Renaissance Lakewood, a US-based pharmaceutical contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO), has opened a new 67,000 sqft, expansive warehouse at its recently opened headquarters in Lakewood, New Jersey (NJ) in the US.
The structure, at 81,000 sqft, will increase Renaissance’s GMP warehouse square footage as well as serve as the primary client engagement and administrative hub for the company.
The office space portion of the building opened earlier this spring.
The new 31,000 sqft structure houses a state-of-the-art, quality control spray/particulate laboratory
President and CEO of Renaissance, Serge Maltais, said: "The completion of our new warehouse operation marks the culmination of many years of planning for and investing in our facilities. This significant increase in capacity together with our implementation of smart, efficiency-focused technology, enables us to provide our customers with a comprehensive, customized experience."
Renaissance Lakewood started a multi-million dollar expansion on its headquarters in New Jersey, US, in 2020. The headquarters is now 370,000 sqft and consists of two new buildings in 1215 and 1220 Paco Way, Lakewood, NJ.
The building at 1215 Paco Way
At 1215 Paco Way, the Warehouse team members, led by Al Atkinson, VP of Supply Chain and Commercial Services, have all received hours of hands-on training to operate the technologically advanced machinery now deployed in the new space.
The temperature-controlled, 32-ft-clear facility will serve as the company's primary warehouse. The company also has supply chain operations at 1200 Paco Way.
The machinery used to move materials throughout the expansive space enhances safety and efficiency improvements in the facility.
The temperature-controlled, 32-ft-clear facility will serve as the company's primary warehouse
The turret-type forklifts feature wire guidance and floor positioning tags to help control speed and movement within the space.
These specialised forklifts feature a warehouse positioning system that will lead the equipment to the required picking location with the touch of a screen.
In addition, a pallet shuttle system facilitates high-density storage allowing efficient usage of the warehouse's cubic footprint.
The warehouse mobility scanning system features QR coded rack labels which enable staff to quickly pinpoint material locations and track inventory with a 75 percent reduction in manual data entry.
The building at 1200 Paco Way
At 1220 Paco Way, the new 31,000 sqft structure houses a state-of-the-art, quality control spray/particulate laboratory as well as both the analytical and formulation research and development laboratories.
Renaissance increased the Quality Control (QC) spray laboratory by nearly three times its former size.
In addition, a separate controlled non-classified area was constructed with its own gowning room to aid in a cleaner environment to test particulate samples for release.
A separate controlled non-classified area was constructed with its own gowning room to aid in a cleaner environment to test particulate samples for release.
The now fully operational laboratory complex also includes upgrades to existing equipment and complete replacements of older equipment to facilitate sensitive sterility tests for products manufactured aseptically at the site.
In addition to the QC lab space, Renaissance moved the analytical research and Development (AR&D) area to share GMP analytical equipment for most, if not all, AR&D tests.
Renaissance increased the Quality Control (QC) spray laboratory by nearly three times its former size
Lastly, formulation research and development moved to this area in a separate non-GMP area of the building. Previously, this lab was combined with AR&D.
VP of Product Development and Laboratory Services, Kimberly Ernst, said: “We are very excited to meet the testing needs of our clients now and in the future. These new laboratory spaces provide us with the capability to have a significant impact on product and research development. We are confident these new spaces will exceed our clients’ expectations, and we look forward to expanding our reach in the global marketplace.”
Manufacturing building
The expansion project at its headquarters also included a renovation of its 77,000 sqft manufacturing building and investment in cutting-edge technology and equipment is also part of the modernised manufacturing structure.
As part of its manufacturing upgrades, Renaissance completed the installation and qualification of a new high-speed nasal spray assembly line capable of assembling and packaging unit-dose and bi-dose nasal spray devices with increased speed.
These novel approaches to manufacturing have led to improved efficiency, product quality, and an overall unparalleled level of capacity
Jeffrey Higginson, VP of Operations of Renaissance Lakewood, said: “Our integrated assembly and packaging line incorporates innovative and patented automation and inspection technologies that have been transformational in our operations.”
“These novel approaches to manufacturing have led to improved efficiency, product quality, and an overall unparalleled level of capacity which demonstrate our commitment to maintaining our industry-leading position,” Higginson concluded.
In addition to this new line, Renaissance continues to operate multiple filling, assembly, and packing lines that offer customers redundancy as well as the ability to scale products from pre-clinical through commercial-scale manufacturing.