July 24, 2017
By Mark Terry, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
Merz North America, with headquarters in Raleigh, NC, and global headquarters in Germany, plans to expand its presence in Wisconsin.
The privately-held German company plans a $3 million consolidation and expansion in Racine County, Wisconsin. The project will retain the current 165 jobs and create an additional 20. The company currently runs four sites in Racine County where it manufactures and distributes aesthetics products used by dermatologists, plastic surgeons and neurologists.
The company plans to continue operations at its facility at 4133 Courtney Street in the Blackhawk Industrial Park in Raymond, WI. It will consolidate three leased facilities into a single expanded location at 13900 Grandview Parkway.
Matthew Anderson, vice president of technical operations for Merz North America, told The Journal Times, “The Wisconsin operation was the leading candidate,” for the company to continue operations. Merz committed to a $3 million capital investment in Grandview Business park, and received a $750,000 forgivable loan administered by the Racine County Economic Development Corp. It is forgivable if the company makes the capital investment, retains the 165 jobs and creates 20 new jobs over the next three years.
Merz manufactures several products in Wisconsin, including Radiesse, a skill filler for smoothing wrinkles, Coaptite, used by urologists for urinary incontinence, Prolaryn, for fixing damaged vocal cords, and Calcium hydroxyapatite particles, which medical device companies use to manufacture bone screws used in surgery.
The new facility will be 100,000 square feet and located in Yorkville, WI. This plant will be the center of Merz’s particle manufacturing, packaging, professional services and distribution operations.
“Merz is committed to not only retaining jobs in Racine County, but also to creating new opportunities,” said Anderson in a statement. “This significant investment was driven by our rapid growth and we are very thankful to Racine County and RCEDC for their continued support. We look forward to seeing how this project will help our business grow and succeed in the long-term.”
On June 7, Merz Neurosciences, a division of Merz North America, announced positive topline data from its Phase III trial of Xeomin (incobotulinumtoxinA) to treat adult sialorrhea, or unwanted drooling, due to Parkinson’s disease or other neurologic disorders. It reported the results at the 21st International Congress of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders (MDS) in Vancouver, BC.
The trial involved 184 patients, and both co-primary endpoints were achieved with statistically significant improvement in unstimulated salivary flow rate (uSFR) and in the Global Impression of Change Scale (GICS) at week four.
“The findings from this well-controlled Phase III clinical study are a step towards providing a therapeutic option for adult patients with sialorrhea, a condition in which patient’s needs are not yet being met,” said Andrew Blitzer, coordinating investigator and professor of Clinical Otolaryngology at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, in a statement. “Drooling is a burden to both patients and their caregivers. Importantly, the study results demonstrate a duration of efficacy and benefit beyond four months after the initial injection.”