Nanopharm, an Aptar Pharma subsidiary and CDMO for orally inhaled and nasal drug products (OINDPs), has announced expansion plans to a facility in Cwmbran, Wales. Aimed to better support customer needs, the development will create 60 employment opportunities and allow the company to substantially increase its full services capacity, including its formulation and analytical capabilities.
The company has signed a long-term lease on a nearby building that is four times larger than its current premises in Newport, Wales. At 25000 sqft, spanning three floors, the facility has been completely redesigned to house R&D and analytical laboratories, with construction expected to be completed in early 2022.
The addition of these characterisation and analytical capabilities, as well as increased capacity, will enable the company’s scientists to provide specialist services, benefit from in-house evaluation and help customers get to the clinic quickly, it says. The analytical laboratories will also be cGMP compliant to allow Nanopharm to further support its customers through their new product development process.
In-house particle engineering capabilities will be significantly expanded, including the installation of a spray dryer with scalability to multiple commercial platforms. Moreover, the company will have access to a range of micronisation techniques to enable formulation approaches for sensitive molecules including biologics, as well as the manufacture of complex suspensions and powders including nanoparticles for both inhaled and nasal products.
Dr Jag Shur, VP, Science & Technology and co-founder of Nanopharm, commented: “We are excited to take the next step in our expansion to support our customers by not only offering more services, but also having the bandwidth to work on more cutting-edge technologies to maintain our position as pioneers in the industry. This is how Nanopharm became successful from our inception, and with more people come more bright ideas, so we want to make sure we capitalize on the opportunities that the ever-changing OINDP landscape brings.”
Guillaume Brouet, VP Analytical, Regulatory and Scientific Affairs at Aptar Pharma: “Nanopharm continues on its exponential growth curve and has long outgrown its existing facility. This investment truly demonstrates Aptar Pharma’s commitment to supporting the growth of Nanopharm and our belief in the added-value it has to offer customers as part of our diversification into offering full-service solutions.
