UK Continuous, Integrated Biologics Manufacturing Project

A consortium of five pharmaceutical companies, technology suppliers, and a Catapult centre is building an automated continuous purification unit for biologic drugs. Biologic drugs—complex medicines made from living cells—are currently manufactured in large batches, a process that is slow, wasteful, and expensive. The industry needs cheaper, faster, and more flexible production methods to keep these treatments affordable as they become more common. This project addresses that gap by replacing batch purification with a continuous, integrated system where multiple purification steps run simultaneously and automatically. If successful, the new unit could shrink the physical footprint of manufacturing facilities, reduce material waste, and cut production times for a wide range of biologic drugs. That could lower manufacturing costs, potentially making treatments for conditions such as arthritis, cancer, and autoimmune diseases more accessible. It also means facilities could be built closer to patients, reducing supply chain fragility. The project is applied engineering—it aims to deliver a working prototype, not to discover new biology—but its impact would be felt in the quiet efficiency of the pharmaceutical supply chain that delivers medicines to hospital pharmacies and patients.