Sherpa Clinical Packaging, a privately held provider of clinical trial material management services, hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony today to mark the opening of its newly constructed state-of-the-art, cGMP production facility in San Diego, CA. Sherpa's employees and invited guests celebrated the commissioning of its new facility co-located adjacent to the Althea Technologies' campus in Sorrento Valley. Sherpa and Althea entered into a co-marketing agreement in March 2011.

Sherpa's new facility includes five controlled access and monitored packaging suites, and walk-in 2-8° C and -20° C storage areas. Redundant refrigeration systems, alarms, and on site emergency backup generator power were specified to minimize potential risks associated with cold storage.

"We purpose-built the facility to accommodate the needs of pharmaceutical and biotech clients that require controlled environments for their clinical study materials," said Mark Paiz, Sherpa's president. "The site offers companies conducting clinical studies an option to label, package, store, and distribute on the West Coast, which is particularly important for many Biotechnology companies whose products require cold storage. Through our relationship with Althea, our clients are able to simplify logistics and significantly reduce total product release time." The company anticipates expanding its San Diego workforce in the coming months.