W.R. Grace, a specialty chemicals player, completed an expansion project at its manufacturing facility in South Haven, Michigan.
The project adds 25% more capacity to the plant thanks to the installation of a new 4,000-gallon centrifuge and a trio of 4,000-gallon, multiuse chemical reactors, the company said in a March 18 press release.
The facility, which Grace acquired as part of a $570 million deal it struck with Albemarle in 2021, has been in operation for more than 40 years. The plant currently produces active pharmaceutical ingredients, regulatory starting materials and drug intermediates, the company said.
The price tag for the expansion, which was announced in 2022, was not disclosed.
“The additional capacity and cutting-edge equipment in South Haven bolster our ability to grow with our current and future customers through every stage of fine chemical manufacturing—from research and development, to clinical trials, scale-up services and commercial production of custom molecules and compounds," Brenda Kelly, Grace’s president of materials technologies, said in the release.
In October, Grace announced (PDF) it would shutter its facility in Albany, Oregon, which produced specialized chemicals used in medicines as well as auto belts, hoses and plastic food wrap.
The Albany plant, which Grace acquired as part of the Albemarle deal, employed 95 workers.