Samsung Biologics, a CDMO, plans to add mRNA vaccine drug substance (DS) manufacturing capability to its current facility in Songdo, ready for cGMP operations within early 2022. mRNA has been the technology of choice for many Covid-19 vaccines due to its characteristics of safety and fast scalability in manufacturing.
“We are constantly assessing various ways that we can expand our current business portfolio to better serve the market,” said John Rim, CEO of Samsung Biologics. “We are committed to helping our clients provide quality treatments and vaccines to all those in need around the world, especially in difficult times like this, and with this extended capability, we hope to support our partners in bringing novel mRNA vaccines and therapeutics to market at a faster pace.”
In an effort to extend its global expansion and build a perse portfolio, Samsung Biologics has also opened its newest US R&D Centre in the heart of the San Francisco bio-cluster, bringing its contract development services closer to biotech and pharmaceutical companies in the Bay Area. With its own proprietary cell line technology, S-CHOice, which shows enhanced cell viability and improved titers up to two-fold from the industry average, Samsung Biologics can facilitate reduced development timelines and high-performing product offerings.
The company’s dynamic growth plan also includes the ongoing construction of its fourth and largest biomanufacturing facility in Incheon, South Korea. Upon completion of Plant Four, Samsung Biologics will hold a total of 620,000 litres of cell culture capacity.