Cellipont Bioservices to Open Life Sciences Manufacturing Facility in The Woodlands

A California life sciences manufacturing company is expanding to The Woodlands.

San Diego-based Cellipont Bioservices, a cell therapy contract development and manufacturing organization, or CDMO, said this week it will open an 76,000-square-foot manufacturing facility for cell therapies and gene-modified cell therapies.

Cellipont said the facility is slated to open in phases starting in the first half of next year and will include state-of-the-art manufacturing, process development, assay development and testing capabilities.

“Cellipont is excited to move forward with this next stage of our company’s development as a best-in-class cell therapy CDMO,” said Deborah Wild, CEO at Cellipont in a statement. “As our client programs advance through the clinic and toward commercialization, we are working diligently to offer them state-of-the-art facilities and capabilities. This site near Houston is an ideal location to serve clients and patients across all of North America, with two major airports and a strong local workforce.”

Cellipont Chief Operating Officer Mike O’Mara said the expansion offers the company a blank canvas to create the ideal cell therapy facility in a phased approach as its clients grow their programs.

Gil Staley, CEO of The Woodlands Area Economic Development Partnership, said Cellipont’s dynamic facility will be a “jewel” among the bioscience companies in the community’s Research Forest area. “With healthcare as our largest business sector, Cellipont will undoubtedly enhance the sustainability of our medical hub,” Staley said.

Ann Tanabe, CEO of industry group BioHouston, Inc. said, “We know that the Houston area is a great place for the life sciences industry to take root, so it’s wonderful when a company located in one of the premier biotech hubs – San Diego – recognizes this and chooses Houston as their next strategic location.”

This is just the latest economic development announcement for The Woodlands. Last month the Houston Business Journal reported that chemical manufacturing company SI Group Inc. was moving its global headquarters from New York State to the Hughes Landing complex. SI Group, which makes performance additives, active pharmaceutical ingredients and chemical intermediates, plans to move into the new office in the fall, according to the report.

SI Group operates roughly 20 offices and manufacturing facilities across the U.S. and has operations in nine other countries. The company employs approximately 2,000 workers, according to its website.

Learn more about why companies are choosing to relocate to Houston and see details about the region’s life sciences sector.