Evolve to build plasma plant in Texas

Evolve Biologics has chosen Sachse, Texas as the site of its first plasma-derived therapeutics facility.

Canadian-headquartered firm Evolve says the site selection and purchase of land establishes the company’s drive towards the commercialization of plasma-derived therapeutics.

“Northern Texas has a growing corporate/pharmaceutical presence which enables collaboration and attracts a highly skilled workforce. The Dalls Fort Worth area also has a very strong educational base, including many high caliber and local universities, which is great for recruiting,” said David Holliday, Chief Commercial Officer at Evolve.

Evolve’s Texas facility. Image c/o Evolve Biologics

“From a geographical standpoint, accessibility to a major international airport and other transportation links was also incredibly important.”

The plant will be over 200,000 square feet and is set to have a production capacity of one million litres of plasma annually, with a planned expansion to up this to two million litres in the future.

According to the firm, the plant will be the first to use Evolve’s propriety technology, PlasmaCap Expanded Bed Absorption (EBA). The platform works by isolating plasma proteins from human plasma and will manufacture plasma-derived therapeutics, including Intravenous Immunoglobulin (IVIG) and Human Serum Albumin (HSA).

“Evolve’s patented next-generation technology, PlasmaCap EBA, is poised to revolutionize the plasma-derived therapeutics industry by harvesting significantly higher yields of these valuable proteins from human plasma through a cleaner, more efficient process, when compared to existing fractionation technologies,” said Jim Caggiano, CEO of Evolve.

“The […] Sachse facility, powered by our PlasmaCap EBA technology, will be the foundation of our future growth and global strategy.”

300 jobs

The firm anticipates hiring around 300 employees to work at the plant over the next three years and has selected DPR construction as its general contractor for building the commercial facility.

“We are excited to put our footprint in Texas, and specifically in Sachse, and we would like to thank our multiple local and regional partners for the opportunity to collaborate with this vibrant community and skilled workforce. We are looking forward to many future successes,” Mark Krause, Evolve’s Senior Vice President of Operations said.

The firm did not disclose any financial details, but the facility is expected to be fully operational by 2024.