Merck Opens €290 Million Biosafety Testing Facility in Rockville to Enhance Drug Safety and Accelerate Testing Timelines
(IN BRIEF) Merck has officially opened a new €290 million biosafety testing facility in Rockville, Maryland, designed to meet the increasing global demand for biosafety testing services. This state-of-the-art facility consolidates various operations, including biosafety testing, analytical development, and cell bank manufacturing, into a single location, enhancing collaboration and efficiency. The facility will utilize advanced technologies, including the Blazar® CHO Animal Origin Free (AOF) panel, which accelerates virus testing and significantly reduces turnaround times. Merck’s investment marks its largest commitment to contract testing, positioning the company to deliver high-quality testing services and expedite the availability of safe medicines for patients.
(PRESS RELEASE) DARMSTADT, 10-Oct-2024 — /EuropaWire/ — Merck has officially inaugurated its state-of-the-art €290 million biosafety testing facility in Rockville, Maryland, USA, in response to the surging global demand for biosafety testing services. This new facility consolidates vital functions, including biosafety testing, analytical development, and cell bank manufacturing, all under one roof.
“With this expansion, we mark our largest investment ever in contract testing at Merck,” stated Benjamin Hein, Head of Life Science Services at Merck. “This facility will empower us to advance automation and technological innovation within a unified space. Our goal is to deliver cutting-edge platforms that not only shorten biosafety testing timelines but also address the increasing global demand and ensure the safety of medicines for patients worldwide.”
Spanning 23,000 square meters, the facility streamlines operations previously dispersed across four separate buildings, fostering enhanced collaboration among scientists. This integration is expected to significantly elevate automation and digitalization levels, ultimately improving the Right First Time (RFT) performance metric.
In the past five years, Merck has heavily invested in expanding its global biosafety testing capabilities, establishing a robust network that includes sites in Shanghai, China; Singapore; Stirling and Glasgow, UK; and Rockville, MD, USA.
The new Rockville facility will feature cutting-edge testing capabilities, including a rapid methods package that significantly accelerates virus testing for bulk harvest materials. The package is distinguished by the inclusion of the Blazar® CHO Animal Origin Free (AOF) panel, which utilizes a targeted molecular approach to detect various virus families. By integrating this panel with assays for mycoplasma, sterility, and retrovirus-like particles, results can be delivered in just 14 days— a substantial reduction from the 35 days required by traditional methods.
Merck’s expansive multi-modality testing portfolio features innovative platforms that minimize biosafety testing timelines while upholding the highest quality standards. This includes the rapid methods package with the Blazar® CHO AOF panel and the recently introduced Aptegra™ platform, recognized as the first all-in-one, validated genetic stability assay of its kind. These advancements position Merck to provide superior testing services and regulatory expertise, ultimately facilitating quicker and safer access to life-changing medications for patients.
Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across life science, healthcare and electronics. Around 63,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people’s lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From providing products and services that accelerate drug development and manufacturing as well as discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices – the company is everywhere. In 2023, Merck generated sales of € 21 billion in 65 countries.
Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to Merck’s technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate as MilliporeSigma in life science, EMD Serono in healthcare, and EMD Electronics in electronics.
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Rachel Bloom Baglin
rachel.bloom-baglin@merckgroup.com
Phone: +49 (6151) 72-44461
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First published in this link of EuropaWIRE.
