One glass vial can store multiple doses of a life-saving vaccine. With an expansion in Durham, North Carolina, Corning‘s high-volume manufacturing facility can produce up to 500 million glass vials, which can store nearly 4.3 billion doses annually and aid the progress of public health.
Corning has helped combat COVID-19, ramping up production of its damage-resistant Valor® Glass vials and enabling delivery of over 3 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the past 20 months. Along with Valor Glass, the Durham facility will manufacture Corning’s new Velocity® Vials, Corning Pharmaceutical Technologies’ recently announced innovative technology that directly responds to pharmaceutical supply-chain challenges. The coated borosilicate vials are engineered to improve drug quality and increase pharmaceutical filling line efficiency, compared to conventional borosilicate vials.
Approximately 261 million USD of federal funding from the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) allowed Corning to expand production at Durham and two other Life Sciences facilities. BARDA, a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services office, works with industry partners to secure the development of the necessary vaccines, drugs, therapies, and diagnostic tools for public health medical emergencies.
“As I reflect back to the beginning of the expansion project, the challenges we faced, compounded by the onset of the global pandemic, and now being here today to celebrate this tremendous milestone – it’s truly nothing short of remarkable,” said Brendan Mosher, vice president and general manager, Corning Pharmaceutical Technologies. “I could not be more proud of the many employees you see behind you who have worked tirelessly to make this possible.”
Ron Verkleeren, senior vice president and general manager, Corning Life Sciences, recognized industry partners Moderna, Merck, Pfizer, Catalent, and Thermo Fisher, along with government supporters from U.S. Health and Human Services, the U.S. Department of Defense, North Carolina’s state government, and Durham’s local government for supporting Corning’s contribution to the health of Americans and supporting the United States’ global vaccination efforts.
“In times of great need, Corning has partnered with customers and our government to make a positive impact for the public good,” Verkleeren said. “The pandemic presented a new set of supply chain problems for the industry. This facility significantly expands the domestic supply of pharmaceutical vials for the current pandemic and for future pandemics – greatly improving the domestic industrial base for a critical component of the vaccine supply chain.”