PHARMACEUTICAL / BIOTECHNOLOGY
UPDATE
June 2006
McIlvaine Company
SGS Opens New QC Lab in China
SGS has opened its new laboratory dedicated to Quality
Control testing of pharmaceuticals, biopharmaceuticals and medical devices. The
laboratory in Shanghai expands SGS’ Life Science Services (LSS) international
business network of 16 pharmaceutical Quality Control (QC) operations in North
America, Europe and Asia.
“The opening of the laboratory in Shanghai is another important step to expand
our global leadership position in the QC testing market,” said Manfred Weiler,
global business manager QC-Testing, LSS. “The life science market in China is
one of the fastest growing markets in the world and there is a growing demand
for contract analytical services. Shanghai offers unique opportunities for a
Life Science service company as it is not only among the leading pharmaceutical
manufacturing centers in China but also home of the research centers of many of
our multinational pharmaceutical customers.”
The laboratory received ISO 17025 accreditation from the CNAL (Chinese National
Accreditation for Laboratory) in May. The laboratory, equipped with
state-of-the-art instruments such as GC/MS and LC/MS/MS, will provide services
for method development and validation, stability studies, testing of raw
materials, API and finished products as well as testing of Traditional Chinese
Medicine. SGS will also provide inspection services and GMP gap auditing
services, a special demand from western companies sourcing raw materials and API
in China. In addition, SGS offers consultancy on regulatory issues with regard
to registration of medical products in China and Hong Kong as well as export and
import related requirements.
BMS to Build New Biologics Facility
Bristol-Myers Squibb intends to build a new large-scale
multi-product bulk biologics manufacturing facility in Devens, MA, subject to
final agreement between the company and the state. Construction is expected to
begin by September 2006, and the facility is projected to be operationally
complete in 2009. Commercial production of biologic compounds is anticipated to
begin in 2011. Once operational, the site will require an initial workforce of
approximately 350 employees. The facility will be designed to accommodate future
expansion, which would lead to a total of approximately 550 employees at the
site.
The new manufacturing facility would support increased production capacity for
commercially available biologic compounds such as Orencia, and biologic
compounds currently in development, including the company's investigational
treatments for solid organ transplant rejection and certain types of cancers.
Bristol-Myers Squibb also has manufacturing agreements with third-party partners
Lonza Biologics Inc. and Celltrion, Inc. An sBLA was recently approved for the
production of Orencia at the Lonza manufacturing facility located in New
Hampshire.
Invitrogen Expands Capabilities of Animal-free Technology Facility
Invitrogen Corporation announced that it has expanded production capabilities of animal-origin free Advanced Granulation Technology (AGT®) media on its Grand Island, NY, campus. Under construction for the past year, a new facility has been validated for production of Invitrogen's proprietary media formulation in an animal-origin free environment. Several pharmaceutical and biotechnology clients have already begun receiving material manufactured in the facility.
"Pharmaceutical manufacturers are increasingly demanding that their raw materials are free from animal components," explained Nicolas Barthelemy, Invitrogen's Senior Vice President, BioProduction Systems and Services. "Our company had an opportunity to address this critical issue and offer our unique formulation at the same time -- both aspects advancing one of the key bottlenecks in drug production. This investment is one element of our ongoing plan to keep Grand Island and Invitrogen's GIBCO brand at the forefront of cell culture research."
Invitrogen invested over $9 million in the facility to transform the 11,000 square feet of existing space on the campus — addressing several functions, including production of AGT media for internal research projects, internalization of technology for contract manufacturing capabilities and reduction of manufacturing costs.
Relying on feedback from its customers, Invitrogen developed its process to complement its customers' manufacturing requirements and emphasized defined areas of control such as materials, manpower and excursions. The company evaluated more than 800 raw materials involved in AGT production and verified that they were free of animal components. It also created protocols for the manufacturing and production environment, including stringent requirements for staff gowning, contamination controls such as airlocks, irradiation of clothing, tools, etc., as well as separate locker facilities.
Construction Begins on New Science Facility, Pullman, WA
Construction of a new building to house biotechnology and life sciences research has begun. The four-story building will be approximately 120,000 square feet, and will contain research laboratories, core laboratories, common space, offices and conference rooms. Joseph Kline, project manager for Capital Planning and Development, said this building is the second of seven planned life sciences buildings.
