The Pharma Partnering business includes cooperation with universities, patent applications and M&A. The China office will be responsible for partnerships in China, South Korea, Taiwan and Singapore. In China, Roche is already working with three universities to develop drug delivery techniques. Worldwide, the company’s major partners are Genentech (NYSE: DNA) and Chugai, plus 80 smaller alliances.
The expansion will include building two new administrative buildings, a facility devoted to quality control and an expanded warehouse. Roche’s existing administrative buildings will eventually be retrofitted to be brought up to the standards of the new facilities.
Roche said the buildings would take advantage of the latest green design features, which will result in a 35% drop in energy consumption per employee. Among other techniques, the new Roche buildings will use hydrogen nitride rather than Freon to run the air conditioning systems. Wherever possible, the company will use renewable energy.
The expansion is a continuation of Roche’s investment in China. In 2004, the company opened the Roche China R&D Center at the Zhangjiang site. The company completed the Roche Shanghai High-Potent manufacturing plant to produce its Cellcept and Xeloda drugs in October 2005. One year ago, in October 2007, Roche finished the Pharmaceutical Development Center, completing its China value chain with locally-sited research, development, production and marketing facilities.
