Biomanufacturers Increasing Budgets For Upstream & Downstream Production

By Eric Langer, president and managing partner, BioPlan Associates, Inc.

Nearly 65% of biomanufacturers are planning to increase their budgets for new technologies to improve efficiencies and costs for downstream production, and three out of every five are increasing funding for new upstream production technologies. All of these statistics come from data from our newly released 9th Annual Report and Survey of Biopharmaceutical Manufacturers. These are not incremental changes, either: Almost 1 in 10 biomanufacturers will be making large increases (of 20% or more) in these areas, while 1 of every 5 plan an increase of 10% to 20%.

Budget increases are not limited to technologies that can improve efficiencies and cut costs, though. Biomanufacturers are looking to up the ante on big ticket items, too. On a note sure to inspire optimism, 15% of respondents are planning an increase of more than 20% in new facility construction. This is a greater proportion than are planning any level of decrease in funding for new facility projects, at 12.8%. A clear sign of industry segment growth, new capital equipment, is a focus, too, with 12.3% planning large increases and 46% planning a small-to-moderate increase. Again, this compares with fewer than 1 in 10 who forecast a decrease in funding for capital equipment. Compared with the past few years, these increases are substantial.