Services firm Charnwood Molecular will operate in a £54 million ($75 million) laboratory set up at its base in Loughborough, UK.
The laboratory – at the Charnwood Campus science park – is a three-story building that was refurbished by local engineering firm Couch Perry Wilkes.
Funding for the new facility was provided by the Enterprise Zone reinvestment fund facilitated through co-operation with the Leicester and Leicestershire Enterprise Partnership (LLEP) and Charnwood Borough Council (CBC).
According to the site operators, the lab will provide capacity for growth of Charnwood Molecular.
Commercial Director Gosia Khrais said: “It is a great pleasure to welcome Charnwood Molecular as a new occupier here.
The project is a recommissioning of an existing facility to meet the bespoke requirements of this fantastic CRO, and includes construction of a car park with EV charging points.”
The CRO set up shop at the campus in April, shortly after it secured backing from Synova, a leading and award-winning European private equity fund.
At the time CEO Steve Allin said “The truly world-class facilities at Charnwood Campus provide us with a key piece in our strategic plan to become the provider of choice for integrated drug discovery and development services within the global life sciences sector.
“The new laboratories will provide substantial capacity for future growth and expansion of our medicinal chemistry and process research teams, along with the addition of related drug discovery service lines."
Completion of the lab comes just a few weeks after Charnwood Molecular bought assay development and biological screening provider, Aurelia Bioscience.
The CRO – which did not share financial details of the takeover – cited Aurelia’s bioassay development, pharmacological profiling and compound screening businesses as the driver for the deal.
At the time Aurelia Bioscience co-founder, Gary Allenby said, “Bringing the two companies together will result in synergies for both organisations and create an environment to deliver excellence in both biology and chemistry to our current and future clients”.
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