[ad_1]
Pfizer plans to cut the time it takes to produce a batch of COVID-19 vaccine from 110 days to 60 on average by almost half, because it makes the process more efficient and production is expanded, the company told USA TODAY.
As the country ramps up its immunization programs, the increase could help ease bottlenecks caused by vaccine shortages.
“We call it ‘Project Light Speed’, and for a reason,” said Chaz Calitri, Pfizer’s vice president for sterile injectable operations, who runs the company’s facility in Kalamazoo, Michigan. . “Just last month, we doubled production.”
The increase in speed and capacity is not unexpected, said Robert Van Exan, president of immunization policy and knowledge translation, a vaccine production consultancy.
“No one has ever produced mRNA vaccines on this scale, so you can bet manufacturers are learning as they go. I bet you every day they run into a vaccination problem and they solve it every day, and that is in their playbook, ”he said.
From DNA to doses: COVID-19 vaccine life cycles
Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine is manufactured at three Pfizer factories: from Chesterfield, Missouri, Andover, Massachusetts, and Kalamazoo, Michigan. As of Saturday, around 20.6 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine had been administered nationwide.
Pfizer based its production system on how the vaccine was developed in the lab, Calitri said. Normally, engineers would spend years improving efficiency and profitability. This is not what happened with COVID-19.
“We went straight to commercial production,” Calitri said.
As soon as the vaccine vials started rolling off the production line, engineers began to analyze how production could run faster and better.
“We’ve made a lot of really nifty improvements,” he said.
Production is accelerating. For example, the fabrication of the DNA that starts the vaccination process initially took 16 days; soon it will take nine or 10. Although quality control and testing has accelerated, company officials say FDA regulations and best manufacturing practices are still being followed.
In addition to improving speed, Pfizer is also increasing production by adding manufacturing lines at all three factories.
As the vaccination effort continues, efficiencies are expected.
“There are going to be profound changes in the way we do business,” Calitri said. “We just demonstrated to ourselves that we can go from a phone call in March to having now delivered 50 to 60 million doses.”
Contact Elizabeth Weise at [email protected]
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Pfizer plans to reduce COVID-19 vaccine production time by nearly 50%
[ad_2]
Source link