Eisai has made an ￡11.5 million ($15.2 million) investment to fund two new packaging lines and create new jobs at its Hatfield production plant in Hertfordshire.

Following a succession of approvals and reimbursements across the world for its cancer therapy, Lenvima (lenvatinib), Eisai is now expanding its facilities to triple product output within the next three years and is targeting a four-fold increase by 2025 to meet global demand.

Transforming Manufacturing Operations

The expansion comes from the company’s transformation of its manufacturing operations. Over the last 13 years Eisai has gone from only supplying medicines in Europe to supplying them all over the world to help treat a growing number of patients living with advanced and hard-to-treat cancers as well as neurological conditions.

The Hatfield plant, which serves as a global supply center for Eisai’s medicines, is now supplying 73 countries worldwide with over 30 different product formulations used by around 500,000 patients each year. By expanding its global packaging capabilities, with blistering and serialization as well as high containment systems as standard, Eisai will be able to offer full service support for a larger global supply of its products and ensure more patients are benefiting from access to its medicines. 

“To meet the demand that we have currently as well as the demand that is projected in the future, we need to ensure that our facilities continue to grow and supply vital medicines – even during the current global Covid-19 pandemic,” said Alex Felthouse, managing director of Eisai Manufacturing Limited. “We have taken extra measures to equip our facilities with the safety precautions needed for our well-trained staff to continue producing and packaging our medicines and will continue to seek out new investment opportunities as part of our five-year growth strategy.”

As part of the investment, two local firms have been appointed, based in St. Albans and Rickmansworth, for the design and fit out of the new facilities due to be completed in July 2021.