Vibalogics announces collaboration to provide additional clinical trial material for covid-19 vaccine candidate

Vibalogics, a global contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) that specializes in the production of virotherapy products, announced that it will manufacture additional clinical trial material for the lead COVID-19 vaccine candidate currently in development by the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson.

From its GMP accredited facility in Cuxhaven, Germany, the company is contracted to manufacture multiple batches, which will result in many thousands of doses of an investigational COVID-19 vaccine candidate.

Stefan Beyer, managing director and CEO of Vibalogics said: “This has been a tremendous challenge for everyone at Vibalogics, but one which the entire team has embraced as an opportunity to use our experience and expertise in the global fight against COVID-19.”

“The business has reacted quickly and efficiently to accommodate this request. With the devotion of our team, and understanding from our customers, we have successfully managed to fulfil this new requirement alongside all of our existing business commitments.”

Offering process development, manufacturing, testing and fill-finish services, Vibalogics has over 15 years’ experience working with live viruses.

The CDMO has recently invested in new equipment to handle larger clinical batches including a new filling line capable of filling and labelling more than 30,000 vials per batch.

Beyer continued: “This is a fantastic opportunity for the business and our employees to strengthen our position as a global leader in virotherapy manufacturing whilst also providing a key service to our valued customer in its mission to combat the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

“This endeavor is testament to our long-standing and productive partnership with this company, who have shown great trust in our flexible approach, expertise and ability to deliver on time.”

In May 2019, Vibalogics was acquired by Ampersand Capital Partners, a private equity firm specializing in growth equity investments in the healthcare sector, allowing the CDMO to further its growth strategy with plans to extend its footprint in the United States.

Vibalogics is set to establish a commercial facility in North America for oncolytic viruses, viral vectors for gene therapy approaches and viral vector vaccines in the near future.