for cell and gene vaccines and therapies globally, Thermo Fisher and Groupe Novasep SAS (Novasep), a leading supplier of services and technologies for the life sciences industry, announced that Thermo Fisher has completed the acquisition of Henogen S.A., Novasep’s viral vector manufacturing business in Belgium. Novasep’s viral vector manufacturing business provides contract manufacturing services to biotechnology companies and large biopharma customers. With two locations in Seneffe and Gosselies, Belgium, Novasep’s viral vector business offers more than 7,000 square meters of state-of-the-art clinical and commercial manufacturing capacity. Founded more than 20 years ago, the business has approximately 400 employees with substantial operational and technical expertise in a broad range of viral vector classes. Read the Press Release

Site Location: Seneffe, Belgium

Plainville, Massachusetts

To support increasing demand for viral vector development and manufacturing services, Thermo Fisher is expanding capacity with construction of a new commercial manufacturing site in Plainville, Mass. The 290,000-square-foot facility will more than double the company’s commercial viral vector capacity to support customers who are developing and manufacturing gene therapies and vaccines to address unmet medical needs. Construction at the Plainville site will be complete in 2022, adding more than 200 jobs and complementing new or recently expanded capacity in Lexington and Cambridge, Mass., and Alachua, Fla. The Plainville site will offer a flexible and scalable configuration of laboratory and production suites co-located with adjacent warehousing and office space. An onsite engineering laboratory will help customers develop turnkey production platforms that enable them to rapidly transition to commercial-scale operations when ready. Read the Press Release

Hangzhou, China

On November 6, Thermo Fisher announced that we have signed a joint venture agreement with Innoforce, a bioinnovation-enabling company, to establish a new pharma services facility in Hangzhou, China, for integrated biologics drug substance and steriles drug product development and manufacturing. The new facility is expected to be completed in 2022. Read the press release. The addition of the Hangzhou site will expand our existing global pharma services network and provide drug development and manufacturing services for customers in China, as well as for global customers seeking capabilities in the region. Together with Innoforce, Thermo Fisher will offer fully-integrated global capabilities from molecule to medicine to our customers and the patients they serve. “A large portion of China’s clinical pipeline is owned by new and emerging companies and there is an increasing need for expertise and capabilities to enable customers to accelerate their development of medicines for patients around the world,” said Mike Shafer, President, Pharma Services. “Innoforce’s expertise allows us to expand our existing network and provides critical support for customers of all sizes that are ready to start in China, enter China or expand beyond China.” The new facility will further expand Thermo Fisher’s footprint in China, which includes more than 5,000 employees across 14 commercial offices and eight manufacturing sites. Upon mechanical completion, the Hangzhou site will become part of our global biologics and steriles network, with sites across the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific, including a recently announced Singapore facility facility with new high-speed sterile fill capabilities. “Our commitment to China is evident in our long history of strategic investments, and our joint venture with Innoforce is yet another example,” said Tony Acciarito, President, Thermo Fisher China. “We will continue to build new product development and manufacturing capabilities in China to support our biopharma customers in their efforts to bring innovative medicines to market.” Until the site is operational, new and existing customers can access our current global network of biologics and sterile fill-finish capacity. After completion, projects will seamlessly transition to the new Hangzhou site. Innoforce is located in the heart of Hangzhou Bay Biotech Valley within the Hangzhou Airport Economic Demonstration Area. Its founders and management team have extensive international biopharmaceutical experience and expertise across technology innovation, product development and business operations. The first phase of the Innoforce campus covers 21 acres including biologic process development laboratories, scale-up and R&D labs, and manufacturing facilities for protein, cell and gene therapies. For more information, please visit www.innoforcepharma.com.

Thermo Fisher Investing $82.5 million on Expansion of St. Louis Manufacturing Facility

Thermo Fisher is investing $82.5 million to expand operations and create 169 new jobs at its St. Louis, MO, biologic drug manufacturing facility. The expanded facility will manufacture biologic drug substance products that treat a variety of chronic health conditions including cancers and other life-threatening diseases including COVID-19. Thermo Fisher’s current commercial biologics manufacturing footprint in St. Louis is approximately 360,000 square feet and approximately 700 employees. The expansion project will include a 58,000 square foot expansion with two new manufacturing suites and the addition of new manufacturing machinery and equipment, including the new ability to provide manufacturing and production support at the 5KL processing scale as well as continued support at the 2KL processing scale.

Bioprocessing Collaboration Center (BCC)

The new Bioprocessing Collaboration Center (BCC) in St. Louis, Missouri, uniquely positions Thermo Fisher to bring together industry-leading expertise in single-use technologies and biologics product development and manufacturing to deliver unmatched value to our customers. The facility is adjacent to our biologics manufacturing facility, which recently doubled production capacity with a $50M expansion. The combined expertise from our bioproduction and pharma services businesses will accelerate innovation and enhance productivity for biopharma customers, enabling them to meet the growing need for more flexible, scalable biologics development and manufacturing solutions.

