News Feature | November 10, 2014

Roche To Build CHF450 Million Diagnostic Site In China

By Estel Grace Masangkay

Roche announced its commitment to invest 450 million Swiss Francs to build a new diagnostic manufacturing facility in Suzhou, China over the next three years.

The new diagnostic site will be located at the Suzhou Industrial Park and will help Roche meet the growing demand for diagnostics in the Asia Pacific region. According to WSJ, diagnostics in China remain as a key market for the Swiss pharmaceutical company. In the past Roche focused on cancer treatment in China, where almost 25 percent of all cancer patients in the world reside.

This new facility will be responsible for supplying Immunochemistry and Clinical Chemistry tests that can be used in clinical laboratory testing. Roche said it intends to house more than 600 employees at the site in the near future.

Roland Diggelmann, COO of Roche Diagnostics, said, “We are excited to expand our diagnostics value chain in China to include manufacturing… The new manufacturing site will enable us to meet the growing demand for our diagnostic products, ensuring our continuous contribution to the health of people in China and the Asia Pacific region.”

The new Roche Diagnostics site will be the company’s eighth worldwide and its first in the Asia Pacific region. Expected to be fully operational by 2018, the site will initially focus on packaging operations. Diggelmann added, “We are confident that by establishing our manufacturing footprint here in Suzhou close to our China operations, we can further increase our market responsiveness and contribute to the overall competitiveness of our business.”

Earlier this year, Chinese regulatory authorities visited one of the company’s regional offices in the city of Hangzhou located in eastern China. This prompted speculation that Beijing may be keeping its eye on the pharmaceutical industry, reports The Wall Street Journal. No reason or details of the government visit was given at the time, though Roche assured that it would fully cooperate with authorities should there be any inquiries.