Chris Newmarker

Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and BioNTech (NSDQ:BNTX) announced today that they will provide an extra 100 million doses of its Comirnaty COVID-19 vaccine to EU member countries in 2021. “In partnership with the European Commission, member states and healthcare providers, we will be able to reach a total of 150 million Europeans across the continent,” Pfizer CEO Albert…

Honeywell (NYSE:HON) announced today that it will buy Sparta Systems (Hamilton, N.J.) and its medtech and pharma quality management software for $1.3 billion. Officials at Honeywell and Sparta Systems’ present owner New Mountain Capital expect the all-cash deal to close by the end of Q1 2021, pending certain regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions. The…

Hundreds of millions of vaccine doses will require hundreds of millions of syringes from companies such as BD. As much-hoped-for COVID-19 vaccines roll out to the public, Becton Dickinson (NYSE:BDX) faces an arguably impressive challenge: The Franklin Lakes, N.J.–based medtech giant already has commitments to provide more than 800 million needles and syringes to deliver future COVID-19…

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla told media outlets today that the company is negotiating a way to speed up the delivery of an additional 100 million doses of its COVID-19 vaccine to the U.S. next year. Americans are expected to receive some of the first shots of the vaccine today — days after FDA granted an…

Freudenberg Sealing Technologies, in cooperation with French customer Definox, recently announced that it has developed a new series of high-performance seals for butterfly valves. Definox produces valves and stainless steel equipment for the process industry; it specializes in producing components for processes in the pharmaceutical, food, beverage, cosmetics and animal feed sectors. “We convinced our…

About 6.4 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine from Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) and its partner BioNTech (NSDQ:BNTX) will ship to U.S. states in mid-December, as long as the vaccine soon receives an FDA EUA. There are also plans to quickly distribute vaccine from rival COVID-19 vaccine developer Moderna (NSDQ:MRNA), which could soon apply for an EUA, officials at the…

Roche (SWX: RO,  ROG) recently announced that it will create a Global Pharma Technical (PT) Operations site at its Canadian pharmaceutical headquarters in Mississauga, Ontario. The new operations site, announced, Oct. 16, involves a $500 investment over five years, with 200 people hired for skilled jobs by the end of this year. Roche plans to hire 300 more…

A top U.S. Department of Health and Human Services official used an appearance today at a virtual medtech conference to repeat the U.S. government’s astounding goal for its Operation Warp Speed program: start delivering 300 million doses of a safe, effective COVID-19 vaccine by January 2021. The project could revolutionize not only how pharmaceuticals are…

Vaxxas announced today that it has received a $22 million award from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) at U.S. HHS to support a clinical study involving the company’s vaccine-delivery patch. The money will mostly pay for a Phase 1 clinical study in which Vaxxas’ high-density micro-array patch (HD-MAP) delivering pandemic influenza vaccine to…

Aphena Pharma Solutions recently announced that it is spending $21 million to expand its Solid Dose Division in Cookeville, Tenn Aphena Pharma has purchased a 500,000 ft2 property, purpose-built for FDA manufacturing and packaging operations. Renovations have already started to turn the site into a state-of-the-art pharmaceutical packaging and distribution facility that will also serve…