A Statistical Approach To Expanding Production Capacity

By Annette Kaya, Andrea Uebele, Anke Seeger, Hanster Maat 
​Corresponding author David Estapé, Technology Manager Biotechnology at the Global Technology Service

Contract manufacturer DSM Biologics at its current good manufacturing practices (CGMP) facility in Groningen, The Netherlands provides services for clinical development and commercial production based on mammalian cell culture technology. During the 2011–2012 year, the facility went through a major expansion project to enlarge its capacity and fulfill a growing customer demand. From a business point of view, the project had a well-defined target for future production capacity as well as investment volume.

A major part of the project focused on restructuring downstream operations to match upstream capacities. The objectives required full understanding of the annual output that is possible if the facility is extended by one or two downstream processing suites. The optimal solution would be to achieve target capacity with minimum investment. M+W Group supported DSM Biologics to find the right approach and identify the best solution.