Merck Expands BioReliance� Viral Clearance Offering in Singapore, Saving Customers Time

• Allows customers to continue
  developing lifesaving medicines amid Covid-19 pandemic
• Customers can view the lab studies
  “live” with Merck scientists

SINGAPORE
-�Media OutReach - 15 September 2020 – Merck, a leading science and
technology company,
today announced an expansion of its Singapore biosafety
testing laboratory services. These services allow customers to conduct viral
clearance studies that ensure the safety and quality of their biological drugs
during the clinical development process.

 

Merck
scientists conduct viral clearance studies in the BioReliance® Lab in Singapore
(Photograph by Merck KGaA)

“With Covid-19 travel restricted between many
APAC countries, this expansion allows our customers to continue developing lifesaving
medicines without having to travel to our BioReliance^® laboratory in
Singapore,” said Mr. Chris Ross, interim
sector head of the Life Science business of Merck.

Viral capacity at Merck’s Singapore lab has
increased by 50 per cent to meet demand from biopharmaceutical and cell and
gene therapy developers and manufacturers in Asia Pacific. Merck’s BioReliance^®
technical team performs viral capacity studies that adhere to the customer’s
protocol using technology and process enhancements that allow the customer to
have a similar experience remotely via secure, “live” feed video. Customers do
not need to travel away from their home labs and can watch experiments and
receive real-time updates as their process runs. The
complete viral clearance services offered by Merck scientists
include inactivation, filtration and chromatography, all conducted in a Good Laboratory Practice environment. All services
are supported by project managers fluent in Chinese, Japanese and Korean and help ensure the safe release of leading medicines to patients around
the world.

“We are delighted that Merck has
decided to expand its BioReliance® lab in Singapore to include viral clearance
capabilities,” said Ms. Goh Wan Yee,
Senior Vice President, Healthcare, Singapore Economic Development Board.
“The move is especially timely, as it will facilitate faster and easier testing
for biopharmaceutical companies in the region amid the ongoing COVID-19
pandemic. In the long term, companies such as Merck contribute significantly to
building a holistic supporting ecosystem which will enhance the
biopharmaceutical industry.”

Singapore
is a leading global science and technology research and development hub
committed to growing the biomedical science sector, which has made the life
science industry a key economic driver. Demand for viral clearance services has
been increasing since the inauguration of Merck’s biosafety lab in Singapore in
2018. Travel restrictions related to the Covid-19 pandemic have accelerated the
implementation of complete clearance services in the Singapore labs to support
biologics customers in Asia. The complete viral clearance service is available
in Singapore now, with the increased capacity coming online by April 2021.

Merck supports scientists around
the world in efforts to accelerate development of treatments for and vaccines against
Covid-19 by
supplying materials, solutions and bioprocessing manufacturing platforms from its life science business. These offerings support
more than 35 testing solutions, among them eight of the top 10 In-Vitro
Diagnostic market leaders; more than 50 different vaccine candidates; and more
than 20?monoclonal antibodies, plasma products and antivirals.

About Merck in Singapore

Merck established its presence in Singapore in 1973
to promote Merck products in South East Asia under E. Merck Pte. Ltd.
(Singapore). Merck (Singapore) Pte Ltd. was founded on August 26, 1994. Merck
Singapore is the regional headquarters in Asia Pacific with more than 360
employees supporting the healthcare, life science and performance materials
businesses. Merck Singapore is also the regional training and application hub,
offering technology transfer and services including testing, process
optimization for the Life Science industry in the region.

The Life Science business sector of Merck offers a
broad portfolio of tools and solutions with more than 300,000 products, ranging
from lab water systems to gene editing tools, antibodies, cell lines, to end-to-end
solutions to help customers in developing and manufacturing drugs. We work
closely with our customers from academia, biotech and pharma to help deliver
the promise of their work better, faster and safer.

The Healthcare business sector of Merck focuses on
designing and developing medicines and intelligent devices that provide ongoing
care for patients beyond their treatment. This includes new medications to
treat conditions such as cancer or multiple sclerosis, but also innovative
technologies that make life easier for patients. Our goal is to help people at
every stage of life — also when it comes to creating new life especailly as the
global market leader in fertility treatments.

The Performance Materials business sector of Merck is
a leading solutions provider in the premium segment of high-tech materials and
functional specialty chemicals. These materials are widely used in the wafer
fabs industry of Singapore.

About
Merck

Merck, a leading science and technology company,
operates across healthcare, life science and performance materials. Around 57,000
employees work to make a positive difference to millions of people’s lives
every day by creating more joyful and sustainable ways to live. From advancing
gene editing technologies and discovering unique ways to treat the most
challenging diseases to enabling the intelligence of devices — the company is
everywhere. In 2019, Merck generated sales of €16.2 billion in 66 countries.

Scientific exploration and responsible
entrepreneurship have been key to Merck’s technological and scientific
advances. This is how Merck has thrived since its founding in 1668. The
founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed company.
Merck holds the global rights to the Merck name and brand. The only exceptions
are the United States and Canada, where the business sectors of Merck operate
as EMD Serono in healthcare, MilliporeSigma in life science and EMD Performance
Materials.