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Gov. Nathan Deal today joined with officials from Cobb County, the City of Marietta and the Cobb Chamber of Commerce to announce that Osmotica Pharmaceutical Corp. will open a U.S. R&D and manufacturing operation in Marietta. The company plans to create 156 jobs over five years, many of which will be high-wage positions. The new facility also represents a $20 million investment over the next five years. The company currently utilizes five contract manufacturers around the United States to produce its products.
“Georgia is becoming a global player in the bioscience industry, and our aggressive efforts to attract companies such as Osmotica is a great marker of our ability to compete in this area,” Deal said. “We have the infrastructure in place that will encourage success as Osmotica opens its first U.S. facility right here in our state. From our premier research institutions, the strength of our progressive business environment and robust pool of talent, Georgia is well equipped as a strategic home for the bioscience industry.”
Osmotica is a global pharmaceutical company with principal and commercial operations located in the United States, Argentina and Hungary. The company specializes in drug delivery technologies and neurology-based therapies, and develops time release technologies and products for itself and for pharmaceutical companies such as UCB Pharma and Sanofi-aventis. Osmotica has a portfolio of products in various stages of development focused on the treatment of MS and Parkinson’s disease. It currently has five products in the U.S. market including the well-known Allegra-D® 24-hour antihistamine and decongestant licensed to Sanofi-aventis. The company also utilizes its well-established drug delivery technologies (including its Osmodex® technologies), and its expertise to develop drug candidates for itself as it now begins its own commercial operations.
“We appreciate Governor Deal’s personal involvement in our decision-making process in selecting Marietta, Georgia as a new home for our expanding operations. In addition, the City of Marietta, Cobb County and their respective agencies have been instrumental in facilitating our move to this great area,” said Forrest Waldon, CEO of Osmotica. “We are fortunate to have found this unique combination of facilities, an experienced talent pool of professionals, facilitative government authorities and a very beautiful community to grow our company. On a personal note, it has been a wonderful opportunity for me to spend time once again in the area where my professional career began in the 1980s. Georgia remains as beautiful as I remember it.”
Osmotica is located in the recently vacated administration and manufacturing buildings of the former Solvay Pharmaceuticals headquarters, located off Sawyer Road in Marietta, and will be operational later this summer. This company is the latest bioscience business to bring a corporate campus to Cobb County, joining Quintiles Transnational Corp. and UCB Pharma, Inc. The newly created positions at the Marietta biomanufacturing facility range from R&D operations, production, other functional areas and key management.
“The announcement of this highly regarded, quality international pharmaceutical company locating in Marietta is a true honor for our community,” said Steve Tumlin, mayor of Marietta. “Osmotica will bring opportunities in the form of careers for our citizens, customers for our merchants, restaurants and suppliers, new neighbors in our residential neighborhoods and a boost for our schools and universities.”
In addition to Georgia’s pro-business climate, Osmotica selected Marietta and Cobb County from among competing sites due in part to the access to highly skilled labor for this industry, and the competitive logistics advantages present in the metropolitan Atlanta region that efficiently connect bioscience companies to customers in global markets.
“Cobb County ranks as one of the top locations in metro Atlanta and Georgia for biotechnology companies. Our economic development team is focused on the recruitment and retention of this key industry and proactively markets Cobb as a destination for the biotech industry,” said Rob Garcia, chairman of the Cobb Chamber of Commerce.
The Georgia Department of Economic Development partnered with the City of Marietta, the Cobb Chamber of Commerce, Cobb County Office of Economic Development and Electric Cities of Georgia to secure this project for the state. Marietta-based CobbWorks, a nonprofit focused on workforce services and recruitment, will help Osmotica recruit and train new employees on the job.
“It is no surprise that this year’s largest biotech economic development announcement in the state is happening here in Cobb County. Our Office of Economic Development, the Cobb Chamber of Commerce and the City of Marietta have shared our vision of bringing in new, high-wage jobs in the biotech industry,” said Tim Lee, chairman of Cobb County Board of Commissioners. “Our community offers a highly trained workforce, a solid infrastructure and a pro-business environment that makes a difference.”
Georgia’s bioscience industry cluster includes more than 300 multinational firms, consisting of many small- and medium-sized companies that include the full scope of the bioscience sector. “Georgia’s stock as a true competitor in life sciences industries is enhanced when we are able to successfully attract leading global companies like Osmotica to establish operations in our state,” said Chris Cummiskey, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Economic Development. “The growth of Georgia’s bioscience cluster is a top priority for our state, so we are committed to strengthening our resources and infrastructure to ensure that companies in this industry can compete and succeed here and in markets around the world.”
About Osmotica Pharmaceutical Corp.
Osmotica Pharmaceutical is a multinational group of privately owned pharmaceutical companies (Osmotica Group) specializing in neurology based drug therapies and innovative drug delivery technologies. Osmotica has a portfolio of products in various stages of development focused in the treatment of motion disorders related to CNS diseases such as Parkinson’s and Multiple Sclerosis. In addition, Osmotica has developed and received approval for numerous value-added and innovative products which utilize its Osmodex® family of controlled release drug delivery technologies. Osmotica’s proprietary drug delivery technologies also include other innovative combination drug therapy technologies. The Osmotica Group conducts its research and development in facilities in Budapest, Hungary, and Buenos Aires, Argentina, and has executive and administrative offices in Wilmington, N.C.
The Osmotica Group has a track record of successfully developing and commercializing products in the United States, Europe, South America and other countries around the world.
(Allegra-D® is a registered trademark of Sanofi-aventis U.S.)
