The PPD clinical research business of Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, unveiled a new clinical research laboratory building at its good manufacturing practices (GMP) lab in Middleton, Wisconsin. The new 72,500-square-foot building increases the site’s chemistry, manufacturing and control (CMC) analytical capabilities as part of its clinical development and laboratory services focused on improving health by helping customers deliver life-changing medicines.

“As research in biopharmaceutical therapies continues to rapidly expand, we are excited to expand our overall capacity and capabilities in laboratory services to help our customers deliver therapies that meet the highest quality and safety standards for patients,” said Leon Wyszkowski, president, analytical services, clinical research, Thermo Fisher Scientific. “We will continue to support and empower our customers as they continue to discover, develop and deliver new groundbreaking therapies. This $58 million investment to expand the site is a testament to our dedication in supporting Thermo Fisher’s Mission of making the world healthier, cleaner and safer.”

The GMP site offers high-quality analytical services for small molecules and biologics, including biopharmaceuticals, inhaled pharmaceuticals and device testing, cell and gene therapy, protein characterization and mass spectrometry analysis for all phases of drug development. The latest addition to the GMP campus provides a multi-use and flexible biosafety level 2 laboratory that includes a purpose-built liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and protein characterization space, two large molecular suites with access controlled pre- and post-amplification labs, and two large general-use labs. The expansion will add up to 350 scientists and laboratory support professionals to the almost 2,300 employees working across the research campus.

Earlier this year, Thermo Fisher announced the addition of biosafety testing to its GMP portfolio of services at the Middleton facility. With the addition of this capability, as well as the addition of the new building, the site offers a full complement of end-to-end laboratory services.

“As Wisconsin’s biohealth sector continues to grow, so will our workforce, our economic momentum, and our opportunities to build a healthier, stronger state for all,” said Gov. Tony Evers. “This new state-of-the-art facility will not only further advance our state’s biosafety testing capabilities and create hundreds of jobs, but it will also help protect consumers and improve patient health outcomes across the state.”

In addition to GMP and bioanalytical labs in Middleton, Thermo Fisher’s clinical research laboratory business includes bioanalytical, biomarker and vaccine sciences labs in Richmond, Virginia; a GMP lab in Athlone, Ireland; central labs and biomarker operations in Brussels, Belgium, Highland Heights, Kentucky, and Singapore; and bioanalytical, biomarker, vaccine sciences and central labs in Suzhou, China.