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WuXi AppTec, a leading global pharmaceutical and medical device open-access capability and technology platform company, announced the appointment of Dr. David Chang as Chief Executive Officer of WuXi Advanced Therapies business unit, WuXi AppTec’s cell and gene therapy Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO). In this new executive role, Dr. Chang will provide strategic, scientific and operational leadership to the company’s global cell and gene therapy R&D and manufacturing services.
Dr. Chang brings strong leadership and a wealth of experience in cell and gene therapy and biopharmaceutical technical development, manufacturing operations, engineering and strategy. Prior to joining WuXi AppTec, Dr. Chang was Corporate Vice President and Head of Cell Therapy Global Manufacturing at Celgene, a Bristol Myers Squibb company, where he oversaw the CAR-T manufacturing network and the global manufacturing sciences and technologies teams. He also served as the Global Head of Engineering and Strategy at Roche, Switzerland, after roles that included Vice President/Site Head of Roche Shanghai Technical Operations, China.
“We are delighted to welcome Dr. Chang as CEO of WuXi ATU to lead our cell and gene therapy CDMO business to the next stage of growth,” said Mr. Edward Hu, Vice Chairman and Global Chief Investment Officer of WuXi AppTec. “We believe that cell and gene therapies represent a tremendous opportunity for the healthcare industry to deliver more effective and innovative personalized solutions to patients. Dr. Chang’s leadership and deep expertise in this field will further advance WuXi AppTec’s long-standing support for its customers and their mission to advance discoveries and development in the life and health sciences and deliver groundbreaking treatment to those in need.”
“I’m very honored to join WuXi AppTec,” said Dr. Chang. “WuXi ATU is at the forefront of accelerating the development of life-saving advanced therapies with even greater quality, efficiency and speed, and I look forward to further enhancing our cell and gene therapy R&D and manufacturing platform. By helping more customers enhance the efficiency and increase the speed of R&D and commercialization, their cell and gene therapies can benefit more patients faster.”
Earlier in his career, Dr. Chang held several management positions. At Genentech, he served as Senior Director of Global Manufacturing Science & Technology and as the Director of Process Development. He was also the Director of cell culture R&D at Biogen Idec and a cell culture group leader at BASF Bioresearch. Dr. Chang earned his B.S. in Chemical Engineering from National Taiwan University, and Ph.D. in Biochemical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
About WuXi AppTec
WuXi AppTec provides a broad portfolio of R&D and manufacturing services that enable companies in the pharmaceutical, biotech and medical device industries worldwide to advance discoveries and deliver groundbreaking treatments to patients. As an innovation-driven and customer-focused company, WuXi AppTec helps our partners improve the productivity of advancing healthcare products through cost-effective and efficient solutions. With industry-leading capabilities such as R&D and manufacturing for small molecule drugs, cell and gene therapies, and testing for medical devices, WuXi AppTec’s open-access platform is enabling more than 3,900 collaborators from over 30 countries to improve the health of those in need – and to realize our vision that “every drug can be made and every disease can be treated.”
