Vibalogics to invest $150M in Boston virotherapy facility

Vibalogics announced that it initiated the first phase of its planned $150 million investment in a virotherapy facility near Boston.

The global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) has a three-year investment plan which includes building a 110,000 square-foot facility, with the $150 million covering redevelopment, equipment and personnel, according to a news release.

Vibalogics expects the site to be operational by the second half of 2021 with state-of-the-art technology that enables a significant capacity increase, including 2000L scale bioreactors and additional fill-finish capabilities.

The CDMO specializes in the production of oncolytic viruses, viral vector vaccines and viral vector gene therapy products. It was recently selected by Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Pharmaceuticals as one of its manufacturing partners for its COVID-19 vaccine candidate.

“We are very excited about our choice of facility, as it meets both our current and future needs, giving us the ability to expand further to meet growing customer demand,” Vibalogics CEO Tom Hochuli said in the release. “The site will provide a complete suite of virotherapy services to support drug developers and their most revolutionary products. The addition of a late-stage clinical and commercial facility means we can easily tech transfer our customers’ products from our early phase manufacturing facility in Germany to the U.S., resulting in a complete end-to-end service from pre-clinical to commercial supply.

“Boston is the largest global hub for cell and gene therapy R&D, so there is also a great pool of local talent and expertise to draw from to strengthen the Vibalogics team. The facility is expected to create 100 jobs initially, reaching 250 employees in the next four years. We are really excited about the team that we will build in Boston.”

Colliers International advised Vibalogics on the facility agreement.

Original Article: (https://www.massdevice.com/vibalogics-to-invest-150m-in-boston-virotherapy-facility/)