GlaxoSmithKline Will Open Shanghai Research Center
by Richard Daverman, PhD
ChinaBio Today
Company To Invest $40 Million This Year
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will begin building a research facility in Shanghai that will become one of its largest research centers in the world. GSK, which is the second-largest big pharma in the world, has begun scouting locations for the building.
With an initial investment of $40 million in 2007, the company will hire between 50 and 100 first-rank international scientists at the outset. But GSK expects to continue committing funds to the center, with the goal of having 1,000 scientists at work in the facility ten years from now.
Unlike other big pharma emplacements in China, the planned GSK facility will perform the entire range of drug development activities, rather than only drug discovery or clinical trials, as has been the case for other multi-national research facilities.
Shanghai was selected as the location because of its large pool of scientific talent. The city has a large number of universities, hospitals, and drug makers. It is also attractive to scientists coming from outside China, including the many Chinese who have gone overseas to study and who wish to bring their skills back to China.
In the GSK system, the Shanghai facility will be the only center dedicated to neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis.
The plans underscore China’s development from a country in which to place an inexpensive factory, into the location of choice for first-rate biotechnology exploration and an important market for resulting drugs.
The GSK announcement fits a well-established pattern, as several big pharmas have recently declared their intentions to locate new research activity in China. Last November, Novartis (NVS) announced its plans to build a research center in China, the eighth center the company has built worldwide. And Lilly (LLY) said earlier this year that it, too, would spend $100 million for a research facility in China. At the same time, Lilly committed to invest venture capital to support Chinese biotechnology firms, with a initial commitment of $10 million to the Singapore-based BioVeda China VC Fund (see story).
RELATED READING:
- Beijing Double-Crane Offers New Shares
- China Aims to Modernize Traditional Chinese Medicine
ChinaBio Today is a regular contributor to BioHealth Investor
_______________
ChinaBio Today
Company To Invest $40 Million This Year
GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) will begin building a research facility in Shanghai that will become one of its largest research centers in the world. GSK, which is the second-largest big pharma in the world, has begun scouting locations for the building.
With an initial investment of $40 million in 2007, the company will hire between 50 and 100 first-rank international scientists at the outset. But GSK expects to continue committing funds to the center, with the goal of having 1,000 scientists at work in the facility ten years from now.
Unlike other big pharma emplacements in China, the planned GSK facility will perform the entire range of drug development activities, rather than only drug discovery or clinical trials, as has been the case for other multi-national research facilities.
Shanghai was selected as the location because of its large pool of scientific talent. The city has a large number of universities, hospitals, and drug makers. It is also attractive to scientists coming from outside China, including the many Chinese who have gone overseas to study and who wish to bring their skills back to China.
In the GSK system, the Shanghai facility will be the only center dedicated to neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis.
The plans underscore China’s development from a country in which to place an inexpensive factory, into the location of choice for first-rate biotechnology exploration and an important market for resulting drugs.
The GSK announcement fits a well-established pattern, as several big pharmas have recently declared their intentions to locate new research activity in China. Last November, Novartis (NVS) announced its plans to build a research center in China, the eighth center the company has built worldwide. And Lilly (LLY) said earlier this year that it, too, would spend $100 million for a research facility in China. At the same time, Lilly committed to invest venture capital to support Chinese biotechnology firms, with a initial commitment of $10 million to the Singapore-based BioVeda China VC Fund (see story).
RELATED READING:
- Beijing Double-Crane Offers New Shares
- China Aims to Modernize Traditional Chinese Medicine
ChinaBio Today is a regular contributor to BioHealth Investor
_______________
posted by Nico at
6:37 PM
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