Ohio facility sees new life as Xellia moves production from North Carolina

02-Jul-2019 - Last updated on 03-Jul-2019 at 14:27 GMT

(Image: Getty/Digicomphoto)

Xellia will move US production from its North Carolina manufacturing facility to its site in Ohio to bolster workforce and manufacture generic IV antibiotics.

Xellia Pharmaceuticals specializes in the production of anti-infective drugs for the treatment of life-threatening bacterial and fungal infections. The Copenhagen-based pharmaceutical company will produce its anti-infective drugs at the former Ben Venue Laboratories in Bedford, Ohio.

Ben Venue Laboratories was previously operated by Boehringer Ingelheim until 2013, when drug production at the site ceased after quality control issues.

In 2015, Xellia took over the facility under Ohio‘s Job Creation Tax Credit program and expanded its North American footprint. After taking it over Xellia only used the facility as a packaging and distribution hub.

The company stated that the site is expected to continue to grow and enabling it to expand production capabilities to match its portfolio of products.

The Bedford site currently has around 200 employees but, after this move, the site is expected to grow in headcount. The company will also add employees in multiple areas including manufacturing, maintenance mechanics, supply chain, distribution, quality and engineering.

The Bedford site will produce two intravenous antibiotics, Vancomycin and Daptomycin. Xellia partnered with Civica through its manufacturing agreement, to distribute the two generic antibiotics.

Civica and Xellia entered a manufacturing agreement in May 2019 to ensure the availability of generics in short supply, including Vancomycin and Daptomycin. Per the agreement, Xellia will produce generic medicines for Civica to streamline the generic supply chain.

Upon final approval from the US Food and Drug Administration, full-scale commercial production will begin in 2020.