Investment at Lonza’s facility in Visp, Switzerland designed to meet increasing demand in the ADC market.
Lonza is expanding its payload-linker manufacturing capacity for highly potent active pharmaceutical ingredients (HPAPIs) at its Visp site in Switzerland.
Given that antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are “one of the fastest-growing segments in the pharmaceutical market”, the CMDO’s decision supports commercial-scale supply for HPAPIs and ADC payload-linkers.
In May, pharmaceutical giant Pfizer sought to capitalise on the potential of the ADC market by agreeing to co-develop Innovent Biologics’ portfolio of 12 novel antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) oncology medicines, investing up to $10.5 billion.
Christian Seufert, Head of Advanced Synthesis, Lonza, said: ”The rapid growth of the ADC market is driving increasing demand for highly complex payload-linkers that require advanced manufacturing capabilities”, particularly for customised synthesis and advanced purification technologies.”
Seufert added: “This investment reflects that commitment by expanding our capacity to support this next generation of therapies and enabling our customers to progress efficiently from development to commercial supply, ultimately helping bring targeted, potentially life-changing treatments to patients.”
The rapid growth of the ADC market is driving increasing demand for highly complex payload-linkers that require advanced manufacturing capabilities”
Christian Seufert, Head of Advanced Synthesis, Lonza
New manufacturing capacity will be added within Lonza’s existing GMP facility, bringing additional payload-linker production and purification alongside analytical and process development laboratories. As a multipurpose-use facility that also supports scale-out, the plant offers flexible production for a wide range of payload-linker molecules.
The Visp site also provides manufacturing for monoclonal antibodies, as well as capabilities for conjugation and drug product manufacturing, with the latter also available at Lonza’s facility in Stein. Additionally, the CDMO has scope to conduct quality control (QC) for the handling of highly potent payload-linker molecules.
Lonza anticipates that the Visp facility expansion will be operational in 2028.
This investment builds on Lonza’s strategy to strengthen its manufacturing capabilities, after the CDMO’s won the finalist title for ‘API Development and Innovation’ at the CPHI awards last year.
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