Texcell Unveils State-of-the-Art Viral Clearance Testing Facility

FREDERICK, Md., June 16, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Texcell is pleased to announce the opening of their newest testing facility in North America, representing a significant milestone in Texcell's commitment to advancing the viral safety of biotherapeutics and medical devices. Designed to support simultaneous viral clearance and biosafety studies, this 27,000 sq ft facility is built with a modular design that enhances the flexibility required in today's contract testing environment. Texcell – North America's dedicated teams are ready to support biosafety studies for monoclonal antibodies, gene therapies, and medical devices coming to the market.

The unveiling event was preceded by an exclusive luncheon attended by esteemed international and local dignitaries, exemplifying the company's dedication to bridging the gap between the regional community and global awareness. In attendance at the inauguration was Laurent Bili, Ambassador of France to the United States, Frederick Mayor Michael O'Connor, Deputy Secretary of the Maryland Department of Commerce, Signe Pringle, Executive Director of Economic and Workforce Development for Frederick, Lara Fritts, President of Texcell's parent company, Soparbiotech International, Céline Saint Olive Baque, CEO of Soparbiotech International and President of Texcell SA, Dr. Éric B. Henriet, as well as other executive Texcell Group employees. April Schubert, Deputy CBO & Director of Sales and Marketing at Texcell Group and one of the original employees at the Frederick location, spoke with the dignitaries about Texcell's key role in ensuring the safety of biotherapeutics. In addition to the exclusive luncheon, Texcell hosted an open ribbon cutting ceremony that included current and former Texcell team members, as well as local clients and vendors to celebrate the inaugural opening, with certificates presented by Maryland's Department of Commerce and County Executive Fitzwater's office. Alysia Birkholz, Texcell – North America's Deputy CEO, led a toast that spoke to Texcell's ongoing mission to prioritize patient safety as embodied in the company's new slogan, "Protecting Tomorrow's Medicines, Today".

Ambassador Bili and Céline Saint Olive Baque cut the ribbon, held by Dr. Akunna Iheanacho, PhD, Texcell's Chief Scientific Officer and Dr. Matt Dickson, Director of Viral Clearance and Viral Safety, officially marking the opening of Texcell's newest facility. The Ambassador spoke on the great addition and focus on patient safety world-wide. Dr. Eric Henriet addressed the crowd with a summary of Texcell's growing capacities and capabilities in the US, Europe, and China. "We are proud to open this beautiful and modern testing facility in Frederick to better serve our growing roster of US clients," said Henriet. Beyond the Frederick expansion, Texcell continues to evolve their service offering; they recently announced a partnership with renowned CDMO GTP Bioways and are additionally preparing to open a new testing facility in Shanghai, China later this year.

Today marks a momentous occasion for Texcell as they expand their Frederick site. Mayor O'Connor followed with a speech that lauded the growth of the local biotech community that an expanded Texcell will be even better equipped to support. As such, Texcell – North America was recently nominated as one of Maryland's life science companies of the year, a nomination that follows years of steady development supporting the local community. The company's expansion in Frederick signifies an exciting time for the regional biotech hub as Texcell bridges the local community and the global biopharmaceutical industry. As Texcell continues to expand their footprint in Europe and Asia, Texcell-North America remains excited about their future growth prospects locally in Maryland – echoed by the local saying "there's no place like Frederick County!"

About Texcell

Texcell is a contract research organization that specializes in viral testing, viral clearance, bioassays, in vivo testing, and GMP cell banking, for R&D, GClP, GLP and GMP projects.

The Texcell group employs 140 people in France, in the United States, in Germany and in Asia (China and Japan) and counts customers worldwide. To sustain its continuous growth, Texcell will inaugurate in 2023 two new laboratories, in the United States and in China.

SOURCE Texcell