Transformative Drug Manufacturer On Demand Pharmaceuticals Chooses Montgomery County, MD for Its New Headquarters
Company revolutionizes medicine manufacturing to allow production whenever and wherever needed
Rockville, Md. — On Demand Pharmaceuticals (ODP), an innovative pharmaceutical manufacturing company, has selected Rockville in Montgomery County, Maryland, for its new GMP manufacturing, research, development and headquarters facility.
ODP recently signed a $20 million contract with the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to develop a domestic production capability for critical active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) and medicines using its proprietary Pharmacy on Demand (PoD) technology. PoD is a modular manufacturing machine the size of a small household refrigerator that can be quickly customized to produce pharmaceuticals from key starting materials to API and final formulated drugs.
ODP’s on demand manufacturing approach will enable a more resilient domestic medicine production capability and create secure alternatives to KSMs (key starting materials) and APIs currently sourced from offshore manufacturers. PoD’s small-scale, adaptive and distributed manufacturing has the ability to provide an adequate, safe and reliable supply of medicines to communities around the world.
ODP is creating a state-of-the-art 44,500 square foot facility in Rockville. The company selected Montgomery County for its first commercial location over Boston, Princeton, NJ, and other locations around the country. It expects to have up to 75 employees by the end of 2021 and potentially hundreds at the end of five years.
“Montgomery County is ideal for government partners who need to be in Washington, D.C. regularly and want to access the experienced talent here,” said Dr. Geoffrey Ling, CEO and co-founder of ODP. “Our physical needs were critical as we needed to scale up our operations quickly in response to the COVID-19 crisis, and Montgomery County had a site that worked for our use, a flexible landlord experienced with life sciences, and local officials who helped to expedite the move.”
Dr. Ling views ODP’s technology as a crucial breakthrough for healthcare workers in some of the world’s most difficult environments. A key advantage of the PoD system is its flexibility; the same machines can be easily switched to make different medicines and in various formulations. This versatility has the potential to produce low volume drugs, such as those for rare diseases, at the fraction of their current cost.
“On Demand Pharmaceuticals will feel right at home here in Montgomery County, MD, where they join a wide array of ground-breaking innovators,” said County Executive Marc Elrich. “Our county is the place for diverse and highly capable businesses to nurture ideas and see them come to fruition.”
“This technology is revolutionary for the pharmaceutical industry in some of the same ways that iconic IT brands designed around the end user have been revolutionary,” said Benjamin H. Wu, MCEDC President & CEO. “On Demand’s PoD technology has the potential to produce life-saving medicines within reach of every American while also safeguarding our nation’s security through greater domestic manufacturing production.”
MCEDC connected the company with the City of Rockville for expedited permitting review. “The City of Rockville changed its permitting systems in the last few years to be more business friendly and was ready to nimbly meet the needs for this project,” said Cindy Rivarde, CEO of Rockville Economic Development Inc. “The City also gave ODP high priority in processing due to the pressing public health needs and ODP’s strong positive economic impact to our community.”
MCEDC also connected ODP with Facility Logix, a Montgomery County company that specializes in the design and construction of biotech manufacturing and R&D facilities. “As a member of the local life sciences community, we were pleased to work closely with ODP to help them with their commercial facility design and implementation. We helped them avoid costly overruns so they could focus on their core and unique mission to change pharmaceutical delivery,” said Pat Larrabee, CEO of Facility Logix.
ODP, as a Maryland company, is eligible for state tax credits through the More Jobs for Marylanders (MJM) and Job Creation Tax Credits (JCTC) programs, as well as a Partnership for Workforce Quality (PWQ) grant.
Dr. Ling developed the ODP concept while serving as a Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Army. When Dr. Ling was deployed at a combat hospital in Afghanistan, a wounded American soldier needed a life-saving treatment that was not available onsite. The treatment was flown in from a base in Germany, a time-consuming and costly undertaking. Dr. Ling turned frustration into inspiration when he realized he could have made the drug himself with some simple starting ingredients. His idea came to fruition through work at MIT funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
ODP recently received a number of federal contracts. In addition to the DOD/HHS contract to further develop PoD, ODP received a DARPA contract in June to produce key starting materials in a GMP space. Read more about the present and future plans for On Demand Pharmaceuticals.
ABOUT MCEDC
The Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation (MCEDC) is the official public-private economic development organization representing Montgomery County, Maryland. Created in 2016, MCEDC is led by a Board of Directors of business executives. Its mission is to help businesses start, grow and relocate in Montgomery County by helping them gain access to top talent, business and market intelligence and prime locations. For more information, visit our website. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
ABOUT ODP
On Demand Pharmaceuticals (ODP) is an innovative pharmaceutical manufacturing company creating new reconfigurable medicine production systems that enable rapid response when conditions are uncertain and changing. Our mission is to provide an adequate, safe, and reliable supply of medicines to every community across the world. ODP is led by an experienced team of chemical engineers, materials science experts, pharmacists, pharmacologists, and organic chemists. www.ondemandpharma.com
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