German pharma and technology giant Merck has announced a €5 million (£4.2m) investment in Scotland that will create further jobs at its diagnostics and blood typing facility in Livingston.
The group says the investment will increase production capacity of its diagnostic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) by more than a third. The site is already the world's largest manufacturer of mAbs for blood typing diagnosis, producing approximately 25 tonnes of antibodies per year.
The expansion will also initially create 10 new jobs, bringing Merck’s workforce in Scotland to more than 750 employees.
“Merck’s legacy spans over 33 years here in Scotland, and Livingston has quickly become the centre of excellence for diagnostic mAbs," said Jessica Copeland, head of diagnostics and regulated materials at Merc Life Sciences.
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"This investment enables us to increase our manufacturing capacity for products that are at the forefront of diagnostics, putting us in a unique position to support customers with groundbreaking work."
The announcement follows last year’s €3m investment in Livingston as part of the design, development and commercialisation of a novel diagnostic quality control kit for blood typing analysers. Also last year, Merck expanded its molecular biology and sequence testing business in Glasgow with the €35m development of a state-of-the-art 1,200sq m biosafety testing facility to create 500 new jobs across Glasgow and Stirling.
“We have the market’s largest portfolio of monoclonal antibodies for blood typing,” said Adrian Birkett, head of operations at Livingston. “We also have a diverse range of services and products, and blood typing and diagnostics is an area which thrives year-on-year.
“I’d like to thank the team at Merck, Livingston for their continued hard work and dedication. Their consistent delivery for the company has resulted in this further investment. It’s a proud day for us all here in Merck, Livingston.”
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