Kemwell has started constructing a new non-sterile liquid facility in Bangalore to meet the
region’s increasing demand. Kemwell is one of India’s largest liquids manufacturers, having
been supplying to customers such as GSK and Pfizer for decades.
Scheduled for completion in May 2011, the plant will double Kemwell’s current capacity to
produce 250 million bottles per year, with provisions to increase capacity by another 60
million bottles annually. The facility will be highly automated and flexible to service both
large and small requirements of Kemwell’s current and new customers. It will also be
designed the meet the quality requirements of regulated markets.
In India, Kemwell currently operates between two sites. With the new facility, all
manufacturing will shift to its site in Neelamangala. The consolidation will reduce costs while
maximising the efficiency of the organisation, manufacturing, inventory management and
supply chain.
“The move also gives us an opportunity to relook at the entire liquids manufacturing
process,” said Anurag Bagaria, VP business development. “Working with consultants, the
new facility is being designed with a lean manufacturing layout, streamlining the
manufacturing methods to maximise value and minimise waste in the process. We are also
collaborating with our customers at the design stage itself to ascertain that we meet their
needs to the fullest extent possible.”
Liquids manufacturing has been one of Kemwell’s core competencies and the plant will
benefit from the team’s 25 years of expertise and knowledge. The new facility will enable
Kemwell to supply to its existing customers effectively while positioning the business to meet
the regional market’s growing demands. Kemwell has also recently forayed into the large
molecule space and is building a new biopharmaceutical facility at the same site in
Bangalore in collaboration with Boehringer Ingelheim, Germany. It is also expanding its
pharmaceutical development labs which are present on this site to meet the contract R&D
needs of its existing and new customers.