since the new deal is with wyeth, this may be of interest...
Ireland Plant centerpiece of Wyeth's growing investment in biotech processes and products -
MADISON, N.J., Sept. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Wyeth (NYSE: WYE) today
formally opened its Grange Castle biotech production facility in South County
Dublin, Ireland. The new 1.2 million square foot campus is one of the largest
integrated biotech manufacturing facilities in the world and is expected to
produce some of the Company's most innovative products.
Speaking before a crowd of more than 1,200 people that included numerous
representatives of the Irish government and other dignitaries, Wyeth
Pharmaceuticals President Bernard Poussot said the Company is proud of the
biotech manufacturing facility it has built in Ireland and expects that it
will expand access to our key biotech products, which are in high demand from
patients throughout the world.
"The work performed in this facility will lead the way to better and more
innovative healthcare through the application of biotechnology developed right
here, in Ireland," said Mr. Poussot. "We expect to continue to invest in this
new state-of-the-art facility and to make Grange Castle one of our key biotech
development, production and distribution efforts in the coming years,
complementing our U.S. presence in Andover, Mass."
Through sustained investment over the last decade, Wyeth has become one of
the largest global biotech companies in the world and the fastest growing
pharmaceutical company in Europe. The Company has emphasized a sustainable new
paradigm, which combines the biotech culture with the resources and global
reach of a large pharmaceutical company - a model for success in a challenging
and changing industry. Biotech drugs are a rapidly growing segment of
Wyeth's more than $17.4 billion business and include such innovative products
as Enbrel(R) (etanercept), ReFacto(R) Antihemophilic Factor (Recombinant),
BeneFix(R) Coagulation Factor IX (Recombinant) and Prevenar(R) 7-valent
pneumococcal vaccine for children.
Wyeth invested nearly $2 billion in the Grange Castle facility, where site
development work began in October 2002. Construction of the campus required
seven million person-hours of engineering and construction and 15,000 tons of
structural steel. The campus at Grange Castle, which employs more than 1,000
people, will comprise three separate facilities - a drug development unit, a
drug substance site, and a drug product facility. These facilities will go
into production on a phased basis over the next four years. With the addition
of Grange Castle to Wyeth's existing manufacturing sites in Ireland, Wyeth has
now become the country's largest pharmaceutical employer.
Among the biotech products that will be produced at Grange Castle is
Enbrel, for which Wyeth owns the rights outside the U. S. Enbrel is approved
in many markets around the world and can be used to treat rheumatoid
arthritis, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis, psoriasis
and psoriatic arthritis. Prevenar is also scheduled to be produced at Grange
Castle, as is the Company's newly FDA approved intravenous (IV) antibiotic
Tygacil(TM) (tygacycline IV), used for the treatment of serious skin and
intra-abdominal hospital acquired infections.
Wyeth is one of the world's largest research-driven pharmaceutical and
health care products companies. It is a leader in the discovery, development,
manufacturing, and marketing of pharmaceuticals, vaccines, biotechnology
products and nonprescription medicines that improve the quality of life for
people worldwide. The Company's major divisions are Wyeth Pharmaceuticals,
Wyeth Consumer Healthcare, and Fort Dodge Animal Health. |