“We are going to start on what we are calling phase one construction [this] week,” Kline said. “We’ll complete that in September and then the projects on hold until the next legislative cycle in June ’07.” Construction will start again and is expected to finish in 2009, he said. The project was originally given a price tag of $67 million dollars but, Kline said, escalation and inflation raised the cost to approximately $72 million.
The building, which has been designed primarily for graduate and professional level research, will feature an “open bay lab concept” rather than lab rooms for each researcher. The concept consists of a room that researchers share, containing movable lab modules and benches.
Michael Skinner, director of the Center for Integrated Biotechnology, said the new building will improve the research space and facilities available to biotechnology and other life sciences.
Gilead Sciences Acquires Special Chemicals Company Degussa AG
Gilead Sciences, Inc. has signed a definitive agreement to
acquire Canadian subsidiary Raylo Chemicals, Inc. and most of its assets from
Germany-based specialty chemicals company Degussa AG for approximately $149
million. In addition, Gilead has entered into long-term agreements with Degussa
for the supply of raw materials and the manufacture of certain active
pharmaceutical ingredients (API) for Gilead products. The companies expect the
transaction to close in the fourth quarter of this year.
Located in Edmonton, Canada, Raylo Chemicals is currently part of Degussa's
exclusive synthesis and catalysts business unit. Raylo's operations encompass
custom manufacturing of API and advanced intermediates for the pharmaceutical
and biopharmaceutical industries. Gilead intends to utilize this site primarily
for manufacturing development of investigational products, supplying API for
clinical research programs and contributing to new product launch supplies.
Gilead will assist Degussa in transitioning non-Gilead business to other sites.
The Raylo name will remain an asset of Degussa.
South San Francisco Attracts Biotechnology and Genentech
Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. announced it has executed a 12-year lease with Genentech, Inc., for a ground-up development of an approximately 121,000 square foot four-story facility in South San Francisco, California. The building is scheduled for delivery to Genentech, Inc. in the fourth quarter of 2006. This transaction represents one of five ground-up development projects underway in our key target markets totaling approximately 462,000 square feet as of March 31, 2006, and is a key contributor to an impressive aggregate 75 percent pre-leasing success rate. The engines of growth in the San Francisco Bay area market and Alexandria's position as a strategic partner to companies such as Genentech and other important life science companies and institutions are highlighted below.
With its market capitalization approximating $85 billion, Genentech is the largest biotechnology company and one of the most successful and profitable in the world. Since inception in 1976, Genentech has pioneered the discovery, development and commercialization of novel biotherapeutics that address significant unmet medical needs. Genentech is also considered the most critical contributor to the birth and phenomenal growth of San Francisco Bay area's biotechnology cluster, which is the largest in the nation.
New Research Tenants for Mission Bay
Alexandria's Center for Translational Research at Mission Bay, containing approximately 154,000 rentable square feet, has successfully attracted key tenant interest during its early phase of construction, most notably by the signing of an approximately 37,000 square foot lease with Sirna Therapeutics, Inc., a drug discovery company with a major collaboration potentially worth more than $700 million with GlaxoSmithKline. Sirna will be headquartered in the Center, which will also feature, inter alia, premier venture capital firms in an array of elegantly appointed suites and common areas.
Alexandria is the leader for life science real estate, technical infrastructure and services, capitalizing on the growth of the San Francisco Bay area region, particularly South San Francisco and Mission Bay, two key life science submarkets, through very selective and accretive acquisitions, redevelopments and developments. As of March 31, 2006, our San Francisco Bay area region consisted of 18 properties totaling approximately 1.3 million square feet, including three properties containing spaces under active redevelopment. In addition, as of March 31, 2006, an additional 3.4 million square feet of ground-up pre-development projects were in progress, consisting of approximately 900,000 square feet in South San Francisco clustered around Genentech and Amgen Inc., and approximately 2.5 million square feet in Mission Bay clustered around the University of California at San Francisco ("UCSF"). Our leadership position has enabled us to grow with very cost effective bases in these key land parcels.
