Dive Brief:
- WuXi Biologics will launch a new bispecific antibody technology platform, dubbed WuXiBody, that the Hong Kong-based company boasts will cut costs and shorten development timelines by between 6 and 18 months.
- A contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), WuXi has been steadily adding business as it grows its production capacity, announcing in its first-half results that it has nearly 190 development projects currently ongoing, up from 134 a year previous. Notably, ten projects are now in Phase 3 and one is commercial-stage.
- That project pipeline could grow further, too. WuXi said investment in its cell line platform enables it to begin as many as 60 IND-enabling projects per year.
Dive Insight:
A string of deals and expansions in Wuxi's manufacturing capabilities across China, the U.S., Ireland and Singapore has brought the company's total capacity to around 220,000 liters. And with the U.S. OK of TaiMed's HIV therapeutic Trogarzo (ibalizumab), WuXi is the first company in China to manufacture an approved biologic under a Investigational New Drug Application.
This growth is reflected in WuXi's improving financials. Revenue grew to just over $154 million in the first six months of 2018, a jump of 60% from the same period a year prior. Adjusted net profits, meanwhile, nearly doubled to $43 million over the first two quarters.
WuXi's ambitions don't stop there — it already thinks of itself as a top 10 CDMO and hopes to grow further. Adding bispecific capabilities could help it reach new clients.
Company CEO Chris Chen hinted that WuXi might enter new areas like cancer vaccines.
Chen also noted that no clients transferred projects out of the company over the six-month period, while WuXi picked up six clinical-phase projects from EU and U.S. companies.
While the story of the Chinese biomanufacturing sector has been one of growth, the industry is also struggling to shed concerns over quality. Warning letters from the Food and Drug Administration to Chinese manufacturers have increased, and a vaccine scandal has led to fresh distrust as well as dismissal of several high-level regulators.