News

Posted On: 05/22/2007

West Pharma Invests S$45 Million in Singapore Facility

PharmaManufacturing.com

West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc., on May 22 announced it is investing S$45 million to expand its Singapore facility to meet the company's growing Asia Pacific business.

The expansion will be completed in 2010 and will include the addition of manufacturing capacity for West's premium product technologies for pharmaceutical and medical device components. The addition will meet current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) requirements for pharmaceutical and medical device component manufacturing, will require over 100 new employees and will increase West's Singapore production by 30%.

"Singapore, with its strategic location and flourishing biomedical industry, is a very important hub for West's Asia Pacific customers," said Ron van Dijk, managing director and vice president, Asia Pacific, West Pharmaceutical Services. "The Singapore plant, established in 1983, has seen unprecedented growth in recent years. We are delighted that this expansion will allow us to meet the growing needs of our pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical customers in the region."

West's Singapore plant manufactures Westar RS ready-to-sterilize stoppers, FluroTec laminated components and Flip-Off seals - all of which are West trademark designs. In addition, it also manufactures other packaging components used for injectable drug delivery and diagnostic systems. West is the only manufacturer of its kind in Singapore, and its local customers includes Baxter, BD and Schering Plough. Furthermore, West Singapore supports regional customers in China, India and Australia such as GE Healthcare, Ranbaxy and Hospira.

"We are pleased that West has chosen to further expand its manufacturing base here and move into high-end products. This is a strong testimony to Singapore's highly qualified workforce, and established track record for meeting the stringent regulatory requirements of the biomedical industry," said Yeoh Keat Chuan, executive director, Biomedical Sciences Group, Economic Development Board. "West's expansion is a timely investment to take advantage of the fast growing customer base in Singapore and the rest of Asia."

West has a market capitalization of S$ 2.4 billion. It has enjoyed a strong sales growth in the last five years, with consolidated net sales of S$ 1.39 billion in 2006, an increase of 30.5 % over the prior year.

Approximately 100 million West components are used every day. Aside from seals and stoppers, these components can also be found in hospital IV drips, disposable and pre-filled syringes and dental cartridges. West customers are the world's leading pharmaceutical manufacturers, including Abbot Laboratories, Sanofi Aventis, Eli Lilly, Novo Nordisk A/S, GSK, Novartis and Pfizer.