Beyond Borders: Global biotechnology report 2010

Singapore year in review
Manufacturing a biopharmaceutical hub
Singapore continues to be a leading
destination in Asia for the complex and
technology-intensive manufacturing of
biotechnology products, driven by the
country’s strengths in intellectual property
protection, regulatory compliance and
infrastructure and its highly skilled
workforce. While the biotech sector in
Singapore has not been unscathed by
the economic downturn, it continues
to attract increased investments from
the Government and global biotech and
pharmaceutical companies.
A manufacturing center
In recent years, leading biotech and
pharmaceutical companies have set
up several commercial manufacturing
plants in Singapore. Those investments
continued in 2009. In September,
Switzerland-based Lonza began the
construction of Asia’s first cell-therapy
manufacturing plant with an investment
of S$40 million (US$27 million). Lonza
plans to develop about 20 drugs across
various therapeutic categories, including
stroke, diabetes and heart disease in the
plant. In August, Genentech Singapore (a
member of the Roche Group) exercised
its option to purchase another Singaporebased
Lonza plant — a cell culture biologic
manufacturing facility — for US$290 million
plus milestone payments of US$70 million.
The site has been manufacturing
Genentech’s blockbuster cancer drug
Avastin under the terms of an agreement
with Lonza since 2006. Genentech is also
constructing a new bio-production site
that will employ around 325 people to
manufacture its macular degeneration
treatment Lucentis. The plant is
expected to be operational by 2010. In
June 2009, GlaxoSmithKline opened a
pneumonia vaccine manufacturing plant
with an investment of S$600 million
(US$415 million). Meanwhile, Baxter
BioScience commenced construction of a
biopharmaceutical manufacturing plant
for ADVATE, a recombinant therapy
for hemophilia.
Singapore is moving toward becoming a
global leader in microarray manufacturing
with US-based Illumina announcing the
establishment of a US$20 million global
manufacturing site in the city-state.
Singapore currently accounts for more
than half the global manufacturing
capacity for microarrays, a technology
largely used in biopharmaceutical research
and diagnostics.
Growing R&D strengths
Singapore has also made strong efforts
to attract R&D-intensive biomedical
companies. After the completion of the first
phase of a dedicated biomedical sciences
R&D hub named “Biopolis” in 2004, the
country has developed an integrated
countrywide research network connecting
research institutes at the Biopolis with
leading medical institutes, public hospitals
and investigational medicine units.
Singapore is an attractive R&D location
because of its sound regulatory framework
and adherence to global standards of
safety, quality and efficacy. In January
2010, Singapore was added to the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development’s (OECD) “Mutual Acceptance
of Data” framework under which data
generated in preclinical trials in compliance
with good laboratory practices is acceptable
in 30 OECD and non-OECD member states.
Meanwhile, the World Economic Forum’s
Global Competitiveness Report 2009—2010
has given Singapore the top rating for
intellectual property protection.
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