Sterigenics expands European capacity with new state-of-the-art gamma sterilization facility in the UK

Sterigenics announced that it is building a new facility in Markham Vale North in Chesterfield/Derbyshire, UK. The facility will significantly expand Sterigenics’ footprint in Europe to help meet the growing sterilization needs of its customers and support the company’s mission of Safeguarding Global HealthTM.

Scheduled for completion in the fourth quarter, 2018, the facility will include the installation of a state-of-the-art Nordion JS10000 gamma irradiator with a research loop. The new 60,000-square-foot facility will add gamma sterilization capabilities in the UK to complement Sterigenics’ existing ethylene oxide (EtO) facility based in Somercotes/Derbyshire.

“Sterigenics is committed to being the world’s leading provider of sterilization services and partnering with our customers to eliminate threats to human health,” said Philip Macnabb, President of Sterigenics. “We continue to invest in our global network to meet our customers’ growing demand for gamma irradiation capacity as a critical step in their product development processes. Our new Markham Vale facility will strengthen our ability to serve our European customers, particularly in the MedTech and pharmaceutical fields, and help them innovate with success.”

The new facility will provide routine gamma, GammaStat® rapid processing and process validation, as well as laboratory testing services in nearby Somercotes through its Nelson Labs business. The facility will expand Sterigenics’ total gamma irradiation capacity in Europe, adding to existing gamma facilities located in Belgium and Italy.

“Our Markham Vale North facility is strategically located to serve the needs of our European customers,” said Adrian Wye, Director of UK Operations. “Its prime location at the heart of the UK’s motorway network will provide an optimum location for their supply chain logistics. And our facility’s high-tech capabilities will deliver the turnaround times necessary to distribute their products to market quickly.”

To address the growing need for sterilization in many parts of the world, Sterigenics is making significant investments in technology to expand both gamma and ethylene oxide (EtO) sterilization capacity throughout its global network. In August 2017, it completed a major expansion of its Forth Worth facility, adding gamma capacity and increasing total sterilization throughput. In June 2017, it completed a project that significantly increased throughput at its operation in West Memphis, Arkansas, and in 2015, it opened a significant expansion in Gurnee, Illinois. In addition, Sterigenics has recently expanded its EtO facilities in Ontario, California; Costa Rica; and Wiesbaden, Germany. Further announcements are expected in the near future.