Korea-based pharmaceutical company Hanmi Pharmaceutical is building a biologics manufacturing facility in Pyeongtaek in the Gyeonggi province of South Korea.

The building is expected to complement the company’s first biologics plant in Pyeongtaek. Plans for the facility were announced in April 2016.

The plant will allow Hanmi Pharmaceutical to advance the commercialisation of new biological medicines.

Details of Hanmi’s biologics manufacturing facility

The biologics facility will be located in Pyeongtaek’s Chupal Industrial Complex, which offers a sophisticated industrial infrastructure to ensure the efficient operation of the plant.

The six-story building will occupy an area of around 52,000m², with construction scheduled for completion in the second half of 2017.

“The fermentation and media preparation lines will be integrated with GEA VESTA® valves.”

The facility will be equipped with two production lines for insulin. Each line will include centrifugal separators, fermenters, homogenisers, flow components and aseptic valves.

The fermentation and media preparation lines will be integrated with GEA VESTA® valves. The lines will facilitate the production of a fragment of human immunoglobulin type G.

The pocket-free and easy-to-install VESTA Sterile valves do not have membranes and feature one of the most effective sterile valve systems. The valves can handle the different media required for operation, cleaning and sterilisation.

Manufactured products will be supplied for global clinical trials and for approval of quantum projects to commercialise new biological medicines. Large-scale license contracts have been signed for such medicines between Hanmi Pharmaceutical and global pharmaceutical firms, including Sanofi.

Contractors involved in the project

Samsung Engineering was chosen to build Hanmi Pharmaceutical’s biologics manufacturing building.

In February 2017, Germany-based company GEA was contracted by Hanmi Pharmaceutical to supply manufacturing equipment for the plant.

Marketing commentary on Hanmi Pharmaceutical

Founded in 1973, Hanmi Pharmaceutical is a Korean pharmaceutical company headquartered in Seoul. The company produces pharmaceutical granules, oral liquids, tablets and capsules at four manufacturing facilities, namely the Hanmi Paltan plant, Hanmi Fine Chemical, the Hanmi Cepha plant and the Hanmi Bio plant.

“Samsung Engineering was chosen to build Hanmi Pharmaceutical’s biologics manufacturing building.”

Hanmi Pharmaceutical’s existing bio plant in the Pyeongtaek complex is a two-story building occupying a 4,600m² area. The plant is complemented by dedicated areas for finished product lines, quality control laboratories and warehousing.

Hanmi Pharmaceutical’s prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) drug products portfolio includes antibiotics for respiratory infections and drugs for obesity conditions, oral care, ophthalmic, diabetes, hepatitis, osteoarthritis, anti-inflammatory, nootropics, epilepsy, smoking cessation aid, anti-cancer and cardiovascular conditions, as well as dermatological products, probiotics and nutritional supplements.

The company is engaged in research and development (R&D), with major emphasis on biologics targeting diabetes and obesity, oncology and auto-immune disease targeted pipelines, and fixed-dose combination programmes. The company also develops new drugs in collaboration with global companies.

In September 2016, Hanmi Pharmaceutical entered into an exclusive development and license agreement with Genentech, a subsidiary of the Roche Group. The companies will develop and commercialise Hanmi’s pan-RAF inhibitor, HM95573, which is currently in the first phase of clinical development.