NEW YORK – The US Department of the Air Force and the Department of Health and Human Services awarded Eurofins Genomics US a $30 million contract to build a new production facility and to expand manufacturing capacity for the reagents used in COVID-19 diagnostic tests.
The new facility will focus on producing GMP-grade DNA, used in all PCR-based COVID-19 tests.
These DNA species, also known as oligos, are a key testing reagent but are vulnerable to supply shortages and manufacturers can face capacity constraints during peaks in demand, as has occurred throughout the pandemic. Eurofins' partnership with DAF and HHS aims to address that constraint.
The new facility will be located in Louisville, Kentucky, next to the company's US logistical hub. The proximity of the two facilities is expected to facilitate the fast and reliable distribution of reagents across the country.
Eurofins has been active in COVID-19 testing, having recently added SARS-CoV-2 mutation detection capabilities to its RT-PCR-based COVID-19 testing kit.