Since it was founded, IDEC has focused on establishing and maintaining a leadership position in cell culture techniques for antibody manufacturing. Cell culture provides a method for manufacturing clinical and commercial grade protein products by reproducible techniques at various scales, up to many kilograms of antibody.
IDEC’s current manufacturing process is based on the suspension culture of mammalian cells in stainless steel vessels. Suspension culture fermentation provides greater flexibility and more rapid production of the large amounts of antibodies required for pivotal trials than the bench-scale systems that were previously utilized by the Company.
In September 2000, IDEC began laying the groundwork for the company’s next generation of antibody-based products. Aiming to build a world-class facility for research, development and the manufacture of biologics, the company acquired approximately 60 acres in Oceanside, California, with an option on an additional 30 acres. We expect the IDEC manufacturing operation to house initially six to eight 15,000-liter bioreactors and down-stream processing equipment, giving IDEC 18 to 24 times the manufacturing capacity of its current facility. Requiring a capital investment estimated at $300 to $400 million, IDEC expects the new plant to be fully licensed and in commercial use by the end of 2005.
capacity for biopharmaceuticals is becoming limited worldwide as more of these products achieve commercialization. Thus, the ability of a company to manufacture biologics in its own large-scale facility is increasingly recognized as a key factor for long-term success. IDEC’s investments in this new facility will not only enable the company to control its own destiny and depend less on contract manufacturing, it could also aid the company’s in-licensing and partnering efforts, where biologics manufacturing capacity and know-how make IDEC an ideal collaborator for the co-development of innovative therapeutics.
In preparation for this stage of IDEC’s growth, the company plans to add more than 100 new jobs in 2001, recruiting on a worldwide basis skilled employees with biopharmaceutical manufacturing and related experience.