Our development pipeline at Mission Bay includes the UCSF campus with Genentech Hall, a stunning approximately 434,000 square foot office/laboratory facility containing more than 800 researchers in 60 laboratories offering programs in structural and chemical biology, molecular, cell and developmental biology, and advanced microscopy; Rock Hall, with more than 250 researchers in 32 laboratories focusing on programs in genetics and the behavioral and developmental sciences; and QB3, a unique collaboration amongst UCSF, University of California at Berkeley and University of California at Santa Cruz in an approximately 150,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility housing more than 330 researchers in 30 laboratories, exploring powerful new techniques for manipulating vast amounts of biological data using quantitative and biomedical sciences. UCSF continues to expand its presence in Mission Bay, as it completes construction on a new wing for its radiology group in a nearby third-party facility, as well as initiating construction on the Helen Diller Family Cancer Center containing 162,000 square foot proving best-in-class facilities to more than 400 researchers in 46 laboratories.
Biotech Lab in N.O. Gets Federal Aid
Confetti shot up April 11, 2005, as city, state and medical leaders marked the start of demolition of the 1950s Wirth Building on historic Canal Street to make way for the $30 million New Orleans BioInnovation Center.
Construction of the biotechnology laboratory and business incubator was set to begin early this year and end by the middle of next year, but Hurricane Katrina changed all that Aug. 29 and put everything in the city — the BioInnovation Center included — on hold.
The U.S. Economic Development Administration granted a $1.25 million grant check to support architectural and engineering needs for the design and building of the 130,000-square-foot facility. The BioInnovation Center will provide 200 high-paying jobs.
The four-story center, a joint project of the LSU and Tulane University health sciences centers, will include a 60,000-square-foot “wet lab” incubator and a 75,000-square-foot Good Manufacturing Practices Lab.
BioInnovation Center Chairman Alan Miller, associate senior vice president for health sciences at Tulane, said construction of the center should start in late summer or early fall as long as foundation testing under way at the site of the demolished Wirth Building reveals no problems. The wet lab is expected to open 18 months after construction begins, he said.
The BioInnovation Center is one of three biotech labs and business incubators for which the Legislature appropriated millions of dollars in 2002. Two of the projects, the Louisiana Emerging Technology Center in Baton Rouge and the InterTech Park in Shreveport, are up and running.
The New Orleans wet lab incubator is intended to support the commercialization of research developed at the LSU and Tulane health sciences centers and to attract out-of state bioscience firms to Louisiana.
Unlike the Baton Rouge and Shreveport facilities, the New Orleans center also will have a Good Manufacturing Practices Lab — a term for a laboratory fit to produce materials for human use. The GMP lab will house the Louisiana Gene Therapy Research Consortium, which will manufacture adult stem-cell lines for experiments.
The state has invested $30 million in the BioInnovation Center.
About the Center
WHAT: A $30 million biotechnology laboratory and business incubator in New Orleans, called the BioInnovation Center, will begin construction in late summer or early fall after being delayed by Hurricane Katrina.
PURPOSE: The biotech lab will support the commercialization of research
developed at the LSU and Tulane health sciences centers and attract bioscience
firms to Louisiana. The center also will have a Good Manufacturing Practices
Lab, which will house the Louisiana Gene Therapy Research Consortium. It will
manufacture adult stem-cell lines for experiments.
SISTER FACILITIES: The Legislature appropriated millions of dollars in 2002 for
two other similar projects: the Louisiana Emerging Technology Center in Baton
Rouge and the InterTech Park in Shreveport, which are up and running.
Harvard Plans for an Extension of its Allston Campus
The University's plans for a 21st century extension of its campus in Allston took more definite shape this year with the selection of a site and architect for a half-million-square-foot science complex, as well as the announcement of plans for new arts and culture facilities.
While still in the early stages, plans have become much more tangible in recent months. Sites have been identified for a new science complex as well as interim arts and culture spaces.
New University of Oregon Nanoscience Facility to be Named for Business Wire Founder Lorry Lokey; $10 Million Gift Launches Integrative Science Complex
A $10 million gift from Business Wire founder Lorry I. Lokey to the University of Oregon College of Arts and Sciences is launching construction of a two-phase $76 million Integrative Science Complex.
