MilliporeSigma Expands End-to-End Biodevelopment Centers

MilliporeSigma, a leading science and technology company, recently announced the expansion of its end-to-end biodevelopment centers to meet increasing customer demand for its turnkey portfolio of bioprocessing products, manufacturing capabilities, and industry-leading technological expertise.

The expansion, which includes the opening of two new process development centers in the US and China, follows the commercial success of MilliporeSigma’s biodevelopment center in Martillac, France. The two new units will be located in close proximity to customers in the Shanghai and Boston metropolitan areas. Each will provide a full range of process development capabilities and services. This includes cell line development services, both upstream and downstream process development, as well as non-GMP clinical production.

“We are seeing an increasing global demand for end-to-end process development solutions and MilliporeSigma offers a one-stop shop for biopharma customers. This expansion reinforces our position as the premier supplier of all process development and clinical-stage manufacturing solutions, materials, and services needed for the production of biologics. This is a strategic, high-potential investment for MilliporeSigma specifically designed to meet customer needs on three continents,” said Udit Batra, Member of the Executive Board, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany and CEO, MilliporeSigma. ”

MilliporeSigma’s biodevelopment center in Martillac, France, is a fully operational single-use, GMP facility for manufacturing clinical-stage batches. Equipped with a full suite of MilliporeSigma technologies, including the 2000 liter single-use Mobius bioreactor, Martillac offers biopharma companies a complete solution to support their clinical development programs.

MilliporeSigma’s end-to-end offering delivers important benefits and addresses key challenges for biopharmaceutical companies at all stages of molecule development and commercialization in any geography. In addition to the Mobius bioreactor, the end-to-end portfolio includes solutions such as Lynx CDR, Viresolve Process Area Modules, Pellicon and Centinel Intelligence Virus Defense.

Early stage companies with limited resources and infrastructure benefit from a partner with strong expertise and experience developing processes and GMP clinical manufacturing to help accelerate early clinical development programs. Companies in more advanced stages need to overcome the challenges of moving from late phase clinical development into commercial manufacturing, accelerating availability of affordable life-enhancing drugs. With an end-to-end approach, MilliporeSigma can facilitate and accelerate scaling and technical transfer of an entire process to a new location.

The life science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, which operates as MilliporeSigma in the US and Canada, has 19,000 employees and 65 manufacturing sites worldwide, with a portfolio of more than 300,000 products enabling scientific discovery. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany completed its $17 billion acquisition of Sigma-Aldrich in November 2015, creating a leader in the $125 billion global life science industry. Merck KGaA of Darmstadt, Germany, is a leading company for innovative and top-quality high-tech products in healthcare, life science and performance materials. The company has six businesses – Biopharmaceuticals, Consumer Health, Allergopharma, Biosimilars, Life Science and Performance Materials – and generated sales of € 12.85 billion in 2015. Around 50,000 employees work in 66 countries to improve the quality of life for patients, to foster the success of customers and to help meet global challenges.

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany is the world’s oldest pharmaceutical and chemical company – since 1668, the company has stood for innovation, business success and responsible entrepreneurship. Holding an approximately 70 percent interest, the founding family remains the majority owner of the company to this day. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany operates as EMD Serono, MilliporeSigma ank9d EMD Performance Materials.