Manufacturing facility news in brief
Packaging plant blaze disrupts production
A fire at MY Healthcare's pharmaceutical packaging plant in Surrey, England has caused "major disruption" to production at the site.
Customers are being contacted individually as the company tries to ensure that the blaze causes minimal disruption to its clients.
To achieve this the company is investigating the possibility of shifting production to other plants within the MY Healthcare network, which is part of packaging group Nampak. Nobody was injured by the fire that took 230 firefighters and 19 engines to put out.
Helsinn’s Dublin plant approved by FDA
Helsinn’s pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Dublin, Ireland, gained approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) following a five day inspection.
The visit was a pre-approval inspection for Helsinn's supplemental New Drug Application (sNDA) for the softgel form of palonosetron that is currently being reviewed by the FDA.
In addition the inspectors confirmed the plant was compliant with good manufacturing practice (GMP), allowing for the sale of products in the US market.
Dr Riccardo Braglia, CEO of Helsinn, said: "We are very pleased with this outcome which confirms the ongoing high standards of GMP compliance at the company, its management and staff as well as the investment in high quality facilities and systems by Helsinn."
The facility was extended by 27,000 sq ft in 2007 to increase production capacity, accommodate additional temperature-controlled warehouse space, employee facilities and plant services.
In total Helsinn has invested over $15m in facilities and equipment for the production of palonosetron.
Wyeth’s facility gains OSHA's highest safety recognition
Wyeth’s manufacturing and research facility in Pearl River, New York has been awarded the highest recognition for workplace health and safety from the US Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
The facility is the 2,000th site in the US to be accepted into the Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP) and the eighth to be awarded a ‘star’.
Mike McDermott, vice president of site operations at the facility, said: "This achievement is the result of a two-and-a-half year effort to make workplace safety the responsibility of every employee on site.
"We worked aggressively to make improvements in our safety programs, communication, and training, and we are delighted to be recognized as a VPP 'star' worksite."
