About 15 million euros invested, more than 1,050 square meters, 30 percent of spaces upgraded
Ribbon cutting took place in the presence of Governor Marsilio
The new Sterile Department 4 at the Alfasigma plant in Alanno, Pescara province, was inaugurated on November 18th together with the other new facilities in the presence of the Abruzzo Region President Marco Marsilio. A state-of-the-art technological center achieved thanks to the investment of about 15 million euros, which is part of the broader plan of continuous growth and development and progressive investment that Alfasigma is carrying out continuously on its laboratories and production lines.
After the inauguration of Labio 4.0 Marino Golinelli in Pomezia, Lazio – which took place in 2021 - Alfasigma confirms its commitment with a major modernization project at the Alanno site, thanks to a partial revamping and expansion of the existing area. Sterile Department 4 represents the completion of a broader investment plan of the injectable manufacture that has seen the construction of two new aseptic areas - the Sterile 3 and Sterile 4 area - for a total of 1,050 square meters, of which 30 percent consists of upgraded spaces over a period of 3 years.
The Sterile 4 Department, which reflects the requirements of Industry 4.0, is strategic in terms of corporate business for the production of pre-filled syringes and new opportunities in CDMO (Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization).
The area has also recently been authorized by the Italian Drug Agency (AIFA) for the production of immunological products such as vaccines, which today represents one of the fastest growing forms in pharmaceutical manufacturing. This is an important milestone that will expand growth prospects over the next five years. The automatic filling machine installed inside Sterile Department 4 is capable of processing up to 36 thousand syringes per hour.
The production plant in Alanno
The Alanno plant represents a state-of-the-art production facility on the Italian and international pharmaceutical scene with significant numbers: more than 400 people employed for an average annual production of more than 550 million single doses of oral solids, 82 million injectables, 52 million packs of finished product and more than 90 markets served.
"The plant's main growth drivers in recent years have been the continuous expansion of exports of internally manufactured products to new markets, the progressive specialization of the site in the production of high-value injectable forms, and the high quality of the products manufactured," specifies Giandrea Favetti, Head of Operations Alanno.
The path to sustainable growth: Alfasigma projects to reduce carbon footprint
During the inauguration, the new building used as a GMP area "General Changing Rooms" was also presented: the first Alfasigma building built in compliance with NZEB (Near Zero Energy Building) energy-saving standards. In addition, the company is working on a new trigeneration and photovoltaic plant.
The project is scheduled to be completed by 2023 and will reduce annual emissions by about 2,200 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, corresponding to the annual electricity consumption of 1,100 households, 390 hectares of planted forest or 13,100 round-trip flights per year Milan - Düsseldorf.
"We plan to invest about 5 million euros on these projects," stresses Giuseppe Allocca, Corporate Industrial Operations Executive Director. "We believe that reducing the Carbon Footprint, saving energy, raw materials and recycling are the real growth drivers for a company.”
The Relationship with the University of L'Aquila and the Territory.
Alfasigma also developed a highly automated robotic station through joint work with Novatec Srl, a spin-off from the University of L'Aquila.
"The Robotic Material Handling and Machine Tending System 4.0 is a highly automated robotic station servicing a sterile bottle-filling line built with the logic of Industry 4.0, with high work capacity and reduced operator commitment," says Antonio Sanseverino, Head of Engineering & EHS Alanno. "In fact, every minute, 300 glass bottles are inserted into the filling line and 300 medicinal bottles are loaded onto pallets.”
"This is a further success for Alfasigma," comments Edoardo Alesse, Rector of the University of L'Aquila and former President of the Abruzzo Region's Chemical-Pharmaceutical Innovation Pole CAPITANK, "which denotes a great spirit of innovation and a strong territorial rootedness. The University of L'Aquila, in fully interpreting its vocation to the third mission, is in this important event at the side of Alfasigma and the entire pharmaceutical sector, the real wealth of the Abruzzo Region, and makes itself available with its wealth of knowledge, to synergistically affect the economic and social welfare of the Abruzzo territory."
The inauguration was also held in the presence of the Alanno Mayor Oscar Pezzi, who said, "The Alanno plant has represented, since the 1980s, a concrete reality aimed at the development of employment as well as of our territory. The opening of a new production department is synonymous with trust in our community."