Lonza expands development and manufacturing capabilities at Bend site

The company will invest in dedicated early-phase development and cGMP manufacturing to help customers rapidly advance challenging molecules

The company's "significant" investment will establish a total of 11 new suites for the development and clinical manufacture of drug product intermediates and drug products utilizing spray-drying, hot-melt extrusion and melt-spray-congeal processing, which will be completed by May 2022.

The first suite will expand early-phase spray-drying, tabletting and encapsulation capability, and is expected to be on-line by December 2020.

As part of the investment, the new current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) suites will be added to support early-phase manufacture incorporating additional storage, gowning, and a customer in-plant viewing corridor.

Non-cGMP capability for formulation and process development will also be expanded with one new suite.

The investment increases both capacity and flexibility across particle engineering and oral drug products, including immediate-release tablets, multiparticulates, and dry powder encapsulation for oral solid and inhaled applications.

“Our customers look to Lonza to rapidly advance challenging molecules and meet increasingly difficult target product profiles. We listened, and this new investment is aimed directly at meeting those needs,” said Christian Dowdeswell, Vice President and Global Head of Commercial Development for Small Molecules business, Lonza.

Lonza Bend is the Center of Excellence for bioavailability enhancement and inhaled delivery for the company's Small Molecules business unit.