Goodwin doubles US biomanufacturing space
the expansion of its biomanufacturing facility as the number of
contracts with biotech companies has jumped in the past two years.
The contract manufacturing organisation (CMO) said the expansion project at its Plantation, Florida facility, which started last year, nearly doubles the company's good manufacturing practice (GMP) production space and will include two new stir tank bioreactors sized at 250L and 500L. "The need for expansion has been fuelled by organic growth and by manufacturing partnerships with multiple clients," the company said in a statement. Goodwin, who specialises in the manufacture of preclinical, clinical (Phase I to III) and licensed biologic drugs, said that since it was acquired by Indian firm Wallace Pharmaceuticals in 2004, it has achieved "two unprecedented years of profitable growth." "Since the Wallace acquisition, we have been provided the capital for growth that we have sought for several years," said Stephanie Finnegan, the company's CEO. In addition, the firm recently signed a number of major contracts with biopharmaceutical companies including deals with Italy's Menarini, Canadian firm Caprion Pharmaceuticals (now Thallion Pharmaceuticals) and the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center based in New York. Goodwin is developing in a booming market. Recently published research on the US biopharmaceutical contract manufacturing market showed that biotech companies increasingly rely on outsourcing to improve efficiency and reduce costs. According to the report published by consulting firm HighTech Business Decisions, biopharma firms are relying more and more on contractors to provide more production capacity and a wider range of services - a trend partly fuelled by the increased demand for biologics. Indeed, biopharmaceuticals are one of the key growth drivers of the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, with approximately one quarter of new drugs coming on the market being biopharmaceuticals and annual sales projected to surpass $52bn (€38.5bn) by 2010. And the trend is showing no sign of slowing down as a survey published by Ernst & Young earlier this month revealed that 77 per cent of biotech executives said they were likely to outsource their manufacturing processes within two years, while 65 per cent are currently relying on contract manufacturers. Meanwhile, low cost destinations like India are becoming more and more attractive to drug firms keen to outsource their manufacturing activities and companies like Goodwin have spotted the opportunity. Last year, Goodwin opened its Indian subsidiary, Goodwin Biotechnology India Private in Goa. The prime objective was to bring its expertise in process development and cGMP manufacturing to the rapidly growing Indian biotechnology industry, the company said. "Together with our operations in India, I can see no limit to the growth of our company and our ability to serve our clients as they scale up to commercial production," said Finnegan.
