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UCB-Bioproducts Completes New North Augusta, SC. Manufacturing Facility for Synthetic Peptide API Production

Submitted by: John Warner on Feb 26, 2003 at 6:00 am Tagged with: General Archives Source:

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UCB-Bioproducts Completes New U.S. Manufacturing Facility for Synthetic Peptide
API Production
The Company Strengthens Its Presence in North America, Adds Capacity And
Flexibility for Early Development Supplies

NEW ORLEANS, Feb. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- UCB-Bioproducts today announced the
completion of the company's first U.S. customer application laboratory, built
to meet the increasing demand for peptide pilot production. Located in North
Augusta, S.C., the new facility will add flexibility to the company's
industry-leading manufacturing capabilities to produce synthetic peptide
active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for its customers around the world.
The announcement was made today during the annual INFORMEX meeting, where
approximately 4,000 specialty and fine chemical professionals are gathered to
learn about the latest technological advances and developments in custom
manufacturing.
"We are committed to partnering with our clients for their peptide
development projects as early as the pre-clinical stages, and to providing the
necessary infrastructure and quality environment to support the growth of
these programs," said Alain Scarso, Ph.D., General Manager of UCB-Bioproducts
division. "This new facility expands our current capacity for clinical and
commercial supply, and provides a stepping stone toward offering security of
supply for commercial products to be manufactured in two distinct sites in
Europe and North America."
The new laboratory is located on a 180-acre site together with other UCB
Surface Specialties development and production plants. The pilot plant will
be compliant with Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) quality
standards and employ a quality system consistent with the one pioneered in its
European facility. The quality system in UCB-Bioproducts' European facility
has been successfully reviewed by regulatory agencies throughout the world
during pre-approval and compliance inspections. The latest synthesis and
downstream processing technologies will be utilized in both facilities, to
capitalize on UCB-Bioproducts' 30 years of experience in peptide production.
The company currently offers one of the largest capacities available globally
for the development and manufacturing of synthetic peptides as APIs.
"The future of South Carolina's continued growth as a biotechnology hub
depends on attracting companies like UCB-Bioproducts," said South Carolina
Governor Mark Sanford. "The completion of this facility is a milestone for
UCB-Bioproducts, North Augusta and the state of South Carolina."

About UCB-Bioproducts
UCB-Bioproducts is a global leader in providing peptide contract
manufacturing services for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. It
offers a full range of manufacturing services, from early pre-clinical custom
synthesis to cGMP compliant supplies for clinical and commercial requirements.
For more than 30 years, the company has provided the industry's widest range
of capabilities related to the manufacturing of synthetic peptide-based active
pharmaceutical ingredients. Currently, several of these are being developed
for a wide variety of applications, ranging from in-vivo diagnostic imaging to
acute cardiovascular care, osteoporosis, cancer, infectious and
neurodegenerative disorders.
UCB-Bioproducts continues to provide its clients with innovative process
technology and the flexibility and capacity to produce quantities ranging from
milligrams to hundreds of kilograms. The company has manufacturing facilities
in Europe (Braine-l'Alleud, Belgium) and the United States (North Augusta,
S.C.), global marketing offices in Atlanta, Ga., and regional representatives
in Europe, North America, Japan and Asia-Pacific. UCB-Bioproducts is a
division of UCB S.A., a publicly traded company on the Euronext stock
exchange, headquartered in Brussels.

SOURCE UCB-Bioproducts, Inc.