TFF Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage biopharma focused on developing and commercializing innovative drug products based on its patented Thin Film Freezing (TFF) technology platform, is expanding its R&D operations through the lease of a new research and development facility in Austin, TX.

The new facility of over 3,500 square feet increases TFF’s total lab space, adding a dedicated lab for downstream processing of products created via Thin Film Freezing, which will complement the company’s existing formulation development capabilities. As TFF expands its in-house and partnered research, including applications in biologics, the additional laboratory space will also provide more real estate to accommodate larger equipment to facilitate scale-up and manufacturing, as well as to produce supplies for preclinical studies.

The new space will be supervised by Donald Owens, director of product development at TFF, and supported by John Koleng, vice president of product development and manufacturing. The company also plans to expand the product development team in Austin, which will be based at the new facility, to support the growing number of partnered projects. The lease arrangement used to finance the facility is also a major advantage, providing TFF with a highly flexible and capital efficient approach in expanding its R&D operations while preserving capital resources.

“The opening of our new Austin R&D facility represents an important evolution of TFF’s operations, reflecting growing demand for our Thin Film Freezing technology and product development services,” Dr. Koleng said. “The Austin facility will enable us to increase testing capacity so that we can run a larger number of feasibility studies, including a focus on biologics where demand has continued to grow. Additionally, as many of our partnered programs move to clinical evaluation, the ability to scale-up manufacturing in parallel becomes mission critical. We expect the new Austin facility will allow us to meet the current growing demand for Thin Film Freezing-based products.”

The addition of this facility also cements Austin as a central hub of TFF’s research operations. The company maintains a close relationship and research collaborations with academic institutions, including the University of Texas at Austin, where TFF has extensive early-stage formulation capabilities. 

Glenn Mattes, CEO of TFF Pharmaceuticals, said, “As our internal programs advance and our network of partnerships expands, establishing this additional research space in Austin is a natural next step. I’m confident that Don and John will spearhead a successful expansion and scale-up of TFF’s capabilities to meet growing demand. We will also continue to work closely with our partners, including Dr. Robert O. Williams, special advisor to TFF and co-inventor of the Thin Film Freezing technology, who continues to advance new research demonstrating the broad applications and advantages of our technology from his home base at UT Austin.”