Expanding Steriles Operations in Greenville, NC

Thermo Fisher announced that it will create 290 new jobs and invest $154 million to expand its pharmaceutical manufacturing operations in Greenville, N.C. The expansion will increase the manufacturing capacity for sterile liquid and lyophilized filling, pre-filled syringes and solid dose continuous manufacturing. This new investment will enable new innovation and development capabilities to respond to the accelerated demand for critical medicines and therapies. Read the Press Release

Expanding Steriles Capacity and Capabilities in Greenville, NC

To meet the rapidly growing global demand, Thermo Fisher is further expanding its pharma services footprint in North America and Europe for sterile drug product development and commercial manufacturing of critical medicines, therapies and vaccines. Over the next two years, the company’s global steriles network will add 15 development and commercial production lines to support a range of capabilities, including live virus, aseptic liquid and lyophilized vial filling. In Greenville, NC, the expansion includes a new standalone 130,000 square foot facility with two live virus filling lines, which is expected to be operational in 2022. The site will also add six new lines in 2021 and 2022 including commercial scale liquid filling lines and a development line for liquid and lyophilized drug products. Approximately 500 new roles will be hired in Greenville over the next 12-24 months. Read the Press Release

Expanding Steriles Capacity and Capabilities in Ferentino, Italy

To meet the rapidly growing global demand, Thermo Fisher is further expanding its pharma services footprint in North America and Europe for sterile drug product development and commercial manufacturing of critical medicines, therapies and vaccines. Over the next two years, the company’s global steriles network will add 15 development and commercial production lines to support a range of capabilities including, live virus, aseptic liquid and lyophilized vial filling. In Ferentino, Italy, the expansion includes one new line for high-capacity commercial liquid filing, which is expected to be ready for operation in 2021. In addition, a new 28,000 square foot development building will include one flexible line for development projects and small-scale commercial manufacturing that is expected to be operational in 2022. Approximately 200 new roles will be hired in Ferentino over the next 12-24 months. Read the Press Release

Expanding Steriles Capacity and Capabilities in Monza, Italy

To meet the rapidly growing global demand, Thermo Fisher is further expanding its pharma services footprint in North America and Europe for sterile drug product development and commercial manufacturing of critical medicines, therapies and vaccines. Over the next two years, the company’s global steriles network will add 15 development and commercial production lines to support a range of capabilities including, live virus, aseptic liquid and lyophilized vial filling. In Monza, Italy, the expansion includes three new sterile fill finish lines, including one high-capacity line for liquid and lyophilized filling for commercial production, one pre-filled syringe/pre-filled cartridge line for medium batch production and one flexible multi-purpose line for low volume filling. The new lines will be operational in 2021. More than 200 new roles will be hired in Monza over the next 12-24 months. Read the Press Release

Expanding Steriles Capacity and Capabilities in Swindon, UK

To meet the rapidly growing global demand, Thermo Fisher is further expanding its pharma services footprint in North America and Europe for sterile drug product development and commercial manufacturing of critical medicines, therapies and vaccines. Over the next two years, the company’s global steriles network will add 15 development and commercial production lines to support a range of capabilities including, live virus, aseptic liquid and lyophilized vial filling. In Swindon, the expansion will transform the 30,000 square foot site into a new full-scale commercial manufacturing facility with one line for liquid and one line for lyophilized filling, plus extensive cold chain storage for vaccines requiring ultra-low temperatures. The new site is expected to be operational in 2021. Approximately 200 new roles will be hired in Swindon over the next 12-24 months. Read the Press Release

Singapore

Sterile Filling Capacity for Therapies and Vaccines in the Asia Pacific Region Thermo Fisher announced plans to develop two new sterile filling lines in Singapore to extend capacity to the Asia-Pacific region for the development and manufacture of therapies and vaccines. Established with the support of the Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB), the new facility, which will be operated by Thermo Fisher, will have the capability to manufacture pharmaceutical products during health emergencies. The  new facility will initially include a high-speed sterile line approved for live virus filling—the first such large scale capability in Singapore—followed by an additional line for standard fill/finish. Once operational in 2022, the site could manufacture up to 30 million sterile doses per month and employ more than 300 people. This partnership enables us to expand our sterile fill finish network in the region while strengthening the Singapore government’s ability to respond quickly to future health crises in the region. Read the press release

Expanding Clinical Supply Chain Services in Rheinfelden

To meet accelerating demand for robust clinical supply chain services throughout Europe, Thermo Fisher has expanded its pharma services footprint with a new state-of-the-art facility in Rheinfelden, Germany. The new 86,000 square foot / 8,000 square meter facility significantly increases the company’s capability for secondary packaging, storage, logistics and distribution of clinical supplies to investigator sites across Europe. Featuring highly automated technology in a fully scalable, mixed-use space, the site will serve as a strategic logistics hub for shipping by road or air and its central location will help expedite clinical trial therapies to patients. The Rheinfelden site opens in late December 2020. Read The Press Release Download the Site Fact Sheet

Site Preview: Rheinfelden, Germany

Expanding Clinical Supply Chain Services in Weil am Rhein

To meet accelerating demand for robust clinical supply chain services throughout Europe, Thermo Fisher has expanded its pharma services footprint with a new state-of-the-art facility in Weil am Rhein, Germany. The new 9,600 square foot / 890 square meter cryocenter provides specialized ultra-low-temperature, cryogenic storage and cold chain expertise for clinical supply chain needs for cell and gene-based therapies, including COVID-19 vaccines candidates. With deep expertise in end-to-end cold chain management, the cryocenter will support ultra-low temperature storage, packaging, labeling, and distribution required by vaccine and cell and gene therapy innovators. The site will feature -80°C freezers, liquid nitrogen (LN2) cryogenic storage tanks and walk-in 2-8°C and -20°C cold storage technology. The Weil am Rhein site will open in January 2021. Read The Press Release Download the Site Fact Sheet

Site Preview: Weil am Rhein, Germany