Samsung Biologics to add mRNA vaccine drug substance manufacturing suite to expand portfolio of services
Samsung Biologics announced its plans to add mRNA vaccine drug substance (DS) manufacturing capability to the current facility in Songdo, ready for cGMP operations within the earlier part of the year in 2022. mRNA has been the technology of choice for many COVID-19 vaccines due to its characteristics of safety, and fast scalability in manufacturing.
As part of the company’s long-term strategy to become a fully integrated global biopharmaceutical company, Samsung Biologics has been expanding its business portfolio and production capacity to meet the rapidly rising market demand beyond its current business focused on monoclonal antibodies (mAb).
“We are constantly assessing various ways that we can expand and diversify our current business portfolio to better serve the market,” said John Rim, CEO of Samsung Biologics. “We are committed to helping our clients provide quality treatments and vaccines to all those in need around the world, especially in difficult times like this, and with this extended capability, we hope to support our partners in bringing novel mRNA vaccines and therapeutics to market at a faster pace.”
In an effort to extend its global expansion and build a diverse portfolio, Samsung Biologics has also opened its newest US R&D Center in the heart of the San Francisco biocluster, bringing its contract development services closer to biotech and pharmaceutical companies in the Bay Area. With its own proprietary cell line technology, S-CHOice, which shows enhanced cell viability and improved titers up to two-fold from the industry average, Samsung Biologics can facilitate reduced development timelines and high-performing product offerings.
The company’s dynamic growth plan also includes the ongoing construction of its fourth and largest biomanufacturing facility in Incheon, South Korea. Upon completion of Plant 4, Samsung Biologics will hold a total of 620,000 liters of cell culture capacity and continue to provide end-to-end, start-to-finish services to its clients.