Merck Inaugurates State-of-the-art Pharma Packaging Center in Darmstadt

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DARMSTADT, Germany, October 17, 2018 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

    - Expansion of the pharma manufacturing site at Merck's headquarters

supports growth of current and future portfolio of pharma medicines

    - New building dedicated to the packaging and shipping of Merck's pharma

medicines in more than 90 countries

    - EUR63 million investment in new packaging center is part of wider EUR1

billion investment up to 2020 transforming the Darmstadt site into contemporary

global headquarters

    Merck, the vibrant science and technology company, inaugurated today a new

packaging center at its headquarters in Darmstadt, Germany. The opening

ceremony was attended by Stefan Oschmann, Chairman of the Executive Board and

CEO of Merck, as well as Stefan Grüttner, Minister of Social Affairs and

Integration for the German Federal State of Hesse, and Jochen Partsch, Mayor of

the City of Darmstadt.

    "Darmstadt is our prime hub for the manufacturing of medicines and it plays

a key role in our plans for future growth. This latest investment in a new

state-of-the-art packaging center reflects our commitment to our headquarters

and is a compelling example of how we use the latest technological advances to

always better serve our patients," said Stefan Oschmann.

    "The new production facility in Darmstadt is a gratifying commitment to

this location," said Stefan Grüttner. "That Merck is continuing to invest in

the place where the company was born 350 years ago and creating new jobs in the

process is a good sign for the region. With this investment, Merck is

contributing substantially to the great density of innovative and

high-performing companies in Hessen."

     (Photo:

https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/770379/Merck_Pharma_Packaging_Center.jpg )

    The new 15,000 square meters facility will be dedicated to the packaging

and shipping of Merck's current portfolio of pharma medicines in more than 90

countries and help meet increasing patient needs for flagship medicines

Glucophage(R), Concor(R) and Euthyrox(R)in the areas of diabetes,

cardiovascular diseases and thyroid disorders respectively. It will also

provide capacity for potential future pharma products currently in clinical

development such as evobrutinib in the area of neurology-immunology or

tepotinib in the

area of oncology.

    With its eight fully automated packaging lines and robotized logistics, the

new packaging center will have the capacity to process more than 210 million

boxes of medicines every year. It is designed to incorporate a broad range of

new technologies such as the tracking & tracing of medicines to prevent

counterfeit, or smart packaging to ensure more flexibility to adapt the

production of medicines to patient demand. The new packaging center is also

designed to comply with the highest international standards in terms of

quality, environment, health and safety.

    The new pharma packaging center represents an investment of EUR63 million

over the 2015-2018 period and is part of a wider EUR1 billion investment up to

2020 transforming the Darmstadt site into contemporary global headquarters.

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    About Merck

    Merck is a leading science and technology company in healthcare, life

science and performance materials. Almost 53,000 employees work to further

develop technologies that improve and enhance life - from biopharmaceutical

therapies to treat cancer or multiple sclerosis, cutting-edge systems for

scientific research and production, to liquid crystals for smartphones and LCD

televisions. In 2017, Merck generated sales of EUR 15.3 billion in

66 countries.

    Founded in 1668, Merck is the world's oldest pharmaceutical and chemical

company. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed

corporate group. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The

only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the company operates as

EMD Serono, MilliporeSigma and EMD Performance Materials.

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SOURCE: Merck