Wacker Chemie AG has officially opened its WACKER Biotechnology Center in Munich.
The company has invested a double-digit million-euro sum in the new research facility.
“The WACKER Biotech Center will allow us to concentrate and intensify our biotech research activities. We see tremendous growth potential in this area, which is why we have decided to go ahead and invest in this sector – even in economically challenging times,” said WACKER CEO Christian Hartel at the opening ceremony.
The WACKER Biotechnology Center is integrated into the group’s research site in the Munich quarter of Sendling where the company has been conducting research for more than a century and, since the 1980s, also in biotechnology. With the expansion of the biotechnology business, it was evident that WACKER’s research capacities had reached their limits. The new space has the capacity for around 90 employees and equipment.
Spread over four floors, the new building includes around 1,500 square metres for a laboratory and technical competence centre, with around 700 square metres of office space. It is home to WACKER’s research operations, including methods to manufacture biopharmaceuticals. The focus will be on processes for the production of proteins and nucleic acids, which play an important role in developing innovative therapies involving, for example, active ingredients based on messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA). In addition, WACKER is developing innovative ingredients for food and dietary supplements.
Consolidating biotechnological R&D under one roof will improve the efficiency of WACKER’s research activities. Apart from optimizing efficiency, WACKER is also keen on reducing the time from lab-based research and product development to actual implementation.
“It is no longer enough to simply have the best solution. It’s becoming increasingly important that we reach the customer with this solution first. Speed is taking on an ever greater role in making us stand out,” Hartel said.
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