10-04-2024
Plant One new owner of Bioprocess Pilot Facility at Biotech Campus Delft
Plant One, an established pilot plant company specialized in sustainable production processes, will be the new owner of the Bioprocess Pilot Facility at Biotech Campus Delft. Plant One will further develop the current bioprocess facility into a full-service pilot plant for companies active in biobased and/or biotechnology processes, from SME's to multinationals. The deal was signed at the Biotech Campus Delft earlier today.
Scale-up facilities play an important role in the biobased economy to further develop and commercialize biotech innovations. There is a general lack of high-end bioprocessing pilot facilities, hampering the market introduction of promising new technologies.
The Bioprocess Pilot Facility is a fully equipped, 5000 m2 plant located right at the heart of the Biotech Campus Delft. The facility will be available for companies and knowledge institutions with biotechnology as the core enabler for sustainable innovations in amongst others food, biochemistry and renewable energy. Plant One will offer its customers a unique full-service concept to scale-up the production of new products or processes that just have been tested at lab-scale-level. A well-equipped, full-service pilot facility is crucial to help companies through the often challenging scale-up phase, to prepare for production at commercial scale.
Gabriël Tschin, Managing Director of Plant One Rotterdam and Plant One Delft is very happy to have acquired the new location at the Biotech Campus Delft. The acquisition of the Bioprocess Pilot Facility represents a strategic move towards fostering innovation and collaboration within the biotechnology sector.
“Our new biobased facilities are a great addition to our plant in Rotterdam-Botlek. This acquisition aligns perfectly with our vision of leveraging biotechnology to address global challenges and create a more sustainable future," said Gabriel Tschin. "We are committed to nurturing the growth of startups and scale-ups by providing access to state-of-the-art facilities, expertise, and networking opportunities. We will be facilitating the entire process from pre-engineering, safety study, engineering up to installation and putting the (demo) plant into operation. We can keep their processes operational, including crew, maintenance and utilities.
In addition to the chemical pilots, we see a major advance in the bio-industry, the market is growing extensively and Plant One can facilitate new customers with their test-pilots and their demand for growth. The Biotech Campus Delft renowned for its concentration of biotech expertise and resources, serves as an ideal location for Plant One Rotterdam to expand its operations and impact within the industry. By combining the strengths of both organizations, we aim to accelerate the development and commercialization of innovative biotechnological solutions.
We are looking forward to continue our cooperation with Planet B.io and dsm-firmenich, and making our planet a bit more circular every day.”
Plant One was able to acquire the assets of the Bioprocess Pilot Facility, after alignment with dsm-firmenich, as landowner, and the receivers of Bioprocess Pilot Facility BV, E.A.H. ten Berge en K.S.L. van Vliet (Cees Advocaten N.V.)
Biotech Campus Delft was founded by dsm-firmenich and is the largest open innovation campus in Europe focused on biotechnology that boosts the transition to a sustainable, biobased economy. Today the Biotech Campus Delft is home of about 20 SME’s, the production facilities of Centrient Pharmaceuticals as well as R&D laboratories and production of dsm-firmenich’s Business Unit Taste, Texture & Health.
Fedde Sonnema, managing director Biotech Campus Delft: “We are very pleased with Plant One joining the Biotech Campus Delft. Biotech Campus Delft brings together top-class research institutes, R&D, start-ups, scale-ups, fermentation expertise and commercial activities at scale in one location. Plant One, as the new owner of the Bioprocess Pilot Facility, brings proven full-service pilot facilities and expertise, which strengthens the Biotech Campus Delft as fermentation and bioscience hotspot to play a leading role in the world’s transition to a sustainable, bio-based economy.”
The innovation ecosystem on the Biotech Campus Delft is managed and continuously extended by the foundation Planet B.io. Planet B.io supports entrepreneurs to mature a promising idea into a solid business. Planet B.io facilitates collaboration within their network of business partners (startups, scaleups, and corporates), research institutes, technical and business experts and financing partners.
Managing Director of Planet B.io Cindy Gerhardt: “Plant One’s acquisition of the Bioprocess Pilot Facility adds crucial value to our innovation ecosystem. We have a shared vision to create a dynamic and supportive environment, offering essential infrastructure, and providing access to knowledge and talent needed to scale up and commercialize new products. The world clearly needs more sustainable production processes for foods and materials. In the Netherlands we have a unique international position with a strong science base in biotech and agriculture, however scaling up inventions from the lab to a commercial scale is still challenging. We are happy that Plant One joins the Biotech Campus Delft, and look forward to a fruitful collaboration to jointly support the introduction of sustainable, biobased innovations into our society.”
For more information, please contact:
Plant One Delft
Carla van den Heuvel
T 06-42079035
E c.heuvel@plantone-rotterdam-nl
Planet B.io
Cindy Gerhardt
T 06-13210479
Biotech Campus Delft
Monique Vola
T 06-10610251