Merck Plans Additional Investment in Manufacturing and Distribution Platform in Asia

Merck announced an additional investment of approx. $ 49 million to build a robust manufacturing and distribution platform in Asia over a span of two years. This investment follows the company’s November 2016 announcement of its $ 98 million Life Science investment in Nantong, China.

Darmstadt/Germany — The life science and technology company announced a total of three investments in its Asian activities, including the Manufacturing & Distribution Centre in Songdo, South Korea, a new Manufacturing & Distribution Centre in Mumbai, India, as well as the Mobius Single-use Manufacturing in Wuxi, China.

The rapidly growing biopharmaceutical industry in South Korea makes the country one of the key Life Science hubs in Asia. The push for research and for rapid, custom manufacturing capabilities mean a greater need for accessibility to pharmaceutical products and solutions toward the advancement of research and innovation. Merck’s new manufacturing and distribution centre, located in the Songdo district of Incheon, will include an infrastructure to facilitate the supply of Merck products to customers in Korea and advanced cell culture media manufacturing capabilities (immediate Advantage Custom Media). Occupying a land area of 10,141 m², the new site is expected to be fully operational in Q4 2019.

The new manufacturing and distribution centre, located in Mumbai, is expected to be completed in 2019. Occupying 10 acres, the site is more than 12,000 m² with added capacity to meet future growth, further improving inventory availability and reducing lead times.

China, with a burgeoning biosimilar market, is fast becoming a biotech powerhouse. Single-use technologies provide increased flexibility and efficiency which are critical for biosimilar development and manufacturing. This investment, to accelerate Merck’s Mobius single-use manufacturing, addresses the growing biopharmaceutical demand in China. The site will be ready in 2018, and is expected to reduce lead time by at least 50 %.