Merck to Expand US Biopharmaceutical R&D Facility to Advance Innovative Clinical Pipeline

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DARMSTADT, Germany, February 7, 2019 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

Not intended for US, Canada or UK-based media  

Merck to Expand US Biopharmaceutical R&D Facility to Advance Innovative

Clinical Pipeline

- Merck investing $70 million in U.S. Research & Development Hub   

- Expansion of R&D footprint to accelerate science and innovation in Oncology,

Immuno-oncology and Immunology globally   

Merck, a leading science and technology company, today announced a $70 million

investment to expand its state of the art research and development (R&D)

facility in Billerica, Massachusetts. The new building will span 145,000 square

feet, offering new laboratory and collaborative working space to accommodate

approximately 400 new and current R&D employees focused on advancing science in

oncology, immuno-oncology and immunology.

"Our talented and passionate R&D teams based in Billerica have been highly

engaged in advancing a number of pipeline compounds," said Luciano Rossetti,

Head of Global Research & Development at the Biopharma business of Merck. "We

continue to strengthen our innovation footprint in both the U.S. and Darmstadt,

Germany where our global R&D headquarters are located, with the goal of

delivering transformational value to patients around the world."

With this latest project, Merck will have invested more than $150 million in

infrastructure to advance biopharmaceutical R&D in the state of Massachusetts

in recent years, with more than 150 new jobs added to its growing U.S. R&D Hub

in Billerica since 2011. The town of Billerica played a critical role in

bringing this latest building expansion project to fruition, working

collaboratively with Company officials to underscore the benefits of expanding

the state-of-the-art R&D facility.

"Merck's continued investment in Massachusetts is a testament to the state's

global leadership in life sciences," said Travis McCready, President and CEO of

the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. "In working collaboratively with the

town of Billerica, the company's campus expansion over the past decade has not

only helped attract and retain top talent in the area, but more importantly,

contributed to improving the lives of people with serious medical needs."

When construction is completed in 2021, the building will offer wet labs,

office space and a cafeteria for the campus. Consistent with previous projects,

the building will be constructed to the highest environmental and employee

wellness standards by seeking LEED® and WELL certifications. LEED is a

preeminent program for the design, construction and operation of

high-performance green buildings. WELL is a building standard focused on

enhancing people's health and wellness through built environments.

The healthcare business of Merck employs approximately 3,500 R&D professionals

across four global R&D hubs: Darmstadt, Germany; Boston, U.S.; Tokyo, Japan;

and Beijing, China. Merck invests approximately 20% of total sales in R&D

discovery and development each year.

Merck's U.S. presence is comprised of three businesses - Healthcare, Life

Science and Performance Materials - with nearly 10,000 employees working in

R&D, manufacturing and corporate roles across almost 60 sites country-wide.

Within the state of Massachusetts, more than 2,800 professionals work across 10

locations.

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About Merck  

Merck, a leading science and technology company, operates across healthcare,

life science and performance materials. Around 51,000 employees work to make a

positive difference to millions of people's lives every day by creating more

joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing gene editing technologies

and discovering unique ways to treat the most challenging diseases to enabling

the intelligence of devices - Merck is everywhere. In 2017, Merck generated

sales of € 15.3 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible entrepreneurship have been key to

Merck's technological and scientific advances. This is how Merck has thrived

since its founding in 1668. The founding family remains the majority owner of

the publicly listed company. Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name

and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the

business sectors of Merck operate as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma

in life science, and EMD Performance Materials.

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SOURCE: Merck