Facility

Vacaville, Calif. is home to a burgeoning biotech hub. And there’s more to Vacaville’s biomanufacturing industry than Genentech’s presence there. “Genentech is just one of the biotech companies to open in Vacaville,” said Don Burrus, the city’s director of economic development services. “We’ve had biomanufacturers here for almost 30 years.” Genentech set up shop in…

Takeda Pharmaceuticals (NYSE:TAK) has announced that it is investing $126 million to expand a production facility in Thousand Oaks, one of the largest cities in Ventura County, California. The money will support constructing a new 15,000-ft2 manufacturing facility and renovating an existing 14,000–ft2 plant. The mayor of the city, Claudia Bill-de la Peña, joined Takeda officials…

How remote visual inspection (RVI) can help pharma companies prevent contamination and maintain product-line purity requirements. Many pharmaceutical manufacturing plants are interlaced with webs of stainless steel process pipes and vessels through which products flow. Bacterial or foreign-particle contamination in pipes and production-line equipment can cause serious health issues for consumers and shake public confidence…

Agenus (Lexington, Mass.) has purchased 120 acres in the California Biomanufacturing Center located in Vacaville near Sacramento. Agenus specializes in immuno-oncology products, which span checkpoint antibodies, cell therapies, vaccines and adjuvants. Agenus purchased the parcels from A.G. Spanos, a housing developer. Vacaville is aiming to spur the growth of its biotech industry. Currently, the largest…

San Sebastián, Spain–headquartered Viralgen, has opened a new factory in Basque Country in northern Spain. The company focuses on manufacturing adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors, which are used in gene therapy and some vaccines. Since 2018, Viralgen has offered AAV manufacturing for customers working in preclinical through Phase 2 development programs. The company has licensed its…

Woodstock, Ill.–based Woodstock Sterile Solutions has installed its first chief financial officer, Courtney Sanen. The blow-fill-seal contract development and manufacturing organization continues to build out its executive roster, hiring its first chief commercial officer, Bill Hartzel, in April. Hartzel was a former executive at Catalent Pharma Solutions. “Woodstock Sterile Solutions is poised for growth over…

The robotics firm Wyzo (Ecublens, Switzerland) has launched what it deems the world’s first pick-and-place sidebot. Supporting pharmaceutical production line applications, the Wyzo robot can work side-by-side with humans without traditional protective barriers. The robot also supports up to 80 picks per minute. The Wyzo is also compatible with standard grippers. The company says that…

The chemicals and materials specialist Avantor (NYSE:AVTR) has acquired RIM Bio, a China-based manufacturer of single-use bioprocess bags and assemblies for biopharmaceutical applications. The acquisition gives Avantor its first single-use production facility in Asia and doubles its global single-use cleanroom space. Avantor also has single-use manufacturing facilities in the Americas and Europe.  The RIM Bio…

Industrial equipment provider Ingersoll Rand (NYSE: IR) has launched its MSG Turbo-Air NX5000 centrifugal compressor. The company says the compressor provides industry-leading efficiency at a relatively low cost of ownership and that it offers 5% better energy efficiency than legacy systems. The compressed air system is rated for powers from 600 to 4,200 kW (800–5,650…

In an SEC filing, Eli Lilly (NYSE:LLY.N) revealed that it had received a subpoena from the U.S. Department of Justice connected to a manufacturing site in New Jersey that produces bamlanivimab, one of two COVID-19 monoclonal antibodies it produces. The plant also produces the blockbuster Trulicity and cancer drugs. Lilly did not state which types…