CDMO AGC Biologics is laying off just under 4% of its workforce across its headquarters in Seattle, WA, a site in Boulder, CO, and “some supporting global functional areas,” a company spokesperson told Endpoints News in an email.
“AGC Biologics continues to navigate the changing economies of our industry, and other external factors that have impacted our organization and many of our partners worldwide over the last year,” the spokesperson said. “To position ourselves for the future, we have reached an inflection point where we need to adjust business priorities, and right size and rebalance the resources of our organization.”
The company employs at least 2,500 staffers, according to its website. The Seattle site provides mammalian and microbial biologics manufacturing, while the Boulder facility supports large-scale manufacturing of mammalian-based commercial and late-stage assets.
Outside the US, it has facilities in Copenhagen, Denmark; Heidelberg, Germany; Milan, Italy; and Chiba, Japan.
“While these are never easy decisions, we believe these changes will help us refocus resources and operate more effectively as the company navigates a changing biopharma industry,” the spokesperson said.
AGC Biologics has a third US site in Longmont, CO, which offers cell therapy and viral vector manufacturing services.
It is currently building a facility in Yokohama, Japan, worth 50 billion Japanese yen ($350.5 million) that is estimated to employ 400 people. The new site will be completed in 2026 and will house preclinical and commercial mammalian-based protein biologics, mRNA and cell therapy capabilities.