Unither Pharmaceuticals, a French-based pharmaceutical contract and development manufacturing company, plans to invest $106 million to consolidate, renovate, and update its facility in the Town of Henrietta, Monroe County as part of an effort to modernize its New York State operations. The significant investment will support a 43,000 square-foot expansion to accommodate new equipment, expand warehouse capabilities, and update the facility’s laboratories in a more energy-efficient building.
In addition, Unither will demolish portions of the Jefferson Road facility to improve operational efficiencies, reduce carbon emissions, and implement other energy cost-saving measures. In exchange for a state investment, Unither has committed to creating up to 180 high-quality jobs over the next five years, in addition to 300 employees currently on site.
“Unither’s major investment in Monroe County will help to further establish Upstate New York as not only a leader in next-generation manufacturing, but also as a pioneer in green technology,” Governor Kathy Hochul said. “More and more, businesses are looking to New York as the place to grow, create, and innovate, and my administration will continue to work with any business looking to call our state home and help drive our economy into the 21st century.”
Unither Pharmaceuticals CEO Eric Goupil said, “We are extremely pleased to benefit from the support of Empire State Development, Monroe County, RG & E, and Greater Rochester Enterprise in extending our facility while reducing our carbon footprint. Unither’s purpose is to provide innovative, competitive, and easy to use solutions to simplify the life of patients around the world while reducing our Carbon footprint and our impact on the environment and taking care of our employees to offer them job opportunities and careers possibilities. This expansion will enable our Rochester plant to increase its capacity on preservative-free sterile products and will allow us to support our customers in their growth. Thanks to the dynamism of all local stakeholders, we are confident to reach a leadership position in the US.”
Unither Pharmaceuticals, which purchased the Monroe County facility in 2013, produces several lines of medications and medication delivery options including, Preservative-Free Blow-Fill-Seal products for eye drops and inhalation; liquid stick packs for oral solutions and suspensions; bottled cough and cold syrup and capsules with extended release. In addition to its manufacturing capabilities, the company also offers a wide range of services to support pharmaceutical drug development, clinical studies, regulatory support and technical transfer prior to commercialization. Founded 30 years ago and headquartered in Paris, France, Unither maintains manufacturing facilities in the US, France, Brazil and China, employing more than 2,300 people worldwide.
Empire State Development is supporting Unither with its modernization plan with up to $7 million in through the performance-based Excelsior Jobs Tax Credit program. Monroe County, Rochester Gas & Electric and Greater Rochester Enterprise are also assisting with the project.
