WuXi Biologics Chooses Worcester for First U.S. Manufacturing Facility

WuXi Biologics of Shanghai has announced that it plans to invest $60 million and hire approximately 150 employees to establish a state-of-the-art biologics clinical and commercial manufacturing facility in Worcester. The Worcester facility will be WuXi Biologics’ first overseas site in the U.S. WuXi Biologics is a leading global platform company providing end-to-end solutions for biologics with a mission to accelerate and transform biologics discovery, development and manufacturing to benefit patients around the world.

This state-of-the-art “facility of the future” will be built upon the novel approach that WuXi Biologics has pioneered in deploying single-use bioreactors. It is also designed to run continuous bioprocessing, a next-generation manufacturing technology. A total of approximately 4,500 L bioreactor capacity will be installed with two 2,000 L traditional fed-batch and one 500 L perfusion-based continuous processing. This facility will handle both clinical and small volume commercial production. An early-stage bioprocess development lab will also be included.

The new manufacturing facility, supported by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Worcester Business Development Corporation (WBDC) and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC), is the company’s first overseas site in the U.S., as well as the third outside China subsequent to Ireland and Singapore new sites.

“Massachusetts is home to one of the world’s most dynamic life sciences ecosystems, with leading companies, top-tier academic institutions, and a globally-competitive workforce,” said Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker. “We are enriched when companies grow and invest here and are pleased to welcome WuXi Biologics’ expansion.”

“The City of Worcester is thrilled to welcome WuXi Biologics as its first tenant to the new Biomanufacturing Park,” said Worcester City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. “As a growing destination in the global biomedical market, the city looks forward to officially opening this impressive campus and is eager to host WuXi Biologics in their first U.S. manufacturing facility.”

“Metropolitan Boston is acknowledged as a leader in the biopharmaceutical industry. The new site plays a key role in WuXi Biologics’ global bio-manufacturing network to ensure that biologics are manufactured at the highest quality and within a robust supply chain to benefit patients worldwide. We are grateful for all the support local agencies and the talented people here have provided for us. We believe we can quickly push forward this exciting project,” said Dr. Ge Li, Chairman of WuXi Biologics. (Source: WuXi Biologics Website, 11 June, 2018)