The building will be the first major construction for the
sciences to be completed on campus since 1990. The university is saluting
Lokey's visionary support of scientific research by naming the first phase of
the complex -- a novel new underground research facility -- in his honor. Lokey's
gifts to the university now total $32 million.
The first phase of the Integrative Science Complex, the Lorry I. Lokey
Laboratories, is an approximately 30,000-gross-square-foot signature research
center associated with the Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnologies Institute (ONAMI),
a consortium that includes the University of Oregon, Oregon State University,
Portland State University, Pacific Northwest National Laboratories, and the
region's high technology companies.
In addition to semiconductor, photolithography, nanofabrication and bio-optics
labs, the center will house more than 20 high-technology instruments operated by
the university's Center for Advanced Materials Characterization in Oregon (CAMCOR)
and will provide laboratory space for industry partners.
The new laboratories will advance the work of numerous university centers and
institutes connected to these initiatives, ranging from neuroscience and
molecular biology to materials science and optics. The underground
laboratories will be constructed beneath what is currently known as the Science
Green, between Deschutes and Huestis halls on East 13th Avenue. The project
architects, SRG Partnership of Portland, also have designed a courtyard to cover
the Lokey Laboratories, which will contain skylights and preserve the existing
open space.
The rare bedrock setting is expected to provide the sensitive instruments used
for nanoscience with a vibration level that is two to three times lower than the
"gold standard" set by the National Institute of Standards and Technology,
according to ONAMI co-founder David Johnson, a University of Oregon chemistry
professor.
Completion of the Lorry I. Lokey Laboratories is anticipated by the end of 2007,
with total project cost estimated at $16 million for complete build-out of the
available space. Funding includes $9.5 million in bonds and lottery funds
approved by the Oregon Legislature and issued in 2005, with the balance to be
raised from private gifts and industry partners. Of Lokey's $10 million gift, $3
million will go toward the Lokey Laboratories building and the balance toward
the Phase 2 building.
The second phase of the Integrative Science Complex will be a new building that
Frohnmayer said is urgently needed for the university to continue as a leader in
brain research, which already is producing valuable applications related to
learning and behavior.
The multi-story building, targeted for completion by 2012, will be located
northwest of Oregon Hall along Franklin Boulevard and will connect directly to
the Lorry I. Lokey Laboratories, adding up to 100,000 square feet to the
university's existing science complex. The Oregon University System will
consider seeking authorization for Phase 2 during the 2007 legislative session.
Construction Projects Brewing in Life sciences Sector
Massachusetts life sciences sector is exploiting the genome, pursuing clinical drug trials — and moving a healthy amount of earth.
At least 30 life sciences companies are either expanding or locating facilities in MA., according to state officials. In addition, the state's medical sector, while still beset with significant financial problems, is nonetheless seeing some small-scale construction ability, especially in terms of adding inpatient beds.
"A very good portion of the economic activity occurring in the state right now is in the life sciences sector," said Susan Houston, executive director of the Massachusetts Alliance for Economic Development (MAED) in Westborough, a private nonprofit agency that promotes economic development in the state and also tracks business activity.
According to the MAED, recent expansions by life sciences companies range from a new, 8,000-square-foot office and research-and-development facility being built by Enviroderm Pharmaceuticals Inc. in Plymouth to 300,000 square feet of new R&D space being built by Merck & Co. Inc. in Boston near the Harvard Medical School campus.
Across the river near the Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus in Cambridge, Amgen Inc. has recently finished building 285,000 square feet of labs and R&D space, and Novartis AG plans to move its U.S. research headquarters into a new 225,000-square-foot building, which is currently under construction.
"Every state in the union wants to be the leader in life sciences," said Steve Maloney, director of policy and public affairs at the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council in Cambridge. "We're on the verge of a biotech boom in this country. There are so many new drugs in the pipeline nearing Food and Drug Administration approval that need to be manufactured for the public. We want to capture a lot of that growth here as do a lot of other states. We're in a very aggressive, competitive atmosphere."
ViaCell Inc. and XTL Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. are both expanding in Cambridge, as is Partners HealthCare System -- owner of Massachusetts General and Brigham and Women's hospitals -- which is building a new genetics center. But the surge is not just happening east of Route 128. In Worcester, for example, Abbot Bioresearch Center Inc. has recently completed a new 45,000-square-foot facility.
