Resilience MA plant slowdown after Sanofi contract ends

Resilience has reduced operations at former Sanofi plant in Massachusetts, following the ending of its contract to manufacture Cerezyme.

Millie Nelson, Editor

February 24, 2023

2 Min Read
Resilience MA plant slowdown after Sanofi contract ends
DepositPhotos/ Feverpitch

Resilience has reduced operations at a former Sanofi plant in Massachusetts, following the ending of its contract to manufacture enzyme replacement therapy, Cerezyme.

Contract development manufacturing organization (CDMO) National Resilience has said it is reducing operations at its 310,000 square-foot plant in Allston, Massachusetts, which it acquired from Sanofi in February 2021. Sanofi itself added the facility through the $20.1 billion acquisition of Genzyme in 2011.

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DepositPhotos/
Feverpitch

The decision to reduce operations at the facility comes after the contract to manufacture enzyme therapy, Cerezyme (imiglucerase), ended. While EndPoints News reported the firm is suspending operations at the plant, Rahul Singhiv, CEO of Resilience told BioProcess Insider this is not the case. “We are not suspending operations at this plant. This is a transition from completing a contract to manufacture Sanofi’s Cerezyme product, which was slated to end in 2022 and has now ended as planned.”

“During this transition we are reducing, not suspending, our operations while we seek the right set of customers for the newly established capabilities at this site, which include a new state of the art biologics suite. This is a temporary situation as we balance demand across our various plants.”

The reduced operations means around 213 jobs will be cut at the Allston facility and the employees effected will receive severance packages. Additionally, the employees will receive support such as internal job sourcing as the CDMO is hiring in other areas of the network.

Resuming operations

Singhvi said the CDMO has no plans to sell the Allston plant and is actively looking for the right customers for the site.

Once operations resume, the company will carry out typical talent acquisition practices, as well as engaging with “our alumni who are interested in returning to Resilience and collaborate on recruitment opportunities with our partners and customers to build momentum.”

This month, Oxford Properties Group announced plans to buy Resilience’s Marlborough, Massachusetts for $125 million and then lease the property back to the CDMO.

Singhvi said “these are independent decisions.” Thee decision to sell and lease back its Marlborough facility is not related to its reduced operations in Allston but instead “is a financing strategy we’ve used in other parts of our network which allows us to maintain complete ownership over the operations of the facility while providing a low cost of capital financing to Resilience.”

About the Author

Millie Nelson

Editor, BioProcess Insider

Journalist covering global biopharmaceutical manufacturing and processing news and host of the Voices of Biotech podcast.

I am currently living and working in London but I grew up in Lincolnshire (UK) and studied in Newcastle (UK).

Got a story? Feel free to email me at [email protected]

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