The Paris-headquartered drugmaker lodged planning applications with Cheshire East Council last week, explaining that it wants to revamp the site in response to greater demand for its products and for its contract manufacturing services.
Sanofi wants to expand the site’s manufacturing, warehousing and stability testing laboratories, alter some of its internal roads to accommodate heavy goods vehicles and construct new reception facilities, a canteen and a staff carpark.
Design consultant How Planning set out Sanofi’s motivation for the expansion in a report assessing the potential economic impact, explaining that customer demand for inhalable drugs was the key driver.
“The Holmes Chapel site is currently experiencing a period of operational growth associated with natural business growth and the new business line of researching, manufacturing and developing 3rd party products within the facility.
The report adds that: “The primary objective of the sites expansion and development is to create additional operational capacity, office floor space and infrastructure to accommodate the increased number of personnel working on site and continue to meet demand for the company’s products.”
News of the proposed expansion comes just weeks after Sanofi CEO Olivier Brandicourt outlined plans for a major corporate restructuring.
The plan - full details of which are expected to be released next January - will see Sanofi establish five worldwide business units: general medicines and emerging markets, specialty care, diabetes and cardiovascular, Sanofi Pasteur for vaccines, and Merial for animal health.
At present the company has seven “growth platforms” structured differently according to country, including consumer healthcare and Genzyme, for rare diseases.