Lonza, a global leader in chemical and biological manufacturing, held the grand opening of its state-of-the-art pharmaceutical drug product services laboratories in the Stücki Science Park Basel (CH).
Scientists in the new 1300m2 facility will focus initially on formulation development, drug product analytical development and quality control.
Approximately 75 guests and Lonza participants attended the ribbon-cutting event, which featured a tour of the facility, hands-on experimental stations,and a virtual reality journey into the world of drug product development, manufacture and administration.
Among the dignitaries attending the event was Christoph Brutschin, State Councillor, Head of the Department of Economic, Social and Environmental Affairs of the Canton of Basel-Stadt and President of the Conference of the Cantonal Councillors for the Economy (CCCE).
He pointed out that Switzerland, and Basel in particular, has a thriving R&D environment: 'The new state-of-the-art facility can support not just global, established pharma customers, but also small startups like the ones that make their home in Basel.'
Richard Ridinger, CEO of Lonza, said: 'We chose Basel for Lonza’s first-ever drug product development facility because it offers us access to the latest technologies and world-leading experts in a central location, one that’s a hub of innovation in the pharma industry.'
He added: 'The addition of drug product development services to Lonza’s global offerings is the next part of our journey along the healthcare continuum, a step that moves us closer to our customers and their patients.'
The new drug product service laboratory teams, led by Hanns-Christian Mahler, utilise industry best practices to successfully advance customers’ drug product development programmes.
In addition to providing services such as particle testing or container closure integrity testing to enable safer medicines, the Lonza hub offers services to detect trace impurities in pharmaceutical products, including extractables and leachables from plastics used in manufacturing.
All of these services are offered as standalone or as part of a comprehensive drug product development programme, comprising formulation, stability, primary packaging, process development and manufacturing, always with patient usability and safety in mind.