The rising life sciences tide is lifting many cities, including some of the poorer ones.
In Springfield, Baystate Medical Center has undertaken two significant expansions, including building a new Center for Cancer Care. In New Bedford, Five Star Surgical Inc., which makes medical devices, is expanding.
Hospitals, too, are often said to be immune from business cycles -- people get sick in good times and bad -- but like the life sciences, they also have their own drummer. For hospitals, the drummer is reimbursement rates for public programs like Medicaid and Medicare, which fall far short of the actual cost of delivering care, and the cost of caring for the uninsured. Private insurers also make demands on hospitals.
According to the MHA, 46 percent of the state's 68 acute-care hospitals lost money in fiscal 2002, which ended in September. The dismal financial condition of the state's hospitals has put a serious crimp in expansions, renovations and other capital improvement projects.
Still, there are some 178 hospital expansion/renovation projects totaling $147 million that have been approved by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) since Jan. 1, 2002.
South Coast Hospital in Fall River is adding 36 beds, Children's Hospital in Boston is adding inpatient beds, as is Milton-Whitinsville Hospital, Holy Family Hospital in Methuen and Massachusetts General in Boston. Hospitals are also expanding their ambulatory care facilities, which have seen a demand increase for several years. Other hospitals are renovating or expanding emergency services.
Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited and Terapia S.A. of Romania Merged
Ranbaxy Laboratories Limited and Terapia S.A. of Romania have merged, combining the strengths of both generic pharmaceutical companies. Romania is said to be the fastest growing pharmaceutical market in the Central and Eastern European region.
Microtest Expands Capabilities
Microtest has invested $7.5 million to expand its offering of pharmaceutical and virology testing services and fill/finish contract manufacturing capabilities. According to Dr. Steve Richter, Ph.D., Microtest's president and scientific director, the expansion includes constructing and equipping new state-of-the-art pharmaceutical testing laboratory facilities, a series of segregated virology testing laboratories, and new aseptic fill/finish manufacturing facilities, along with the hiring of additional professional staff.
Laureate Pharma Plans to Invest $9 Million to Expand Facilities in Princeton, NJ
Laureate Pharma plans to invest as much as $9 million to expand their facilities in Princeton, NJ. The expansion will provide the company with a new pilot production plant with two separate production suites and expanded purification capacity to support additional cGMP production. The new plant will include stainless steel stirred tank bioreactors and disposable single-use bioreactors, the same technology used in the company's large-scale cGMP biomanufacturing plant. The pilot plant is designed for process development, production and purification of early-phase preclinical proteins and is isolated from Lauareate's main manufacturing area. Completion of the production suites is targeted for the end of 2006. Additional cGMP capacity is expected to be operational in mid-2007.
Metrics added 4,200 sq. ft. of Analytical Laboratory Space
Metrics added 4,200 sq. ft. of analytical laboratory space to the previous 44,000 sq. ft. The company has expanded its services and capabilities offering development and analytical equipment housed in a cGMP state-of-the-art complex, with more than 114 analytical chemists and a team of 23 pharmaceutical development scientists and manufacturing technicians.
MDS Pharma Ranked Top CRO in Europe
MDS Pharma Services, a leading provider of innovative drug discovery and development solutions, has been ranked the top contract research organization (CRO) in Europe in a survey of clinical trial investigators by Thomson CenterWatch, a leading provider of MDS Pharma Services earned the top score for CROs in a survey of 356 European investigative sites where front-line researchers conduct clinical trials. Investigators were asked to rate the CROs with which they have worked over the past two years on a wide range of attributes. Seventy-nine percent of those surveyed gave MDS Pharma Services either "Good" or "Excellent" ratings, and the business received "Excellent" ratings in 14 of 28 attribute areas - more than any other CRO.
New Nano and Biotechnology Facility for UMass Lowell
The nano and biotechnology facility planned for UMass Lowell crossed the threshold last night from pipe dream to blueprint.
Senate and House members signed off on a compromise last night that grants $35 million to UMass Lowell toward the construction of an $80 million building to house the development of technologies that experts say hold the key to creating jobs in the Merrimack Valley.
