Sterling steps-up solid form services with UK facility
The contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) said the facility – located at its 40-acre site in North East England – will boost its milling and micronisation capabilities.
As part of the investment Sterling will set up four milling areas, where it will reduce drug particle size with mechanical and spiral jet milling technologies, and small-scale trial mills.
It will also add polymorph screening, salt selection, particle engineering and crystallisation scale-up capabilities to improve its drug development services, as well as occupational exposure band (OEB) 4 classified molecule capabilities and International Standards Organisation (ISO) 9 cleanrooms.
CEO Kevin Cook said the facility responds to increased demand for active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) particle size control.
“This latest investment is an important step in bolstering our offering so we can cater for growing market demand, including the need for high potency capabilities to reflect the global drug pipeline,” he said.
The firm said it expects the facility to open by mid-2018, and create more than 15 jobs.
