New Bedford, Massachusetts, August 3, 2021 – The Cardinal Group USA, LLC, an IPS company, and IPS-Integrated Project Services, LLC, leading providers of engineering, procurement, construction management, and validation (EPCMV) services, announces their participation in the upcoming groundbreaking ceremony for the new Tonix Pharmaceuticals Holding Corp. (Nasdaq: TNXP) Advanced Development Center (ADC) turnkey integrated design-build 45,000 square foot facility.
The groundbreaking ceremony is being held today, August 3rd, 2021, at 11:00 a.m. ET marking the official start of construction. Executives from Tonix, Cardinal, IPS, the project teams, and media outlets will all be in attendance. U.S. Representative Bill Keating is expected to attend the event, along with Massachusetts Housing and Economic Development Secretary, Mike Kennealy, the mayor of New Bedford, Jon Mitchell, and President and Chief Executive Officer of Tonix, Seth Lederman, M.D.
The Cardinal Group was awarded the project based on an integrated delivery approach, with IPS as the Engineer of Record. Their combined technical expertise and experience is critical to the success of this aggressive schedule-driven project. IPS developed an integrated delivery approach to match the technical expertise and experience required to deliver the project with the quickest delivery schedule possible. This accelerated project schedule will produce a new development and CGMP manufacturing facility that uses viral vaccine processing. Tonix expects the facility to be operational in the first half of 2022. This facility includes single-use bioreactors and purification suites with equipment for Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) production of vaccines for clinical trials. When fully operational, it will have the capability of producing sterile vaccines in glass bottles. In addition, the facility will have research, development, and supporting analytical capabilities. The ADC is intended to be biosafety level 2 (BSL-2). At full capacity, the facility can employ up to 70 researchers, scientists, manufacturing and technical support staff. The facility is located in the town of Dartmouth, Massachusetts, in the New Bedford Business Park. The two municipalities work together to accommodate businesses located in the Dartmouth portion of the park as the roads are inaccessible through Dartmouth, and municipal services are provided by the City of New Bedford.
This project is unique as Tonix is a virtual company and this project is their first facility of this type. The project will be delivered with the New England construction division, The Cardinal Group USA, LLC, an IPS company. IPS-Cardinal was selected because Tonix required a partner who could deliver the entire turnkey project with minimal oversight and could meet their aggressive schedule and speed to market delivery. To meet the challenge, IPS-Cardinal provided an integrated design-build solution.
“We are excited to have taken the first step in vertically integrating more of our development activities, but, even more importantly, adding a manufacturing capability for clinical trial quality vaccines. We believe this provides Tonix with a competitive advantage, especially in the current COVID-19 environment in which more domestic development and manufacturing capacity is needed,” commented Seth Lederman, M.D., Tonix’s President and Chief Executive Officer.
This groundbreaking ceremony marks the start of a successful partnership between IPS-Cardinal and Tonix Pharmaceuticals. IPS-Cardinal has partnered on several fast-track, technically complex projects and looks forward to further growth in the Northeast to support the biopharma industry.
About IPS-Cardinal
IPS is a global leader in developing innovative business solutions for the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries. Through operational expertise and industry-leading knowledge, skill and passion, IPS provides consulting, architecture, engineering, construction management, and compliance services that allow clients to create and manufacture life-impacting products around the world. Headquartered in Blue Bell, PA-USA, IPS is one of the fastest-growing companies servicing the life sciences industry with over 1,600 professionals in the US, Canada, Brazil, UK, Ireland, Switzerland, Germany, Singapore, China, and India. Cardinal Group USA, LLC is a subsidiary of IPS and was acquired in May 2019. Cardinal is a leader in managing the business of biopharma capital projects with construction management and owner project management services in the New England Region. Together, IPS-Cardinal provides a unique solution for integrated project delivery in the biopharma market. Visit the Cardinal website at www.cardinalgroupusa.com.
