Global Pharma-Biotech New-Build Report: 727 New Facilities Represent $52 Billion Potential

Reported by Annette Kreuger, Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The Pharmaceutical-Biotech Industry has 727 reported new-build facilities in the works throughout the globe. Collectively, the sites have generated 855 reported projects, representing a total reported capital investment of $52 billion, which translates to a per-site average of $71.5 million.

The potential investment for each site includes the initial construction costs, as well as any reported planned future expansions and subsequent phases. Current projections call for the 727 new facilities to eventually employ nearly 113,000 people. The facilities are in various stages of planning, ranging from early market analysis to actual construction.

Click on the image at right for a graph showing new-build pharma-bio project plant counts by region.

Some of the projects are grassroot, new from the ground up, while others, the additions, include reconfiguration and/or renovations of newly acquired facilities. In this case, the term "addition" refers to the establishment of a company's first laboratory or manufacturing operation at that particular location.

The new sites span all of the sectors and SIC codes of the industry, with 573 establishing manufacturing facilities, as well as 154 new laboratories. A total of 227 of the manufacturing plants will produce ingredients for making drug products, such as active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), bulk and excipients. Also, 248 will produce final formulations, including oral dose and parenterals. The remainder will produce cosmetics, in-vitro and in-vivo diagnostics, and medical devices.

In terms of geography, Asia, including China and India, account for the most of new-build activity, potentially delivering 305 new sites. North America is second with 240 sites, followed by Europe with 158. The rest are scattered across the world, including Africa and Australia.

The Cook Group's (Bloomington, Indiana) plan to invest $125 million for a new medical devices plant in Bloomington is a prime example of a regular trend within the industry to acquire former manufacturing sites from any number of different industries, and redevelop to suit its own needs. In this case, Cook purchased a 33-building former General Motors Corporation (NYSE:GM) (Detroit, Michigan) plant on a 70-acre site. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

One of the plants in planning that will be constructed from the ground up is Medicago Incorporated's (Quebec, Quebec) $245 million vaccine plant in Quebec City. The company wants to build a 474,000-square-foot-facility to produce 40 million-50 million doses per year of plant-based quadrivalent seasonal flu vaccines. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com.