Does your son or daughter do well in science class? Encourage them. They might just find a high-paying job some day. And no, not in California or North Carolina – right here in the Ocean State. Imagine that?
But it’s possible, because biotechnology has emerged as a major growth industry in Rhode Island and there are legitimate reasons to think that growth could continue.
There are easier things to understand than biotechnology. Growing cells and purification processes can make for a challenging read.
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Typically, when we talk about economic development, it’s easier to talk about building a mall – or for that matter, a casino.
Think about it. It is easy to grasp the concept of a slot machine. Put your money in, pull a handle, and more often than not, nothing comes out. The house always wins. It’s the same thing with a massive bingo hall. Every so often someone will cry out “Bingo!” and go home a winner.
But look at all the people. Do the math. The house wins again … you can count on it.
Be prepared. Talk of slot machines, bingo halls and casino gaming as a means of economic development is not going to go away anytime soon. Particularly in the midst of a down economy, it’s an easy message to deliver. Pressure will mount in the next legislative session to place the question of whether to allow a casino to be built on a statewide ballot.
But let’s save that for another day. Because while there is nothing wrong with making a living dealing cards or waiting tables, given the choice, most of you would rather that your sons or daughters became scientists or researchers at the largest biotechnology company in the world.
Wouldn’t you?
Well, that opportunity exists – and it’s no further away than West Greenwich. That’s where real job-creating economic development is going on right now in Rhode Island.
Maybe what is most remarkable about the facility Amgen is building off Route 95 in West Greenwich is that while it is being built, there is already talk of how its capacity can be expanded, if necessary. That was the message delivered to a crowd of elected officials and business leaders who attended a luncheon at Amgen July 18. The luncheon was followed by a tour of BioNext – Amgen’s newest facility.
Tom Hsiang, an Amgen product manager, conducted my tour of BioNext, a development that will serve as a companion facility to the California-based biotechnology giant’s existing BioNow, right next door.
Like BioNow, BioNext will be a cell-culture manufacturing facility. It will produce Enbrel, the company’s FDA-approved rheumatoid arthritis drug.
On the second floor of the production facility, you look up and see rows of 20,000-liter tanks. There are 19 of them. They’re huge. They look sort of like vats in a brewery. Hsiang points out the additional rows, without tanks. Should Enbrel get the federal approval it is seeking for additional applications for Enbrel and demand soars even higher, Amgen is ready.
The demand for Enbrel, now, is astonishing.
Aside from rheumatoid arthritis, Enbrel also is approved for juvenile rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis. It also is under review as a treatment for ankylosing spondylitis, an inflammatory disease of the spine.
Enbrel is considered the most successful biotechnology drug ever made, with expected 2003 revenue of between $1.2 billion and $1.4 billion. It has been used to treat more than 180,000 patients since the FDA approved the injectible medication five years ago.
Amgen’s West Greenwich plant, which began producing commercial Enbrel in January, helped wipe out that waiting list. The company is spending $500 million to build the second, larger production facility. It is expected to be completed sometime in 2004.
You have probably seen these facilities, right off Route 95, just to the north of GTECH’s headquarters. They just might be the best thing to happen to the Rhode Island economy in recent years.
The huge vats are just one example of the size of the project. BioNext will feature 25 miles of piping and 230 miles of wire. There are two freezers being constructed. They will have the capacity to hold 200,000 patient doses of Enbrel. And maybe best of all, more than 1,000 people will soon work there. Between the two facilities that’s well over 2,000 workers.
Last month, Amgen announced that it has applied for federal approval to market Enbrel as a treatment for psoriasis, a painful skin condition.
It’s just another example of Amgen getting bigger – right here in Rhode Island. Imagine that?
