PR88541

DARMSTADT, Germany, March 18, 2021 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

- EUR 25 million investment in Molsheim, France, will create 350 new jobs

- Response to unprecedented global demand of key technology

- Production capabilities anticipated to be operational by end of 2021

Merck, a leading science and technology company, will add a single-use assembly

production unit at its Life Science Center in Molsheim, France. With the EUR 25

million investment, the company is accelerating its European expansion plans

for this key technology, which is used for the production of Covid-19 vaccines

and other lifesaving therapies. Molsheim will be the first site in Europe where

Merck manufactures the product. Further production sites are located in

Danvers, Massachusetts, USA, and Wuxi, China.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1457722/Merk_European_Expansion.jpg

The project was announced today in Molsheim in the presence of EU Commissioner

Thierry Breton and the French Minister of Industry, Agnes Pannier-Runacher.

"The pandemic has confronted the world with inconceivable challenges. Merck's

science and technology efforts have resulted in significant contributions since

the outset of Covid-19. Our new European production unit will increase capacity

of the urgently needed supply of single-use assemblies to vaccine and

therapeutic manufacturers worldwide. Today's announcement of our expansion in

Europe speaks of Merck's global commitment during and beyond this pandemic,"

said Belen Garijo, vice chair of the Executive Board and deputy CEO of Merck.

The investment in Molsheim will add more than 350 new jobs in total along with

1,700 square meters of ISO7 or ISO5 cleanrooms, using modular building design

and existing infrastructure to allow future expansions without any disruptions.

The new unit will produce Mobius(R) single-use assemblies, a key offering that

is part of Merck's Mobius(R) MyWay program. It is planned to be operational by

the end of 2021.

With more than 1,700 employees of 32 different nationalities, and producing

more than 10,000 products, the Molsheim hub is Merck's third largest site

globally. It supplies the world market, exporting more than 85 percent of its

production. It hosts three production units dedicated to the manufacture and

assembly of products and solutions for pharmaceutical manufacturing processes

and applied solutions products for analysis in clinical and industrial

environments and water purification systems.

"In recent years, many biopharmaceutical manufacturers have turned to

single-use technologies for their flexibility, cost savings, speed and reduced

risk, leading to double-digit market growth for this segment. The coronavirus

pandemic has accelerated this trend, with most programs using single-use

production templates," said Chris Ross, interim sector head, Life Science, at

Merck. "Our Molsheim site has been a global center of excellence for

BioMonitoring and water purification activities for many years. With this new

single-use production unit, we will add critical capabilities to meet our

customers' needs, while creating new jobs for our community."

Recently, Merck announced expansion projects in its Life Science business

sector in Darmstadt, Germany; Cork, Ireland; Buchs, Switzerland; Carlsbad,

California, USA; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Jaffrey, New Hampshire, USA; and

Danvers, Massachusetts, USA. At the latter site, Merck is currently working to

double the local single-use production capacity by the end of 2021. These

expansions are part of an ambitious, multi-year program to increase the

industrial capacity and capabilities of Merck's Life Science business sector to

support growing global demand for lifesaving medications and to make

significant contributions to public health.  

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About Merck

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

life science and electronics. Around 58,000 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 – the company is everywhere. In 2020, Merck generated

sales of EUR 17.5 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 Electronics.

SOURCE  Merck

CONTACT: andreas.cezanne@merckgroup.com, +49 151 1454 2702