New Thermo Fisher Scientific drug facility for vaccine manufacture opens in Singapore

A new large-scale high-speed sterile drug facility to develop and manufacture vaccines and therapeutics in Singapore was officially opened on Friday.

The launch of the Thermo Fisher Scientific Fill-Finish Facility, located in Joo Koon Circle in the Jurong district and reported by the Economic Development Board (EDB) in 2020 to have cost US$130 million (S$175 million), was officiated by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat.

Speaking at the event, Mr Heng said the new facility was significant because “it enables end-to-end manufacturing of vaccines and biologics in Singapore and contributes to the resilience of the region”.

“This new facility will complement the recent investments by Sanofi and BioNTech, by closing the loop on vaccine production locally. This will benefit not only Singapore but also the wider Asia-Pacific region when tackling future health crises,” he said.

The plant, opened by the American company, includes a high-speed, fully automated aseptic fill-finish line.

This is a process in which the drug product, container, and container closure are first sterilised separately and then brought together.

It complements the new research capabilities at Thermo Fisher Scientific’s Customer Experience Centre and Bioprocess Design Centre, two other operational lab facilities here that showcase the latest bioprocessing, life science and analytical technologies.

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, Singapore did not have a single facility producing finished vaccines.

But in the past 2½ years, five pharmaceutical companies have committed to set up plants here to churn out more than a billion doses of finished vaccines annually, turning Singapore into a fast-emerging biomedical hub in Asia-Pacific.

Mr Heng said that having drawn lessons from the Covid-19 pandemic, Singapore is in a stronger position to better harness science and innovation for when the country might need to deal with the next health crisis.

One lesson learnt, he said, is how important it is to build and uphold supply chain resilience.

“We saw during the pandemic how countries scrambled to ensure adequate supply of critical items, including vaccines, amid manufacturing, trade and logistics disruptions. Another lesson is the importance of trust and collaboration.

“The reality of a global crisis like Covid-19 is that nobody is safe until everybody is safe. Thus, even as governments sought to safeguard the well-being of their citizens, cooperation was critical in bringing the pandemic to an end,” he said.

“With these lessons, as well as the advent of new technologies like AI (artificial intelligence), we hope to have greater confidence and agility in developing and rolling out new therapeutics and vaccines,” Mr Heng added.

The Thermo Fisher facility, established with the help of the EDB to align with the Government’s investment in preparedness for future health emergencies, will provide rapid vaccine fill-finish capabilities along with the company’s end-to-end pharmaceutical development and manufacturing services.

Mr Heng said Singapore’s longstanding partnership with Thermo Fisher reflects the country’s commitment to developing a strong life science ecosystem.

“Besides steadily growing our research capabilities over the past two decades, we have nurtured strong partnerships across universities, companies and the Government to grow Singapore’s manufacturing capabilities in biologics,” he said.

Mr Heng added that such an ecosystem approach enables Singapore to attract “the brightest minds and the best companies to build best-in-class manufacturing capabilities and accelerate scientific breakthroughs” here.

He cited the Biologics Pharma Innovation Programme Singapore, initiated by the Agency for Science, Technology and Research and EDB in 2022, to bring together industry leaders and research talent to explore novel manufacturing technologies and enhance manufacturing productivity.

“This commitment to innovation and collaboration is crucial to sustaining our vibrant life science ecosystem, and more importantly, enabling scientific breakthroughs for a healthier, safer future for all,” he said.

In his welcome speech, Executive Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer at Thermo Fisher Scientific Michel Lagarde said his company is committed to serving as a reliable partner to the Asia-Pacific region and the world.

“This new site is an important extension of Thermo Fisher’s robust sterile fill-finish global network. With this expansion, we are strategically prepared, more than ever, to respond to our customers’ needs by supporting the accelerated delivery of critical vaccines and medicines to patients,” he added.

Thermo Fisher Scientific has about 2,000 among its 125,000 employees worldwide in Singapore.

Source: The Straits Times ©️ SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.