Janssen opens vaccines launch facility
Operations within the facility are already underway focused on producing clinical trial supplies for Janssen’s late-stage vaccine candidates
Janssen Vaccines & Prevention B.V. has celebrated the opening of a new vaccines launch facility. Located in Leiden, in the Netherlands, the building represents a significant investment by the company in novel vaccines development, global health and security, and pandemic preparedness efforts. The company is part of Janssen Pharmaceutical by Johnson & Johnson.
The building features a unique technological and manufacturing platform to support the large-scale production of Janssen vaccines for late-stage (Phase 3) clinical trials and – pending regulatory approvals – the launch of new vaccines on a mass scale for global public use.
“This new centre represents a significant commitment by Johnson & Johnson in our mission to change the trajectory of human health,” said Johan Van Hoof, MD, Global Therapeutic Area Head IDV, Vaccines, Janssen Pharmaceuticals R&D and MD of Janssen Vaccines & Prevention B.V.
“By investing locally, we hope to protect globally by ensuring that innovative and effective vaccines become available to the people that need them wherever they may live," he added.
Janssen’s pipeline includes investigational vaccines to prevent some of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases, including HIV, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza, Ebola and Zika.
In addition to supporting the development and launch of these vaccines, the new facility can also support global pandemic preparedness efforts, including Janssen’s most recent collaboration with the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) to develop a novel vaccine against Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS).
Janssen said the facility is the latest example of its leadership in pharmaceutical research and development (R&D) in the Netherlands.
R&D platform
A number of R&D platforms will be deployed at the vaccines launch facility, including Janssen’s proprietary AdVac viral vector vaccines technology and the company’s PER.C6 manufacturing platform.
The PER.C6 system has the potential to enable high-capacity, high-speed and cost-effective manufacturing for multiple types of vaccines.
“We are very proud of this new facility, which represents years of planning, platform development and process optimization for novel vaccines,” said Dirk Redlich, Ph.D., Head Vaccine Process and Analytical Development, Janssen Research & Development, LLC.
Redlich continued: “The bottom line is that we constructed this state-of-the-art centre because we have confidence in our ability to deliver transformational vaccines. Ultimately, this building represents our concrete belief that we can create a better world – for people today, and for generations to come.”
Operations within the facility are already underway, focused on producing clinical trial supplies for Janssen’s late-stage vaccine candidates, including for HIV.