Pharmaceutical company Merck is planning to build new pharmaceutical packaging facility in Darmstadt, Germany with an investment of more than €50m ($55.7m).
The German firm said it intends to complement its pharmaceutical production site at Darmstadt headquarters with new packaging center of excellence in a bid to boost its manufacturing footprint while upgrading its services for patients.
The 15,000m2 packaging building will be equipped with flexible and modern technology to produce more than 400 million blisters or 150 million packs each year.
Construction on the facility is planned to be completed by the end of 2017 while commissioning is scheduled in mid-2018.
Merck executive board member Belén Garijo said: “We are committed to helping to ensure that our medicines are always available to patients who need them.
“Therefore, we are investing in our manufacturing and supply network across the world to continuously adapt our footprint and capacity while leveraging new technologies to always better serve patients.”
Featuring energy-saving technologies, the packaging building is being developed as part of Merck’s effort to sustainably secure its position in healthcare manufacturing.
Merck biopharma business global manufacturing and supply head Thierry Hulot said: “Darmstadt is our largest site and center of excellence for oral and solid dosage forms and this new packaging building will be the place to implement state-of-the-art smart packaging technology.”
The company said that the center will comply with the highest international Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) quality standards.
By the end of the decade, Merck aims to invest around €1bn in Darmstad to strengthen business.