The money is part of a $457 million economic stimulus package designed to boost jobs and the economy across the state, according to a copy of the agreement obtained by The Sun. The House and Senate approved their own versions of the bill late last year, and conference committee members have spent the last eight months hashing out middle ground.
The bill includes $21 million in cash for the project and another $14 million to be bonded by the state. It also authorizes UMass Lowell to borrow another $35 million. The university plans to seek the remaining $10 million of the $80 million cost from either the federal government or private fundraising.
The most important thing about the UMass Lowell facility will not be the research of nanotechnologies. Rather, its promise lies in the development of manufacturing processes and the training of students for quality-control jobs in manufacturing plants.
"Everybody thinks it's going to be scientists sitting around in white coats thinking great thoughts," said Rep. Kevin Murphy, D-Lowell. "Our center is designed to take those great thoughts and make them into processing and manufacturing methods."
The next step is to design the facility and choose a site in Lowell. If all goes well, the facility could be up and running within five years, Panagiotakos said.
The nano and biotechnology facility is part of a larger $266 million renovation plan UMass Lowell has proposed. It wants to split the cost halfway with the state: $133 million the university would bond, and another $133 million that would come from the state's coffers. But just because $35 million for the facility is secured doesn't mean the remaining $98 million of that request will be a slam-dunk.
The nano and biotechnology facility is not the only boon likely coming to Lowell from the economic stimulus package. The conference committee agreed to the creation of a $13 million cultural facilities fund, which will offer matching grants to places like Lowell Memorial Auditorium for renovation. The committee also increased the available balance in the state's historic-preservation tax-credit fund from $15 million to $50 million. Those tax credits could be applicable to projects involving the city's old mill buildings.
RenaMed Relocating Manufacturing Facility
RenaMed Biologics, Inc., MassDevelopment, and the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council (MBC) announced that RenaMed will receive a $2.3 million loan from the Commonwealth's Emerging Technology Fund (ETF). Lincoln, RI-based RenaMed recently announced it has leased a facility in Westborough, MA to serve as its headquarters and commercial manufacturing facility for its Renal Bio-Replacement Therapy for Acute Renal Failure (ARF). The company is expected to relocate to the Westborough facility in the latter half of 2006.
RenaMed is developing Renal Bio-Replacement Therapy (RBT) intended to replace lost kidney functions in patients with ARF and bridge them to recovery. To meet this goal, the product uses physiologically active human renal epithelial cells incorporated in a hollow-fiber cartridge that is administered ex vivo. The RBT works in conjunction with current therapy and fits into the standard hospital ICU modality. RenaMed will use the ETF loan to implement commercial manufacturing operations.
In September of 2005, RenaMed entered into a strategic collaboration with Cambridge-based Genzyme Corporation for the joint development and commercialization of RBT. The company also presented positive phase II data at the American Society of Nephrology (ASN) meeting in the same year. The Westborough facility offers in excess of 100,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space on 39 acres of land. The facility has excellent clean room infrastructure and is well situated to the increasing operational needs of the company.
PentaMaster Expands Contract Manufacturing
PENTAMASTER Corp Bhd is in final negotiations with a Switzerland-based medical automation equipment maker in a strategic move to penetrate the Asian medical market.
The Penang-based company is seeking to expand its contract manufacturing
business via this proposed joint-venture agreement, its executive chairman Chuah
Choon Bin said.
Without naming the potential partner or a time-frame by
which the deal will be inked, he said the proposed partnership is to enable
Pentamaster to tap the bigger Asian market, by getting the foreign partner to
outsource its equipment manufacturing activities in Malaysia.
Chuah said Pentamaster's third facility for which construction is nearing
completion, would enable the company to cater to contract production jobs until
2010. The new 130,000 sq ft factory building, which is adjacent to the
company's existing facilities in Bayan Lepas Technoplex, is set to start
production by the end of this month.
On Pentamaster's "Green Box" concept which took off at the end of 2005, Chuah
said the company had so far succeeded in getting eight customers to set up its
virtual manufacturing facilities at the Pentamaster site. The "Green Box"
concept essentially enables the company's customers to simply bring their
designs to Pentamaster, where secured and individual manufacturing and assembly
space is allotted to them. "Our target is to have 15 Green Box customers by the
end of 2007," Chuah said.
