Two manufacturers are joining forces to court biopharma companies looking for service providers outside of China.
CDMO AGC Biologics and CMO BioConnection said on Wednesday they are partnering to offer clinical-stage manufacturing for gene therapies. Companies are searching for a “one-stop-shop solution,” AGC Bio CBO Christoph Winterhalter told Endpoints News in an interview.
But Winterhalter also said that this collaboration can provide the same services as WuXi Biologics, which has a single-use bioreactor system just like Seattle, WA-based AGC Bio, but outside of China. WuXi Biologics did not respond to requests for comment as of press time on Wednesday.
While AGC Bio will manage protein-based biologic development and production, BioConnection will take care of aseptic vial and syringe filling.
A single team across AGC Bio and BioConnection will work with the clients. They will operate out of facilities in Seattle; Copenhagen; Heidelberg, Germany; and Chiba, Japan. AGC Bio’s new Yokohama site in Japan announced in January will also be involved. BioConnection is based in the Netherlands.
Biopharma service providers — such as Charles River and Thermo Fisher — have said the Biosecure Act has led to an increase in inquiries but have indicated these are long-term business opportunities and so any impact would not be immediate.
Winterhalter said AGC Bio and BioConnection’s services are a match to “quite a lot of what they have currently at WuXi Biologics.” As such, the partnership is “a perfect match and a perfect timing now,” he said.
The Biosecure Act has seen US biopharma companies looking for new manufacturing partners, with companies such as WuXi AppTec and WuXi Biologics specifically named as “companies of concern.”
The AGC-BioConnection partnership will offer “gene to vial” manufacturing, which is not only more convenient for clients but also much faster, Winterhalter said. An end-to-end supply chain can cut up to three months of the manufacturing process and save customers from having to switch manufacturing partners, he said.
Earlier this month, AGC Bio said it was going to “adjust business priorities,” which included laying off about 100 staffers, amid changing biopharma dynamics.