Daewoong Pharmaceutical (069620) is building an advanced biologics manufacturing base in Songdo, Incheon, to strengthen the clinical research foundation for stem cell and immune cell therapies. The company plans to complete the required legal approvals this year and begin full operations, allowing more than a decade of advanced bio research to move into clinical stages.
Daewoong Pharmaceutical said on Sept. 29 that it has built a new advanced biologics manufacturing site at Yonsei University's International Campus in Songdo, Incheon, and held an opening ceremony on Sept. 28.
The Songdo bio plant is equipped with global-standard sterile manufacturing and quality control systems. Its main products will be stem cell and immune cell products for clinical research. The company plans to complete legal approval procedures for manufacturing and processing advanced biologics this year before starting full operations.
The new site is intended to connect the company's accumulated advanced bio research to clinical stages involving actual patients. Daewoong Pharmaceutical has expanded its research base in stem cell, immune and gene therapies for more than 10 years, centered on its Yongin Bio Center. Through the Songdo plant, the company aims to secure the capacity to stably produce the advanced bio materials needed for clinical research.
Daewoong Pharmaceutical also plans to link the Yongin Bio Center with the Songdo plant while expanding a global bio network spanning research, clinical work and production through cooperation with overseas bases including Indonesia.
The company will also strengthen cooperation with universities, research institutes and medical institutions within the Songdo bio cluster. It plans to build an advanced regenerative medicine ecosystem that connects research results to actual clinical care and treatment through open innovation among industry, academia, research institutes and hospitals.
About 30 officials from related organizations attended the Sept. 28 opening ceremony, including the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority, the Korea National Institute for Regenerative Medicine project group and Yonsei University. Attendees toured the manufacturing facility and discussed cooperation plans to link advanced bio research with clinical work.
"We hope the Songdo bio plant will go beyond being a simple production facility and become an important foundation that connects research and clinical work and turns innovative ideas into actual treatments," said Lee Jun-mi, director of the regenerative medicine policy division at the Ministry of Health and Welfare. "We expect it to contribute to the development of Korea's advanced regenerative medicine industry based on thorough quality control and a high level of manufacturing capability."
"The Songdo advanced biologics manufacturing site will serve as a core base that swiftly connects Daewoong Pharmaceutical's advanced bio research results to clinical stages," said Park Sung-soo, CEO of Daewoong Pharmaceutical. "Based on clinical research infrastructure linking Yongin and Songdo, we will cooperate with excellent research teams and leading medical institutions to grow together with the bio ecosystem."
