Honeywell said that it will help expand R&D capabilities at Shire’s Human Genetic Therapies (SHGT) subsidiary in Lexington, Massachusetts, using its Experion Process Knowledge system and batch management technology.
Honeywell said that the Experion system, which will be the primary means of production control, will provide Shire with a complete overview of operations through the integration of all subsystems being used at the plant.
The firm went on to highlight the system’s C300 controller unit as a key advantage for Shire, claiming that its processing capacity reduces the amount of hardware required to automate manufacture and therefore cuts operating costs.
The Phoenix-based firm will also use its OneWireless network platform and Uniformance Process Historian database software to control manufacturing operations at the $250m (€183m) facility.
The plant, which is scheduled to become operational in 2010, is part of Shire’s efforts to spearhead the use of disposable production vessels in the US biotechnology sector in a bid to cut cleaning costs and delays associated with equipment verification.
Don Wuchterl, director of manufacturing at SHGT, explained that: “Technology that simplifies scale-up from R&D to commercialised production is critical for biotech facilities to produce as efficiently and reliable as possible.”
Wuchterl went on to praise the streamlining benefits of Honeywell’s technologies which he said will “provide the flexibility required for a multi-purpose facility.”
Honeywell spokesman Jake Saylor told the Phoenix Business Journal that: “While some of the technology used in the project was developed in Phoenix, implementation will be handled primarily by Honeywell teams in Fort Washington and Atlanta.”