Keata Pharma Pharmaceutical Production and Packaging Facility, Nova Scotia, Canada

In November 2005, construction work began on the new pharmaceutical plant in North Sydney, Nova Scotia, Canada, on a 300-acre business park. The new plant was commissioned by Keata Pharma, a small contract manufacturing and packaging company, which is a subsidiary of the larger Korean concern, PharmaEng.

The company wanted to capitalise on its unique ability to produce and package small runs of generic pharmaceuticals in solid and liquid forms. Keata Pharma has expertise in more complex production of small run pharmaceutical products and this it hopes will establish it a niche business in this area of North America.

The company invested $15m in the construction and outfitting of the new facility, and employed more than 150 personnel from the local area over a three-year period.

The plant has been constructed on a five-acre site in the Northside Industrial Park purchased from Cape Breton Regional Municipality, with a buying option for five years on an adjacent five-acre plot.

The new plant opened officially in November 2007 and initially employed 65 personnel. The new facility includes offices for the PharmEng pharmaceutical consulting division and pilot scale formulation laboratories, including equipment for high shear mixing, container blending and modified release technology. Production began in July 2008.

On 8 May 2009, owing to lack of supply contracts, the plant was closed and remained idle until March 2010., The plant was acquired by Stirling Pharma, an Australian group, on 8 March 2010 for an estimated $3.6m.

Sterling Pharma will undertake the revival of the plant and bring it back into operation. The plant that will primarily focus on processing and manufacturing will also include a R&D section. Sterling Pharma has brought in the required technicians to relaunch the operations of the plant.

Cape Breton graduate-level jobs

The Cape Breton area needs more technical employers to produce more graduate level jobs in the area. To produce the graduates, the company and the University College of Cape Breton have established a new Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Technology Certificate programme. The university instigated the course and students graduated in time for the completion of the 46,400ft² plant.

The plant has been constructed on a five-acre site in the Northside Industrial Park purchased from Cape Breton Regional Municipality, with a buying option for five years on an adjacent five-acre plot.

Contractors

Keata Pharma is a subsidiary of a larger Korean-based full-service consulting pharmaceutical contractor and engineer, PharmEng Technology. During the construction period, PharmEng Technology acquired the necessary equipment and approvals to get the facility up and running and ready for FDA validation.

A local company, JoneLJim Concrete Construction Ltd, carried out the building construction. The parent company PharmEng expected the new facility to provide $50m's worth of new manufacturing capacity for Keata Pharma.

Keata offers contract manufacturing services such as formulation development, pharmaceutical support and production and packaging of solid dosage and liquid products.

Biotechnology and pharmaceutical technology certificate programme

For PharmEng, training was the most important factor in setting up the new plant. The CEO of the company, Alan Kwong, believes that investing in the strength of a training programme at the outset brings more benefits to a company in the long term.

The Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Technology Certificate programme is divided into three terms, each 14 weeks in length. During two terms, participants attend programme courses at the Cape Breton University taught by PharmEng instructors. The third term is devoted to co-operative training, under the supervision of industry experts at other PharmEng sites in Nova Scotia and Ontario.

Upon successful completion of the programme, including courses and cooperative training, participants receive a Certificate in Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Technology, issued jointly by PharmEng and the Cape Breton University.

Financial assistance

PharmEng and Keata Pharma received financial assistance for setting up the new plant and establishing the new training course at the university.

Funds have come from Enterprise Cape Breton Corporation (ECBC), the Cape Breton Growth Fund (CBGF) and Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), as well as Nova Scotia Business Inc. (NSBI).

The ECBC and CBGF have invested $6.25m in the form of repayable long-term loans to assist with costs. ACOA paid $375,000 to assist with the $500,000 cost of setting up the training programme via their business development programme. NSBI provided $3,590,800 as a performance payroll rebate. PharmEng also received $125,000 from the ECBC as a non-repayable contribution towards costs.

PharmEng Technology has also established a pharmaceutical consulting office in Cape Breton, employing an additional 12 professional staff. Keata Pharma and PharmEng have invested in an area, which is prepared to meet them more than half way in the establishment of a successful new venture in pharmaceutical manufacture and packaging.