A total of €50 mio is being invested in the construction of a new laboratory for an international quality control centre for vaccines, as well as the construction of modern office space and the modernization and expansion of the existing infrastructure for vaccine production. Accordingly, the American company has secured jobs in Austria in the long term, also improving the ecological footprint of the plant. The new premises are expected to be opened in 2021.
“Our facility in Orth an der Donau serves as a competence centre for manufacturing active pharmaceutical ingredients and the quality control of bacterial and viral vaccines, and thus an important part of the global Pfizer production network”, says Nanette Cocero, Global President Vaccines at Pfizer Inc.
Pfizer produces a vaccine to protect people against tick-borne encephalitis in Orth an der Donau as well as a vaccine used to protect against meningitis C, both for global export. The factory manufactures twelve million doses of vaccine and has positioned itself as an expert in the field of producing biopharmaceutical products. Now the company is expanding capacities at the site.
In addition to the production and quality control of two existing vaccines, employees will also carry out quality controls in Lower Austria starting in 2021 for vaccines in the global Pfizer pipeline. For this purpose, Pfizer is setting up an international quality control centre featuring 3K m2 of state-of-the-art laboratory space and 1,600 m2 of new office space. In addition to capacity expansion, special emphasis will be attached to energy-efficient measures with the underlying objective of further improving the ecological footprint of the plant.
This story initially appeared on ABA – Invest in Austria‘s website.