Pharmascience, a pharmaceutical company based in Canada, is undertaking an expansion of its sterile injectables manufacturing facility located at its existing Candiac campus, near the St.Lawrence River in Quebec, Canada.
The project will triple the country’s domestic medical supply, which currently stands at 12%, while also strengthening exports.
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An investment of $120m has been allocated for the facility’s expansion. The project has garnered support from the government of Quebec, from Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, and from the Strategic Innovation Fund (SIF).
The groundbreaking ceremony for the expansion took place in October 2023. The construction of the new facility is set for completion in 2026.
The facility will generate 50 new jobs in advanced manufacturing and will support an additional 300 jobs indirectly.
Pharmascience injectables manufacturing facility expansion details
Pharmascience’s injectables manufacturing facility expansion will add approximately 26,000ft² (2,415.4m²) of new manufacturing space and equipment, complemented by a retrofit of roughly 7,500ft² to the company’s pre-existing facilities.
The expansion will introduce new and more sophisticated equipment with the addition of two manufacturing rooms, a vial filling line with an aseptic isolator for flammable liquids, and a lyophiliser.
Furthermore, the facility will feature an aseptic cartridge filling line with an isolator, a washing suite designed to handle highly contaminated equipment, a preparation room equipped with an autoclave for sterilising format parts and terminals, and a warehouse to facilitate daily operations.
The expansion will bolster the company’s capacity for producing cytotoxic and high-potency injectable pharmaceuticals.
The project also incorporates spaces for employees, including a dedicated entrance, offices, conference rooms and a cafeteria. The design includes meticulous mechanical and electrical installations.
The facility will adhere to the North American and European good manufacturing practices (GMP) that are pertinent to the production of sterile drugs.
The expansion is set to further enhance Pharmascience’s research and development (R&D) capabilities and draw in more projects related to contract development and manufacturing.
Financing details
Innovation, Science and Economic Development contributed $29.77m through the SIF to support the project in October 2023.
The government of Quebec has provided $24.75m for the project through Investissement Quebec, the province’s investment arm.
Construction and timeline details
A complex programme planning has been undertaken with the existing structure in mind, and refurbishments are being applied to the pre-existing facades.
The project is progressing through a construction management approach that necessitates the phased and batched issuance of documents. All improvements are being carried out while maintaining the continuous operation of the current plant.
Several critical construction milestones, including the completion of the foundations, the main structure and the exterior framing, have been achieved following the groundbreaking.
Approximately 1,150m³ of concrete has been utilised to reinforce the foundations. In less than two months, around 275 tonnes (t) of structural steel were erected, and around 24,000t of sand and gravel were employed for backfilling and preparing the civil works.
Contractors involved
Canada-based NFOE Architecture is handling the architecture, interior design, conceptual studies and programming aspects of the expansion project.
Marketing commentary on Pharmascience
Headquartered in Montreal, Canada, Pharmascience employs 1,500 people.
The company’s products are distributed to more than 50 countries globally. Annually, more than five million dosage units of medication are produced across the company’s facilities.
Pharmascience’s operations in Canada are spread across three locations, Montreal, Candiac and Dorval. The Pharmascience Royalmount facility in Montreal specialises in the production of solid dosage forms.
The Candiac site is equipped to manufacture sterile injectables as well as solid dosage forms and serves as the company’s global R&D hub. The Dorval site in Quebec functions as the distribution hub for the company’s pharmaceutical products on a global scale.
