Belgian contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) Ardena has launched Ardena LSI, a new business arm dedicated to the sale of chemical ingredients and intermediates for the life science industry.

Ardena will manufacture ingredients including 1,4-butanediol diglycidyl ether (BDDE) and 1-ethyl-3-3(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide hydrochloride (EDC-HCl) Ultra-pure at its GMP-certified plants in Europe. The ingredients can be used by pharmaceutical manufacturers in the development of drug products and for applications in health care and cosmetics products such as dermal fillers.

“We have built up extensive experience as a CDMO in the area of chemical synthesis and through Ardena LSI we are now harnessing that experience to manufacture high-quality chemical ingredients that are essential for pharmaceutical manufacturers in European markets,” said CEO Harry Christiaens.

Ardena was formed in 2017 from the merger of three previously acquired companies – Pharmavize in Belgium, Crystallics and Analytical Biochemical Laboratory in the Netherlands.

The Ghent-headquartered company has continued its acquisition strategy since then, having acquired two companies in 2018, notably ChemConnection in March and Syntagon in May. Originating from Organon, part of Merck Sharp & Dohme, in 2012, Netherlands-based ChemConnection is a contract manufacturer of novel APIs and nanomedicines.

Syntagon, another CDMO specializing in APIs and excipients as well as GMP chromatographic purification processes, was Ardena’s first acquisition outside the Benelux region, bringing sites in Sweden and Latvia. Ardena now operates six facilities, including its headquarters in Ghent, and sites in Oss, Amsterdam and Assen in the Netherlands.