Here's How Gilead Sciences is Going Global in the Search for New Solutions
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As one of the world's largest biopharmaceutical firms, Gilead Sciences has been responsible for several well-received treatments for ailments such as Hepatitis C, and treatments for once-fatal conditions like HIV. However, in the constant search for better solutions to humanity's health problems, it has found it necessary to expand with several new worldwide facilities.
Ireland
The first of these new facilities is located at Gilead's manufacturing plant in Cork, Ireland. The plant presently manufactures medication to treat HIV and hepatitis and is responsible for a quarter of the company's total tablet medication production. The new EUR9.5 million ($11.2 million) facility will take the form of a new quality control lab which Gilead Sciences claims will help boost production levels for its markets all over the world, including Europe, the Middle East, and Asia.
"We are delighted to launch this significant expansion, which will have a positive impact on the production of vital medicines for hundreds of thousands of patients around the world," said Vice President of Manufacturing Operations, Ireland, at Gilead Sciences, David Cadogan. "During the last five years, manufacturing of eleven Gilead products has been transferred to the Carrigtwohill plant, resulting in a significant increase in quality control testing requirements."
The new facility represents the latest in more than EUR190 million ($224 million) of investment by Gilead Sciences in their Irish presence over the last two decades, and the quality control lab was awarded the title of "Best Commercial/Industrial Project Under EUR10 Million" at the 2018 Irish Construction Excellence Awards.
The Netherlands
To further increase its presence in the European Union (EU), Gilead Sciences also has planned a new 117,000 square foot facility in The Netherlands. The facility is still awaiting approval, but, if given the go-ahead, will be dedicated to producing Gilead's chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) treatment product, Yescarta.
The product, which has recently been granted European marketing authorization, is designed to treat adult patients with relapsed or refractory diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) and primary mediastinal large B-cell lymphoma (PMBCL), after two or more lines of systemic therapy. The product will be made available to all 28 member states of the EU, as well as Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein.
"We are pleased to be leading a new frontier of cancer innovation that is bringing hope for people living with cancer," said Gilead's President and Chief Executive Officer, John F. Milligan, Ph.D. "This new European manufacturing facility will enable personalized cell therapies to be manufactured in closer geographic proximity to the patients who will receive them, potentially shortening the turnaround time for people who urgently need care."
The planned facility will be located in Amsterdam and will establish an ideal central hub from which to deliver this potentially life-saving treatment to wherever it is needed. The new plant will be operated by Kite Pharma which was acquired for $11.9 billion by Gilead in 2017.
USA
Kite Pharma has also acquired a new facility in Santa Monica, California, after completing the purchase from Astellas Pharma. The research facility will be used for cell therapy research and development, as well as an expansion of the company's existing clinical manufacturing infrastructure.
(Image source: businesswire.com)
Proving it isn't just interested in the sunshine state, Kite has also purchased a new 26,000-foot facility in Gaithersburg, Maryland. This facility will be dedicated to working in co-operation with the National Cancer Institute to develop and manufacture "adoptive cell therapies targeting patient-specific tumor neoantigens. Neoantigens are mutations found on the surface of cancer cells that are unique to each person and tumor, offering the potential for more targeted antitumor activity," reports Gilead Sciences.
A Cancer Support Pipeline
The Netherlands and American facilities discussed above are part of an ongoing effort from Gilead to create a pipeline of research, development, and manufacturing for cancer-busting cell therapy, which will help the company deliver ever more effective treatments to every corner of the world with fewer logistical and administrative issues than would have previously been possible.
Whichever products a company is responsible for producing - be it life-saving medicine or life-enhancing technology - building a facilities network can help bring those offerings to a larger base. In the global economy of today, it's crucial to reach the biggest audience possible.
You can hear Gilead Sciences' Director of Strategic Sourcing, Mike Knievel, speak at ProcureCon Facilities 2020 this coming January at The Westin Beach Resort, Ft. Lauderdale, FL.
Download the agenda today for more information and insights.