Abzena adds 2,000L scale through $20m expansion

Abzena will have two 500 L bioreactors and one 2,000 L bioreactor supplied by Sartorius at its San Diego facility once additional capacity comes online next year.

Biologics services firm Abzena has increased its manufacturing capacity through a $20 million (€17.8 million) investment at its drug substance and antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) facility in San Diego, California.

“The investment decision has been driven by demand from existing and new customers moving through from cell line development and those already utilizing our existing 500 L capacity,” Abzena spokesperson Joseph Reed told BioProcess Insider.

Image: iStock/hatman12

Th San Diego operations have been part of the Abzena Group since the acquisition of PacificGMP in September 2015 for approximately $8.4 million.

Once the additional capacity is available next year, the facility will boast two 500 L and one 2,000 L single-use stir tank bioreactors from Sartorius Stedim Biotech available for cGMP production for preclinical and clinical trials. Abzena is also adding cell line development and chemistry capacity at the site.

In January, Abzena named Sartorius as its preferred bioprocessing vendor within its US operations. The firm also has a plant in Bristol, Pennsylvania.