Eli Lilly has announced a $3bn investment to expand its newly acquired manufacturing facility in Kenosha County, Wisconsin, US, which will extend the company's global parenteral product manufacturing network.

The investment is a strategic move to meet the increasing demand for the company’s therapies in the areas of diabetes and obesity, and develop future pipeline products across various therapeutic areas.

The expansion will add 750 skilled jobs, bolstering the current workforce of more than 100. The construction for the expansion is scheduled to begin in 2025.

The move is part of a broader investment strategy, with Lilly having committed $23bn since 2020 to enhance manufacturing capabilities globally through new constructions, expansions and acquisitions.

The Kenosha facility's expansion will concentrate on the production of injectable medicines, as well as the assembly and packaging of devices for multiple therapeutic areas.

To expedite the production of medicines, the company will incorporate advanced automation technologies, including guided vehicles and robotics.

Digital automation will be integrated throughout the site to enhance process speed and precision, allowing staff to focus on the production of safe and quality medicines.

New roles at the site will include operators, technicians, engineers and scientists, with the construction phase generating more than 2,000 jobs.

Lilly manufacturing operations executive vice-president and president Edgardo Hernandez stated: "Today's announcement represents our single largest US manufacturing investment outside our home state of Indiana and will add to our ability to expand capacity to make both our existing and future pipeline of medicines right here in the Midwest.

"We look forward to bringing high-wage, advanced manufacturing, engineering and science jobs to people in Wisconsin, a state that is becoming a critical geography in our global manufacturing operations."

In a separate development, Cambrex has agreed to provide expedited clinical development services to Lilly’s biotech collaborators.

Cambrex will work with Lilly’s early external innovation and collaboration arm Lilly Catalyze360-ExploR&D, offering drug products, substances, analytical labs, and research and development (R&D) expertise.

Cambrex will primarily deliver these services from its Longmont, Colorado, facility, with additional support from its network.