SAN DIEGO, May 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Althea Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of services for biopharmaceutical development and manufacturing, hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony today to mark the opening of its newly constructed state-of-the-art, commercial-scale cGMP manufacturing facility in San Diego, CA. Althea’s employees and board of directors, together with City of San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders, Matt MacKowski of Telegraph Hill Partners, Steve Cusato of City National Bank, and key invited guests, celebrated the commissioning of its new facility at the Althea campus in Sorrento Valley.
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Co-Founders Magda Marquet and Francois Ferre remarked, “This is the culmination of a dream we envisioned when we founded Althea Technologies, which was made possible by the investment and support of our Althea team and our key partners at Telegraph Hill Partners and City National Bank.”
The decision to create expanded capacity was brought about by the need in the region to keep pace with the growing needs of the industry to outsource biological and injectable product manufacturing. A significant segment of the biotechnology industry consists of companies focused on research & development, that do not have the expertise or capital to invest in a manufacturing facility. Manufacturers, such as Althea, allow biotech companies to keep focus on their core competence in R&D.
“The decision to expand our capabilities and design a new facility was made with careful consideration of our clients’ needs,” commented Dr. Shabbir Anik, Althea President and CEO. “The new facility was designed to provide flexible capacity and expand our services from early clinical development through Phase III and commercial supply. This expansion gives clients a more efficient and faster option to bring their products to the market,” said Dr. Anik.
“We are very excited to launch our 30,000 square foot commercial-scale cGMP manufacturing facility because it allows Althea Technologies to take an integrated approach in the manufacturing of exciting new biotechnology derived therapies. The completion of this building marks a significant milestone in our ultimate goal of accelerating the development and delivery of novel therapies to the people who need them most,” stated Dr. Magda Marquet, Co-Chairman and Founder.
Among the unique features of the new cGMP facility are its compliance with both U.S. and European manufacturing regulations and its state-of-the-art building management system that ensures a sterile manufacturing environment.
Althea Technologies successfully partnered with City National Bank and Telegraph Hill Partners to secure the necessary funding for the project. “The ability to undertake the construction of a commercial facility costing over $15 million to increase our production capacity and build on our service offerings is remarkable for a company the size of Althea,” said Dr. Anik. As a company that prides itself on doing business with San Diego, all of the construction services were provided by San Diego-based businesses.
“The commercial expansion will enable Althea to contribute to the economic vitality of the region through the addition of personnel and the ability to help ensure the continued success of more biotech companies,” said Dr. Franxcois Ferre, Co-Chairman and Founder of Althea Technologies.
About Althea Technologies, Inc.
Althea Technologies, a leading San Diego-based biologics and pharmaceutical services firm, provides critical manufacturing services that support researchers worldwide in their advancement of novel therapies and efforts to apply new genomic information. Althea’s services include cGMP contract manufacturing of recombinant proteins, DNA-based therapeutics and vaccines, and aseptic filling. For more information, visit www.altheatech.com.
About Telegraph Hill Partners
Telegraph Hill Partners, based in San Francisco, CA, is a private equity investment firm specializing in life science and medical device businesses. The firm targets investments in private companies that demonstrate strong financial performance and innovative products or services. Additional information can be found at www.thpartners.net.
About City National Bank
City National Bank is the wholly owned subsidiary of City National Corporation. It is backed by $16.9 billion in total assets, and provides banking, investment and trust services through 63 offices, including 15 full-service regional centers, in Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area, Nevada and New York City. The company and its eight majority-owned investment affiliates manage or administer $46 billion in client investment assets, including $28.4 billion under direct management. For more information about City National, visit the company’s Website at www.cnb.com.
CONTACT: Brian Lange, Manager, Marketing and Sales Strategy of Althea
Technologies, Inc., +1-858-882-0202, blange@altheatech.com
Web site: http://www.altheatech.com/
http://www.thpartners.net/
http://www.cnb.com/
