- Merck has opened a €25 million BioReliance® testing facility in Darmstadt, Germany, expanding commercial drug substance, drug product release, and stability testing services for biopharmaceutical companies in Europe.
- The 2,000-square-meter site supports drug development through commercialization and forms part of Merck’s continued investment in its global contract testing network.
Merck has opened a new €25 million BioReliance® testing facility at its global headquarters in Darmstadt, Germany. The 2,000-square-meter facility expands the company’s commercial drug substance and drug product release testing capabilities, as well as Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-compliant stability testing for biopharmaceutical companies developing and commercializing therapies in Europe. The investment is intended to help customers meet European requirements for in-region testing while supporting programs from drug development through commercialization.
The facility is located near major clinical trial hubs in Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Italy, enabling biopharmaceutical companies to support the release of drug products into European markets. The site will also provide stability studies for monoclonal antibodies and cell therapies and is expected to expand its workforce over the coming years to meet customer demand.
“As demand for biologics and novel therapies continues to grow, our customers need reliable, compliant testing capabilities closer to where their products are developed and commercialized.”
Paolo Carli, Head of Advanced Solutions for the Life Science business of Merck
The new facility becomes part of Merck’s global BioReliance® testing network, which supports customers across multiple geographies with consistent quality standards. The BioReliance® portfolio includes more than 75 years of biosafety testing and analytical development expertise, including technologies such as the Blazar® platform for rapid molecular virus detection and the Aptegra® CHO genetic stability testing platform.
The Darmstadt expansion follows other recent investments in Merck’s global contract testing operations, including the opening of a €290 million biosafety testing facility in Rockville, Maryland, in 2024 and a €22 million expansion of biosafety testing capacity at its Glasgow and Stirling sites. The new facility also contributes to Merck’s ongoing investment in its Darmstadt headquarters, where the company has invested approximately €2.5 billion since 2015.
