Charles River Laboratories International has completed a €10 million expansion of its testing capabilities at its Ballina, Co Mayo site.

The new Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) certified space provides an additional 1,500m2 of lab space and creates up to 70 new skilled roles over the next two years. This project, which received significant support through IDA Ireland, demonstrates the commitment by Charles River and the Irish Government to meet the growing need for batch release testing of new Cell & Gene Therapies and mRNA platform therapies, such as the COVID-19 vaccines.

The expansion is the latest in a series at the Ballina site, where additional Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) facilities and capabilities have been added in analytical, cell culture, vaccine support and other specialised Biologics services. The Company has established a dedicated laboratory space with Biosafety Level-3 (BSL-3) containment to handle testing of SARS-CoV-2 (the viral strain causing COVID-19) and other similar pathogens that cause human disease. This further investment in enhanced facilities and continuous staff development provides the increased range of testing services required by the international biopharmaceutical industry.

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Liam McHale, site director for Charles River Ballina said: "We see the continued and dramatic growth of the life sciences sector with the manufacture of advanced modalities, including cell and gene therapies, and Ireland, the world’s third largest exporter of pharmaceuticals, continues to be at the forefront. Charles River’s commitment to Ireland has allowed us to stay at the forefront of batch release testing requirements for new therapeutics, and has culminated in the opening of our new state of the art analytical laboratory. Our expanded facility will provide us with the increased capacity needed to continue the essential services we provide to our clients and represents an industry transition from in vivo to analytical testing."