New Labs Popping Up in Asia
The first of IBO’s biannual new laboratory roundup indicates that companies are trying to strengthen their position in foreign markets by expanding their lab presence in Asia, most notably in India and China, to serve customers both locally and globally. In addition, the table on page 6 highlights plans for new academic, forensics and nonprofit labs.
Companies are taking advantage of the fast-growing food industry in India and China. According to the Business Standard, construction has begun on Indian food company Keventer’s INR 400 crore ($87.5 million = INR 45.72 = $1) project to set up four new food-processing facilities. The facilities are an INR 150 crore ($32.8 million), 120-acre processing lab for ready-to-eat foods in Gujarat; an INR 105 crore ($22.9 million), 100-acre food-pulping center in Karnataka; an INR 120 crore ($26.2 million), 120-acre facility that will process starch, glucose and dextrose in Bihar; and an INR 25 crore ($5.5 million) food- and water-testing lab, a joint venture with Carso of France, located in West Bengal. Nestlé announced plans in September 2010 to open its first R&D center in India. The center will be built in Manesar, near Nestlé India’s headquarters, and will open in 2012. The center will emphasize Popularly Positioned Products, which are products designed to provide nutritional value at a lower price. The products will be available primarily in the Indian market, but globally as well. FieldFresh Foods’ 21.4-acre R&D and manufacturing facility in Hosur opened in November 2010 and produces processed food and beverage products under the Del Monte brand name. The initial investment in the facility was more than INR 115 crore ($25.2 million).
Solae, a developer of soy-based technologies that is a partnership between DuPont and Bunge, in January opened an Asian food application center at the DuPont China Research & Development Center in Shanghai. The 300-sq.-m. (3,229-sq.-ft.) center contains food and beverage, bakery and confectionery, and meat labs, as well as a product analysis and sensory science lab. The center, Solae’s first in the country and its fourth worldwide, allows scientists to address regional food development requirements.
Like the food industry, companies in the pharmaceutical industry are also expanding in Asia. Merck subsidiary MSD India plans to establish an R&D center in the country. The INR 586 crore ($128.2 million) MSD Wellcome Trust Hilleman Laboratories, announced in March, will be a joint venture with UK-based Wellcome Trust. MSD will invest $65 million in the project, which is geared toward developing inexpensive vaccines for developing nations.
Another major pharmaceutical partnership that will result in a new lab in China was announced in March. Bristol-Myers Squibb and CRO WuXi PharmaTech will collaborate on a new analytical and stability-testing facility. WuXi will construct, supply and manage the 25,000-sq.-ft. Shanghai facility, which will store and test stability samples of small molecule drugs. At the facility, WuXi will also perform other services such as sample management, analytical testing and quality assurance.
Pfizer announced in March plans to relocate its antibacterials research unit to Shanghai from Groton, Connecticut. The transition will be gradual, with some scientists staying in Groton for up to two years while the Shanghai unit is built. The company’s US researchers will finish up their current work, including research on late-stage experimental Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus drugs, in Groton, while newer programs will move to Shanghai when the facility opens.
Another Western pharmaceutical company expanding in China is Novo Nordisk, which said in November 2010 it plans to invest $100 million over the next five years to develop its Beijing R&D center. According to the company, the center is the largest established by a multinational pharmaceutical company in China, which is one of the fastest-growing markets for diabetes medicine. The company expects the R&D facility to eventually participate in all areas of drug discovery. Novo Nordisk will spend up to $40 million to build new labs and facilities, which will be completed by the end of this year.
Also planning to invest in diabetes-focused research in China is Eli Lilly, which will open a research center in Shanghai later this year focused on discovering new treatments for the disease. The company made the announcement in November 2010. The approximately 100 scientists and staff will work to find treatments that better control blood glucose levels and to develop diabetes therapies that involve related conditions such as cardiovascular disease and obesity.
As further evidence of the trend toward new labs in Asia, GE announced in November 2010 plans to spend $2 billion on Chinese expansion through 2012. It expects to spend $500 million on six new customer innovation centers. The first three will be built in Chengdu, Xi’an and Shenyang, and will collaborate with existing R&D operations in Shanghai, Beijing and Wuxi. The centers will concentrate on developing medical devices for treating cancer, stroke and other age-related illnesses in China.
Another conglomerate, 3M, intends to invest nearly INR 100 crore ($21.8 million) in India over the next three years. The company is attempting to establish an “indigenization culture,” in which each region where it has operations designs products catered to that region’s customer base. Plans for India include a new R&D lab in Bangalore focused on technology development in areas such as adhesives, corrosion protection and software electro-mechanical systems.
Chemical companies are growing in Asia as well. Diversified chemical company FMC said in April that its Asia Innovation Center in Shanghai will open in late 2012 and will serve as the company’s hub for R&D, technical innovation, operational support and executive management in Asia. The company expects rapid growth throughout the next five years, with more than half of its sales in quickly developing economies like China. The center will house a staff of 200.
ExxonMobil Chemical opened its Shanghai Technology Center in March. The company said that the 27,000-sq.-m. (290,625-sq.-ft.) Center will allow it to work more closely with Asian customers to tailor solutions to the local market. The lab’s operation includes testing of mechanical, optical, barrier, sealing, shrink and environmental properties; finished-product quality analysis; composition identification; product characterization; and product quality testing.
New Laboratories
Organization Location Details Timeline
Academic
William Eckhardt The University of Chicago,IL The $215 million, seven-floor, 265,000-sq.-ft. Construction to
Research Center Chicago facility will house a large part of the Physical begin in September
Sciences Division and the new Institute for
Molecular Engineering, which will study innovative
technology made possible by advances in nanoscale
manipulation.
Hadyn Ellis Cardiff University Cardiff, The £30 million ($49 million), 9,000-sq.-m.(96,876- The project is the
Building Wales, UK sq.-ft.)building will house the Center for first of seven
Neuropsychiatric Genetics & Genomics, as well as outlined phases to
two new institutes, the Cancer Stem Cell Institute establish a new
and the Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute. research campus
that will be
developed over the
next 10–15 years.
Forensics
Denver Police Denver Crime Denver,CO The 60,000-sq.-ft. lab is about four times larger Ground was broken
Crime Laboratory Laboratory Bureau than the Department's existing facility and will in March; expected
allow the Bureau to have all of its units in one to be completed by
location. The larger space will provide scientists the middle of 2012.
and investigators with improved forensic and
evidence-handling resources.
Illinois State Illinois State Belleville, The 60,000-sq.-ft. lab is an upgrade from the Expected to be
Police Forensic Police IL previous 15,000 sq.-ft. space leased by the State completed by late
Laboratory Police.The facility will include space and equipment 2012.
for crime scene science, anthropology, trace and
forensic biology, chemistry, polygraph, latent prints,
firearms and DNA testing.
Nonprofit
New laboratory Broad Institute Cambridge, MA The $929 million, 12-story, 360,480-sq.-ft. laboratory Construction is
building will be adjacent to the Broad Institute's set to begin in
existing headquarters and linked to it by a walkway early 2012, and
connector and will merge the organization’s three officials expect
locations into one site. to move into the
new location
during the
second quarter
of 2014.
UK Center for UKCMRI Consortium Camden, UK Once completed, the 90,000-sq.-ft. center will be Construction is Medical Research (Cancer Research UK, Europe's largest biomedical research center and slated to begin
and Innovation the Wellcome Trust, will work to develop new treatments for diseases this spring,and
(UKCMRI) Medical Research like cancers, heart disease, strokes and flu. the building
Council and University The center will house 1,500 staff. should be
College London) finished by 2015
