FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies

As we engage as an Association in the development of the life science sector plan, the 10 year NHS plan and the UK’s industrial strategy this winter, this week I’ve been reflecting on what recent NHS announcements on adoption of innovation tell us.

In this blog, John Stewart, Vice President of KojoX Strategy and Rasmus Pedersen, Associate Director of Process Technology for FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies, talk about FUJIFILM's flagship single-use cell culture facility in Billingham, UK.

UK medicines manufacturing is buoyant after its incredible contribution to the pandemic after strong collaboration between industry, academia and government to develop, manufacture, and scale up COVID-19 vaccines. UK’s manufacturing ecosystem has seen increased private and public sector investments into both manufacturing capability and supply chains since the start of the pandemic particularly in existing clusters such as Stevenage and Darlington as well as the Golden Triangle.

Fantastic news last week, that BIA member Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies will be making a sizeable investment to add development and manufacturing capacity for biologics and advanced therapies into its UK manufacturing operation. 

BIA regularly spotlights member companies and the great work they’re doing to advance the life sciences industry and support the patients we serve. This month, we spoke with Andy Topping, PhD, CSO of FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies. Andy has served as Chief Scientific Officer since October 2015. Over his tenure, he has served in several scientific roles working with customers to develop innovative and scientifically sound solutions to programmes.

Dr Ruth McKernan CBE, former chair of the BioIndustry Association and former Chair of Innovate UK, discusses the future of antivirals in relation to COVID-19 and how this works with current government processes.

The Government is seeking a Chair for its newly announced  Antiviral Taskforce on COVID-19. Details of the role, along with other exciting opportunities in our sector, are on the sector jobs section of the BIA website.  The new Taskforce’s ambition is to find one or two treatments for COVID-19 this year, either in a capsule or tablet form, that can be taken at home at the moment of first diagnosis.  Today’s story in The Telegraph (£) gives a glimpse at how a pill could be developed in the timeframe.

The public interest in the development of a successful COVID-19 vaccine has resulted in unprecedented attention for the UK bioprocessing and manufacturing community in 2020. You would be hard pressed to find a day in recent memory where a vaccine and how it will be made has not appeared in the news. The work that companies have done to support the manufacturing capacity required to scale a successful vaccine here in the UK has been extraordinary. In this blog, I explore the benefits and opportunities this presents ahead of the bioProcessUK conference in December.

At the 19th annual bioProcessUK conference (15-17 November, Edinburgh), we’ll be discussing biotech innovation and growth in the UK, including continuous process manufacturing. To get a warmup, read our latest blog post from Nick Hutchinson, EngD, Business Steering Group Lead (Mammalian Cell Culture) at FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies (FDB). At the conference, be sure to attend the session “Growing the UK Biomanufacturing Footprint” which includes Jonathan Haigh, PhD, Vice President Process Development at FDB.

I’m looking forward to participating in our joint MHRA and BIA regulatory conference virtually this Wednesday, it’s a fantastic agenda hearing more about how we can transform regulation, drive innovation and ultimately enable safe patient access. Also, read about Biotech’s day on the Government grid, financing news and two great TV programmes to watch this week.

FUJIFILM Corporation is investing $83m to expand microbial production capacity of FUJIFILM Diosynth Biotechnologies in the UK. This will triple the plant’s current capacity of microbial production and it is fantastic to see an established international player like FUJIFILM making such a significant investment in its manufacturing capability in this country.