Patheon has announced plans to reduce the scale and scope of business at its Swindon, UK facility. The move is part of the company’s ongoing corporate transformation strategy, which is intended to “enhance capacity utilization, focus capital investments on its core business, and accelerate operational excellence programs to increase efficiency, meet customer needs, and improve its cost structure,” according to a Patheon statement. The company plans to take a charge of approximately $50 to $60 million for the impairment of long-term assets at Swindon, to be recorded during the 2Q12.

In the next 24 to 36 months, Patheon plans to wind down or transfer non-cephalosporin commercial production from Swindon to other facilities and, “to the extent possible and commercially appropriate,” direct Pharmaceutical Development Services (PDS) projects that require commercialization activities to other facilities. The company will work with each of its affected commercial customers to develop plans to maintain supply chain continuity.

Patheon has also announced a plan of termination expected to result in layoffs of approximately 91 employees at Swindon across the global PDS and commercial operating segments. In the UK, the company has begun consulting with works councils representing the employees at the Swindon and Milton Park facilities. Subject to these consultations, the company expects to complete the layoffs across all affected sites by the end of fiscal 2012.

The company expects to incur approximately $5.4 million of expense associated with employee termination benefits, which will also be recorded in 2Q12. The company anticipates that it may further adjust the size of the workforce at the Swindon facility as it continues its transformation process, with a total of approximately 400 jobs at risk.

Read our Newsmakers inteview with Patheon CEO Jim Mullen in our May 2012 issue!