For its 2005 fiscal year ended December 31, Pentamaster's group revenue rose to
RM114.3 million from RM85.3 million in the previous year. Its net profit climbed
from RM14.7 million in 2004 to RM16.2 million.
Pfizer Conn. Plant to End Operations
Pfizer Inc. will phase out its manufacturing operations in Groton, CT, by the end of 2008, eliminating about 300 jobs. The 50-acre site is also home to the drug maker's growing research and development operations.
BangaloreBio 2006 Highlights Growth of Indian Biotech Industry
The three-day Indian biotech expo, BangaloreBio 2006 attracted over 500 delegates from industry, academia, R&D, and policy makers.
India’s biotech industry grew at a blistering rate of 37.5 percent last year while generating $1.45 billion in revenue, according to the meeting organizers. Kiran Mazumdar, chairman and managing director, Biocon, one of the biggest biotech companies in India, said “the biotech sector will build new business models based on niche markets and steer away from blockbuster models; India’s role would be key to affordable drug development; bio-partnering would proliferate between U.S./European and Indian companies.”
Bayer will Pay $4.6 billion for Schering’s Shares held by Merck
Bayer will pay $4.6 billion for Schering’s shares held by Merck, thus removing the obstacle on its way to taking over Schering. Merck agreed to sell its 21.8 percent stake in Schering after joint talks held by the companies.
Bayer will pay $111.18 per share, $3.78 more than the initial offer. The value of the total acquisition will be $21.3 billion.
Purchasing Merck’s stake goes a long way toward the 75 percent that Bayer needs to complete this all-German deal. Bayer has bought over 40 percent of Schering’s stock. The new company will be called Bayer Schering Pharma and will strengthen Germany’s role as a pharmaceutical company location.
Discovery Partners International (DPI) and Galapagos Have Entered into a Definitive Purchase Agreement
Discovery Partners International (DPI) and Galapagos announced that they have entered into a definitive purchase agreement to transfer all of the drug discovery service operations of DPI to Galapagos for E4.25 million ($5.4 million) in cash.
The acquisition includes the assets of all four of DPI’s drug discovery services sites: San Diego, S. San Francisco, Allschwill (Basel), Switzerland, and Heidelberg, Germany, as well as DPI’s Japanese sales office in Tokyo.
Under the terms of the agreement, DPI will sell to Galapagos all the outstanding capital stock or equity interests of its direct subsidiaries Discovery Partners International, ChemRx Advanced Technologies, Xenometrix, and Discovery Partners International, along with certain contracts to be assigned by DPI to Galapagos in connection with the transaction.
All four current DPI sites will remain fully operational and will be merged into BioFocus, the drug discovery services division of Galapagos. BioFocus will assume the scientific management of these sites, including execution of all current service contracts, while other operational functions will be managed directly by Galapagos. BioFocus will change its name to BioFocus DPI.
Meadowville Site Grows with Anchor Northrop Grumman
James G. Dunn liked several recommendations made by a research firm for the
development of the Meadowville Technology Park, except one — changing the name.
The name is set in a new stone sign at the park's entrance in southeastern Chesterfield County.
In the 1,300-acre park’s 20-page design plan outline, roughly 921 acres can be developed.
Key to the park is the construction of a $34.6 million operations center for Northrop Grumman Information Technology, which will run state government's tech systems when completed next year.
The park's plan sets aside about a 179-acre office zone in the northern part of the site for buildings rising as high as six stories, providing space suitable for a headquarters.
Planned near the office space is a 48-acre site able to accommodate a biotechnology or medical-related firm.
Meadowville and the Virginia BioTechnology Research Park have had an understanding since 2001 that it can expand into Chesterfield once the downtown site outgrows its 1.5 million to 1.8 million square feet of development space. White Oak Technology Park in Henrico County has a similar agreement.
Also outlined at Meadowville is a 205-acre zone for research and development and light manufacturing, which could be placed near a small light-industrial area.
Meadowville, just southeast of the cable-stayed Varina-Enon bridge on Interstate 295, has been in the works for more than a decade.
McIlvaine Company,
Northfield, IL 60093-2743
Tel: 847-784-0012; Fax: 847-784-0061;
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