Bristol-Myers Squibb Builds Biologics Manufacturing Facility In Ireland
By Cyndi Root
Bristol-Myers Squibb Company (BMS) is banking on a bright future for biological treatments as it is investing in a new, large-scale biologics manufacturing facility in Ireland. BMS announced its intent in a press release, stating that the site in Cruiserath, County Dublin, Ireland, will produce multiple types of therapies. The company has been manufacturing in Ireland for over 50 years and has several facilities there. BMS joins other top pharmaceutical companies in pursuing market share in the biologics market that is set to be worth $221 billion by 2017, according to an analyst’s report.
Lamberto Andreotti, CEO of BMS, said, “Our investment in this new facility reflects the strength of our business and the increasingly important role that biologic medicines will play in Bristol-Myers Squibb’s future.”
BMS’s new facility in Cruiserath will produce biologics for oncology, virology, and immunoscience. The Irish Times reports that PharmaChemical Ireland, representing the Irish pharmaceutical industry, and the Irish government welcome the investment as it will add 1,000 construction jobs and 400 manufacturing jobs. The new facility is expected to be 323,000 sq. ft., built on the site of the company’s current manufacturing plant. BMS expects the project to cost $900 million and that the facility will be complete and operational in 2019.
BMS Biologics Manufacturing
BMS states that its biologic medicines account for half of its research and development pipeline. To support its products, the company has several manufacturing sites and manufacturing partnerships. The new site in Ireland is modeled on the company’s biologics manufacturing facility in Devens, Massachusetts.
In November 2014, BMS, in an effort to supplement its in-house manufacturing capabilities, and Lonza announced an extension of their biologics manufacturing agreement. Lonza, a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), based in Visp, Switzerland, agreed to produce commercial quantities of BMS biologics at Lonza’s facility in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.
Biologics Market
A report by IMS health states that BMS’ investment in biologics is well founded, as biologics are expected to account for about 20 percent of pharmaceutical sales in 2017. Monoclonal antibodies (MABs) and human insulin are the top agents in the growing field. Analysts expect non-original biologics (NOBs), also known as biosimilars, to increase, driving competition for companies both small and large. Currently, NOBs are 0.5 to 10 percent of all biologics spending, depending on the maturity of the country or market, where less developed countries buy more NOBs due to their lower price.