March 10, 2016
By Alex Keown, BioSpace.com Breaking News Staff
MELVILLE, N.Y. – Generic and biosimilar drugmaker Sandoz, Inc. will consolidate two production facilities for its dermatology subsidiary Fougera Pharmaceuticals Inc. in New York.
Fougera operates two manufacturing facilities in Mellville and Hicksville, N.Y. All operations will be moved to a new Melville site, Sandoz, a subsidiary of Novartis AG , announced this week. Sandoz said the consolidation effort will take place over the next four to five years following construction of the new state-of-the-art facility. Although the company is consolidating two facilities, Sandoz told in-pharmatechnologist the move should not result in layoffs. There are approximately 400 employees combined between the current Hicksville and Melville sites. Chris Lewis, a spokesman for Sandoz, told in-pharmatechnologist the company is not “anticipating a headcount reduction as a result of the consolidation.”
The planned Melville site will include updated technology and equipment “creating a best-in-class, highly compliant and cost-effective manufacturing and R&D facility,” the company said. The completed Melville facility is expected to be home for all Fougera associates, including those in technical operations, quality operations, R&D, support and administrative functions, the company said. The new plant is also expected to include expanded capacity in order to accommodate future volume growth and product launches. Fougera manufactures more than 200 products, including generic semi-solid creams, ointments and lotions treating a wide range of dermatological ailments such as psoriasis, dermatitis, acne and eczema.
Once the consolidation is complete, Sandoz plans to divest itself of the Hicksville site, in-pharmatechnologist reported.
In July, Sandoz announced it will shutter three manufacturing facilities, two in Germany and one in India, with work at those sites being shifted to other global Sandoz locations. The plants are expected to close by the end of the year. The facility in Gerlinger, Germany makes generic oral solids, including ibuprofen, cetirizine, amlodipine and omerprazole. Operations at that site will be moved o Sandoz’s sites in Strykow, Poland and Barleben, Germany. The site in Frankfurt, Germany, which manufactures cephalosporin antibiotics, will be moved to the company’s antibiotics manufacturing plant in Austria. The closing of the two German sites is expected to cost about 600 jobs.
The work done at Sandoz’s plant near Mumbai manufactures active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) for its antibiotics business. Work at that site will be shifted to other locations Sandoz operates in India, the company said at the time the announcement was made. The closing of the facility near Mumbai will cost about 170 jobs.
The company said the closings of those sites are due to an inability to operate in a cost-efficient manner.Not only is Sandoz divesting itself of certain facilities, parent company Novartis has also been either closing some manufacturing sites or restructuring them for greater efficiency in the marketplace.
