Thermo Fisher expands viral vector production capabilities

The company, which has invested $180 million in the new build, said the new operations will expand its viral vector network to six sites and help meet global demand for gene therapies by addressing critical challenges related to scalability, productivity and performance.

With hundreds of viral therapeutic vectors in late-stage development or clinical trials, biopharma demand for viral vector production has increased exponentially and new capabilities are essential.

The new 300,000 square foot (27,870.9 m²) site will add more than 300 employees – in science, engineering, manufacturing, QA/QC, finance, warehouse, etc., the company said.

Previously, Thermo Fisher reported that it strategically chose Plainville as the location for the viral vector production site on the basis that it would be able to capitalize on its expertise at other Massachusetts sites and would also be able to tap into the strong talent pool of the Greater Boston area.

The organization said it continues to invest and innovate in cell and gene therapy services, products and workflows.

The Plainville site, he added, is part of an investment strategy to provide pharmaceutical customers with fully integrated capabilities that connect the entire cell and gene therapy value chain – from development early and from clinical scale to commercial manufacturing. These include translational science labs for early development; manufacture of plasmid DNA; viral vector services; cell therapy manufacturing; and integrated commercial packaging and distribution services.

Commenting, Marc N Casper, CEO of Thermo Fisher Scientific, said: “We enable our customers to accelerate their scientific discoveries in cell and gene therapy while meeting their manufacturing needs, whether they are early in the development process or ready for clinical or commercial scale.​

Earlier this month, the company said it had invested US$76 million to expand its dry powder carrier manufacturing facility in Grand Island, New York. This decision was aimed at increasing the production capacity of the raw materials used in the manufacture of vaccines and biological therapies.