In an effort to boost its production for European, Middle Eastern and Asian markets, Gilead has opened its new $11 million (€9.5 million) manufacturing facility control lab in Carrigtwohill in Cork, Ireland.
The manufacturing site primarily focuses on production of Gilead’s drugs to treat hepatitis and HIV. The company’s newly released HIV drug, Biktarvy, has been taking a bite out of competitor GlaxoSmithKline’s HIV treatments. Gilead’s Cork facility produces about a quarter of the company’s drugs in tablet form, The Irish Times reports.
“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,” David Cadogan, Gilead’s vice president of manufacturing operations, told The Irish Times. “During the last five years, manufacturing of 11 Gilead products has been transferred to the Carrigtwohill plant, resulting in a significant increase in quality control testing requirements.”
Both Merck and GE Healthcare also operate manufacturing facilities in Carrigtwohill.
The site was acquired by Gilead from Nycomed in 2007 and has since seen the workforce grow from 60 employees at the plant to 390. The company has said it has invested more than $223 million in the site since the acquisition.
Last week, the company announced plans to locate a new European manufacturing site for its CAR-T therapy Yescarta at the SEGRO Park Amsterdam Airport, and plans on hiring up to 300 employees when the facility is fully operational in 2020.