US specialty chemicals producer Ashland has officially opened its first pharmaceutical excipients facility in China. “Opening a world-class excipient facility in Nanjing is a testament to our willingness to partner with industry in China and to support the integrity and usability of pharmaceuticals produced in a country that is rapidly modernizing its healthcare structure,” commented William Wulfsohn, Ashland’s chairman and CEO.

William Zhao, general manager of specialty ingredients, Greater China, added that the investment is “a vote of Ashland’s long-term confidence in the Chinese pharmaceutical industry.” Demand for polymer excipients is rising in China as its pharmaceutical industry modernizes oral drug manufacture and complies with the new quality standards set out in the latest edition of the Chinese Pharmacopoeia, the country’s official drugs compendium, dating from 2015.

Ashland will supply Chinese markets with its cellulose-based excipients, including its brand names Klucel HPC, Benecel HPMC, Blanose CMC and Aqualon EMC. In addition, its range of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)-based polymer excipients will be made available, including Plasdone PVP and Polyplasdone PVPP polymers.

An advanced quality control laboratory also sits alongside the excipient facility, with capability to test products throughout the entire production process. Ashland said the design of its excipients plant and the processing machinery meet the same high standards as its facilities outside of China.

The Kentucky-based company added that it has recently expanded its technical center in Shanghai to support current and prospective Chinese customers with their complex formulation problems. Zhao said these customers will have access to Ashland’s capabilities for bioavailability and solubilisation, as well as the latest coating and tablet formulation technologies.