UCB Farchim has invested over 650 million Swiss francs in its Bulle site since 1996. Today, the plant is equipped with the latest innovative, cutting-edge manufacturing tools.

A staggering 60 million people worldwide take an antihistamine that is manufactured entirely in the canton of Fribourg. Since the UCB opened its production facility in the town of Bulle back in 1996, the site has become a pivotal part of the Belgian biopharmaceutical group’s strategic growth plans. Drugs to treat neurological conditions, autoimmune diseases and allergies are manufactured here.

According to Fabrice Véricel, the company’s current director, the 700-strong workforce has more than doubled since he joined the company thirteen years ago. It was around this time that the group announced its ambitious expansion project, the centerpiece of which was a new purpose-built biotech production unit on the existing Bulle site.

In under 30 years, the multinational, which employs 9,000 people worldwide and is a leading global provider of anti-epileptic drugs, has injected more than 650 million Swiss francs in the Bulle site. The investment has paid off, Véricel explains. “The sales revenue from the drugs manufactured at our Bulle site account for a sizeable share of the group’s turnover,” he adds, “and If we were to put all the tablets produced by UCB Farchim end to end, the line would run from Europe to America.”

With global annual revenue topping €5 billion, the Belgian pharma giant has set its sights on even stronger growth. In recent years, it has invested heavily in gene therapy, a still uncrowded sector which the group sees as the future of healthcare.

Building performance and sustainability

Since 2016, the UCB biotech production unit in Bulle has been focusing on making a biopharmaceutical with cultured bacteria to treat a range of inflammatory diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and Crohn’s disease. The imposing facility was recently adapted to accommodate the development and production of another drug, which will treat lupus, an autoimmune disease that mainly affects women. According to the director of the Bulle site, “Phase 3 clinical trials are already under way, so it will be a few more years before we can start manufacturing the drug.”

UCB Bulle is committed to reducing its carbon footprint and has launched several initiatives to mainstream sustainability across all its operations. “To give you one example, we’re currently exploring how we could recycle our industrial wastewater,” explains Fabrice Véricel.