Hovione plans to increase production capacity for oral dosage forms in Portugal to strengthen its integrated offering. New commercial scale equipment for blending, tableting and coating will be added to complement existing development small scale equipment. A year ago, Hovione began offering services from drug substance to drug product from the Loures site.
 
With the expansion, Hovione aims to help customers streamline their supply chain, reduce time to market with seamless project management.
 
“Hovione has a unique value proposition when it comes to processing amorphous solid dispersions. Our Company has more than 15 years of experience in pharmaceutical spray drying and has produced hundreds of batches for clinical trials and commercial supplies. Our customers now see drug product manufacturing at the site where they produce their drug product intermediate as a natural extension of the range of value added services they expect from us. They want to keep their product in the same capable hands. This investment shows our commitment to listen to our customers and continue to support their evolving needs,” said Frédéric Kahn vice president of marketing and sales at Hovione.
 
Hovione will also be completing the qualification of its continuous tableting line in New Jersey by the end of 2018, which will enable the site to offer services for U.S. customers that want to keep their supply chain local.
 
The capacity expansion program began in 2016 and will continue during the coming five years. In the first two years, Hovione relocated its development services to a new center with 7,000 m2 in Lisbon, equipped to handle potent and highly potent compounds. Globally, new R&D labs were added, new drug product centers, pilot plants and particle engineering technologies. Locally, the Loures site expanded its drug substance reaction vessel capacity with a small-scale production area and a new pilot plant, as well as more spray drying capacity at the site. In NJ, Hovione doubled the size of its development and manufacturing operations. In Cork chemical synthesis capacity devoted to contract manufacturing was expanded.