Dive Brief:
- Merck KGaA announced Monday plans to build a new research and manufacturing facility near its existing commercial production site in Corsier-sur-Vevey, Switzerland.
- The facility, which will be known as Biotech Development Center, is expected to be 15,700 square meters, cost roughly $275 million and provide space for a "cross-functional" team of approximately 250 employees responsible for making drugs for clinical trials.
- Merck KGaA said its facility will be equipped with continuous manufacturing and laboratory automation, as well as a flexible design that can accommodate new technologies if and when they emerge. Construction is scheduled to complete in 2021, with the site being fully operation by the end of 2022.
Dive Insight:
The Biotech Development Center adds to a string of recent research and manufacturing buildouts at Merck KGaA.
Last February, the company announced a $70 million investment directed at expanding an R&D hub in Billerica, Massachusetts, with the aim of speeding oncology and immunology research.
A month later, the Germany-based drugmaker Merck said it would pump 1 billion euros into its Darmstadt headquarters, which also houses one of the company's eight research centers.
And in early April, Merck KGaA revealed plans for a roughly $170 million expansion of its manufacturing plant Aubonne, Switzerland.
According to the company, the growth of its Healthcare business R&D pipeline fueled the decision to create the Biotech Development Center.
In the third quarter, Merck KGaA recorded 1.8 billion euros and 1.7 billion euros in net sales from its Healthcare and Life Sciences businesses, respectively, reflecting year-over-year increases of 10% and 12%. Conversely, the company's performance materials segment was down 7% from the same period a year prior.