Canadian vaccine lab - on budget & ahead of schedule !

[brew noser]

It's only the first of 4 vaccine-producing labs Trudeau has funded, but this one has the building completed and is now readying for equipment, licence and people.

If it can produce 24 million doses/year, & combined with the other 3 labs we will have a fighting chance against any virus - without having to experience the loss of life we had during the Covid one.

Fingers crossed . . . Let's bring our 'Connaught lab independence' back home again.
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News provided by National Research Council Canada
Jun 22, 2021, 09:53 ET

Minister Champagne marks the completion of construction of the Biologics Manufacturing Centre in Montréal

https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1538801/National_Research_Council_Canada_Minister_Champagne_marks_the_co.jpg?p=publish&w=950


Today, the Honourable François-Philippe Champagne, Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, announced the completion of construction of the new Biologics Manufacturing Centre on the National Research Council of Canada's (NRC) Royalmount site in Montréal, Québec. The construction phase of this project has been completed on budget and ahead of schedule.

Once fully licensed and operational, the Biologics Manufacturing Centre will have full end-to-end manufacturing capabilities. With approximately 5,400 square metres (58,000 square feet) of space, it will have a production capacity of approximately 24 million doses of a vaccine per year, varying based on the specific vaccine requirements.

Installation of critical equipment continues at the Biologics Manufacturing Centre. A number of further steps are still required for Health Canada to license the facility, enabling the production of vaccines for human use.

The NRC is continuing to work with Novavax, Inc. to produce their COVID-19 vaccine at the Biologics Manufacturing Centre once both the vaccine candidate and the facility receive Health Canada approvals.
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~ On August 31, 2020, the Government of Canada announced an investment of $126 million to design, construct, commission, and qualify a new biomanufacturing facility adjacent to its Royalmount site in Montréal.

~ The Biologics Manufacturing Centre will be able to produce cell-based biopharmaceuticals like vaccines and other biologics, including viral vector, protein subunit, virus-like particles, and other recombinant proteins.

~ The National Research Council of Canada is responsible for the construction, fit-up and initial operation of the Biologics Manufacturing Centre.

~ Construction of the Biologics Manufacturing Centre took only 10 months, whereas construction of similar facilities typically takes two years or more to complete. This accelerated timeline was accomplished through deliberate decisions made to:

~ Design and finalize the interior layout in parallel with the construction of the building shell;
~ Employ multiple teams of contractors to enable consecutive work shifts; and
~ Work with Canadian suppliers with the expertise, capacity, and ability to deliver despite the aggressive timeline and complexities of the COVID-19 pandemic.

~ The National Research Council of Canada and Novavax are working closely together on the technology transfer to establish the step-by-step process of producing the Novavax vaccine at the Biologics Manufacturing Centre.

This critical step is expected to take several months with the completion of engineering runs targeted for the end of December 2021, pending the required Health Canada regulatory approvals.

https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/minister-champagne-marks-the-completion-of-construction-of-the-biologics-manufacturing-centre-in-montreal-802516284.html