MilliporeSigma Celebrates Topping-Out Ceremony for New Membrane Production Plant

BURLINGTON, Mass., Oct. 8, 2020 /CNW/ -- MilliporeSigma today celebrated the topping-out ceremony for its new membrane production plant in Darmstadt, Germany. With the new facility, the company plans to expand manufacturing of Millipore Express^® membranes, which are critical components in Millipore Express^® filters and help ensure the sterility of biological drug products. The project with a volume of more than $165 million is part of the $1.2 billion investment in its global headquarters until 2025 that MilliporeSigma's parent company, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, announced last year.

MilliporeSigma plays a pivotal role in the growing biopharmaceutical membrane market. This investment demonstrates the company's commitment to advancing the production of new therapies and its support for bringing important drugs to market.

"As a science and technology company, we want to pave the way for new therapies and contribute to improving the lives of patients around the world. With this strategically important production facility for our Life Science business sector, we are investing in future technologies, enabling additional growth and creating new jobs at our company's global headquarters," said Stefan Oschmann, chairman of the Executive Board and CEO of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany.

Chris Ross, interim CEO of MilliporeSigma, added: "As a world-leading life science tools and solutions provider, we play a pivotal role in the growing biopharmaceutical membrane market. This investment increases our membrane manufacturing capacity and allows for more supply chain diversification. It also demonstrates our commitment to advancing the production of new therapies and our support for bringing important drugs to market."

The new membrane production plant is expected to create approximately 55 new jobs. Construction began in March and is expected to be completed in 2022, followed by production process validation and commercialization. The new, four-story membrane plant will incorporate immersion membrane casting equipment, quality control laboratories and offices.

Millipore Express^® membranes from MilliporeSigma will be manufactured at the new facility in Darmstadt, then processed into filters for pharmaceutical production at MilliporeSigma's existing device Center of Excellence in Jaffrey, New Hampshire.

With more than 50 years of experience in aseptic filtration, MilliporeSigma is an industry leader, providing the most comprehensive portfolio of products, services and testing for biopharmaceutical manufacturing. Millipore Express^® membranes and Durapore^® membranes are produced today at the Center of Excellence for membrane manufacturing in Cork, Ireland. MilliporeSigma's Life Science Center in Cork remains a critical manufacturing facility within the company's global network.

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About the Life Science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany

The Life Science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, which operates as MilliporeSigma in the U.S. and Canada, has some 22,000 employees and 59 manufacturing sites worldwide, with a portfolio of more than 300,000 products focused on scientific discovery, biomanufacturing and testing services.

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany completed its $17 billion acquisition of Sigma-Aldrich in November 2015, creating a leader in the $125 billion global life science industry.

Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, a leading science and technology company, operates across healthcare, life science and performance materials. Around 57,000 employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people's lives every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene-editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices – the company is everywhere. In 2019, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany generated sales of €16.2 billion in 66 countries.

The company holds the global rights to the name and trademark "Merck" internationally. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany operate as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma in life science, and EMD Performance Materials. Since its founding 1668, scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to the company's technological and scientific advances. To this day, the founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company. For more information about Merck, KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, visit www.emdgroup.com.

SOURCE MilliporeSigma

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