Scottish contractor BioOutsource is planning a deeper dive into the U.S. market for development services, setting sights on a new lab in Massachusetts to serve its American clientele.
The company, which makes its money testing biologics and characterizing biosimilars, made its first entrance into the U.S. last year with an office in Cambridge, MA, but its latest plans call for a full-fledged lab facility. The new shop will host its biosimilar and biosafety operations, BioOutsource said, opening up in 2015 to serve clients in North and Latin America.
BioOutsource has grown by more than 40% over the past 12 months, the company said, and its move in Massachusetts will follow a February effort to expand in Glasgow and effectively double its capacity for bioanalysis.
"North America has always been an essential strategic element of our global expansion plans, exemplified by our U.S. office and active membership of MassBio," CEO Gerry MacKay said in a statement. "We are already a global company, and the time is right to extend our global client footprint with the addition of a new facility in the U.S. The new facility will benefit our existing and new clients, improving logistics and ensuring our technical experts are close by."
BioOutsource expects the global market for biosimilars to double by 2018, reaching $19 billion. To prepare for an increase in demand, the company said it has increased its staffing by more than 30% since last year, adding new technologies and capabilities for characterization and comparability testing as its client roster has swelled to more than 30 biosimilar companies.
The U.K. company said its U.S. expansion is part of an outgrowth of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, Gov. Deval Patrick's 10-year, $1 billion initiative to bring more biotech companies to the commonwealth.
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