New Zealand’s largest medical R&D facility opens in West Auckland

Media Release

14 September 2022

A state-of-the-art research and development facility, using world-class medical research to find solutions for a range of serious illnesses, has opened in West Auckland.

Some of the life-changing human trials managed by the team at Douglas Innovation include treatments for inflammatory bowel disease, cervical dysplasia and a very encouraging medicinal candidate helping those with treatment-resistant depression.

Managing Director Jeff Douglas says, “The team at Douglas Innovation works with university researchers and clinicians from around the globe. They translate this research into formulations and manage clinical studies that assess safety and effectiveness in the patient group”.

“We will eventually out-license those results to larger pharmaceutical companies for commercialisation” he says.

Mr Douglas says this new facility is central to the company’s mission of ‘Improving Lives’ and is very hopeful many people will benefit from the medical solutions it uncovers for serious unmet medical needs.

Douglas Pharmaceutical’s Chief Scientific Officer, Dr Peter Surman says “Our expertise is finding new uses for well-established medicines, and we are cutting our teeth with peptides and enzymes. We have a good success rate registering medicines with the United States FDA and European Union regulatory authorities and offer this service together with our formulation, clinical and medical affairs support services”.

The $50MM Douglas Innovation centre is part of the long-established Douglas Pharmaceuticals company. The three-story, 4,500sq metre building has been 18 months in construction. It employs 100 people and includes a laboratory, pilot scale product development suites, commercial manufacturing rooms which can handle highly potent and cytotoxic products and office space. Manufacturing capabilities include soft gelatine encapsulation, liquids, creams, and modified release oral dosage forms.