Vaxxas opens new Brisbane manufacturing facility

Biotechnology company Vaxxas in partnership with the Queensland Government, has announced the opening of its global headquarters and state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Brisbane.

The company, which is commercialising a needle-free vaccine patch platform, has opened its custom-built 5,500m² Vaxxas Biomedical Facility to support the scale-up of Vaxxas’ needle-free vaccine technology platform.

The company’s high-density microarray patch (HD-MAP) is being developed for late-stage clinical trials and first commercial products.

Vaxxas Chief Executive Officer David Hoey said the facility’s opening marked a significant milestone for the biotech company which was founded in 2011 on research from The University of Queensland.

“The site will significantly increase our manufacturing capacity, creating new local and skilled jobs, while enabling Vaxxas to progress through late-stage clinical trials that will bring our first commercial vaccine products to the market.”

Vaxxas’ proprietary HD-MAP technology platform has the potential to improve vaccination by creating vaccine products that are easy to use, potentially enable self-administration, and can be stable at room temperature, according to the company.

Hoey said said: “With several completed and successful human clinical trials involving more than 500 participants, ongoing Australian Phase I clinical studies for COVID-19 and seasonal influenza and other vaccine studies targeting pandemic influenza funded by the United States Government and a measles-rubella study funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, expected to start in 2024, Vaxxas’ vaccine patch technology platform is advancing rapidly toward commercialisation.”

The facility contains two independent Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), qualified aseptic cleanrooms, medical device manufacturing space, a device assembly cleanroom, and supporting infrastructure including laboratories and office space.

The Vaxxas Biomedical Facility is expected to support up to 200 local, skilled jobs and produce millions of vaccine patches per year once fully operational, contributing to Queensland’s local economy.

The Queensland Government provided funding and operational support to Vaxxas in developing the site. Additional funding has been provided by the federal government through its Modern Manufacturing Initiative.

Picture: Vaxxas