The large investment being planned by the world's number one contract research organisation (CRO) is a sign of the firm's confidence that the currently booming clinical research outsourcing industry will continue to grow.

Quintiles said it will spend over $10.1m over the next six years to fund the expansion in Durham and in addition, an undisclosed private developer will build an additional $50m facility nearby that Quintiles will lease.

The expansion is expected to add 1,000 new jobs to the company's operations in the region, varying from management, to clinical operations and administrative positions, bringing the total to 2,000.

The growth will be partly funded by a $2m grant that Quintiles will receive from the One North Carolina Fund - which has been set up to assist the state in industry recruitment and expansion by providing financial assistance - as well as a $2m grant from Durham County.

Under the terms of a performance-based Job Development Investment Grant, the company also stands to earn up to $21.4m over the next 12 years.

In August Quintiles made another investment in North Carolina, announcing plans to open a new US clinical data processing centre in nearby Williamston.

North Carolina has been ranked third in the nation for its biotech and life sciences industry for the past three years in a row by Ernst & Young.