Adragos Pharma Completes Liquid Filling Line Installation in Germany

The Munich-based contract development and manufacturing organization Adragos Pharma announced on March 6, 2025 that it has completed the installation of a new liquid filling line at a facility located in Leipzig. Germany, the site of the company’s headquarters (1).

The announcement represents the culmination of a €4 million (US$4.3 million) project intended to install and commission an advanced, current good manufacturing practice (CGMP)-compliant liquid filling line as well as an accompanying cartoning machine (1). Combined, Adragos Pharma said the new equipment would increase production capacity at the Leipzig site nearly tenfold in the face of rising demand—at a maximum of 13 million bottles per year, in various formats, to supply the pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and healthcare supplement product markets.

Two pre-existing, semi-solid commercial manufacturing lines at the 13,300-square-meter (143,160 sq. ft.) facility have been relocated to new production areas, which was the initial phase of the installation process, according to Adragos Pharma, and are now once again fully operational (1).

“This new flexible production line marks a key milestone in the development of our Leipzig site, expanding its capabilities and reinforcing our dedication to delivering state-of-the-art manufacturing solutions to our customers,” Florian Prell, site head of Adragos Leipzig, said in a company press release. “Adragos is committed to growing and investing in innovation, and we are looking forward to the opportunities and client partnerships that this project will create, as we continue to lead the industry in high-quality liquid dose form manufacturing.”

John McQuaid, president and managing director of Almac Pharma Services, summarized capacity concerns, including in fill/finish operations, in an interview with Pharmaceutical Technology® at CPHI Milan in October 2024.

“There's never been a larger number of molecules in clinical development, and we're certainly seeing that increasing demand,” McQuaid said in the interview (2). “We've got demand in areas such as [highly] potent [APIs], [and] age-appropriate formulations, such as pediatrics. We've got poorly soluble compounds, and the need for technologies to address that. And then we've got personalized medicines, such as, … cell and gene therapies, which drive particular needs in areas such as fill/finish and cold chain requirements.”

In November 2024, Adragos Pharma announced its acquisition of the Swiss aseptic fill/finish manufacturing company Baccinex (3). Adragos Pharma said the transaction was made to enhance its sterile manufacturing capabilities and expand the company’s global network, leveraging Baccinex’s expertise in sterile liquids and lyophilization. Earlier that month, Adragos Pharma said it was launching a cutting-edge ampoule filling line at its Livron, France facility, enhancing its production capacity to over 160 million ampoules per year. And in April 2024, the company announced its intention to reinvest in the solid dosage market, through its plans to enhance manufacturing capacity at its plant in Kawagoe, Japan (4,5).

Meanwhile, liquid filling was one of the specializations noted by Piramal Pharma Solutions, a division of Mumbai-based Piramal Pharma Limited, in its September 2024 announcement of a planned $80 million investment to expand a site in Lexington, Ky., for which a previous $25 million expansion had been announced in 2016 (6,7). At that facility, a new filling line, two commercial-sized lyophilizers, a capping machine, and an external vial washer are to be added by the first quarter of 2027.

References

1. Adragos Pharma. Adragos Pharma Completes the Installation of a New Liquid Filling Line in Leipzig, Germany. Press Release. March 6, 2025.
2. Thomas, F. CPHI Milan 2024: Pharma Industry Growth and Investment. PharmTech.com, Oct. 11, 2024.
3. Adragos Pharma. Adragos Pharma Acquires Baccinex—A Leading Swiss Sterile Fill-Finish Expert. Press Release. Nov. 25, 2024.
4. Adragos Pharma. Project Future: We Launched Our New Production Line in Our Livron Facility! Press Release, Nov. 7, 2024.
5. Adragos Pharma. Our Strategic Expansion in Japan: Reinforcing Production to 2 Billion Tablets and Aiming to be the “Most Trusted CDMO”. Press Release, April 8, 2024.
6. Piramal Pharma Solutions. Piramal Pharma Solutions Announces $80M Expansion Plan for Sterile Injectables Facility in Lexington, Kentucky. Press Release. Sept. 30, 2024.
7. Pharmaceutical Technology Editors. Piramal to Expand Sterile Manufacturing in Kentucky. PharmTech.com, Aug. 3, 2016.