Queensland bio‍manufacturing facility nearing completion

The Translational Research Institute (TRI) will soon open a cGMP biomedical manufacturing facility in Queensland.

Queensland Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie officially unveiled the name of the facility that is nearing completion next door to TRI at Woolloongabba.

The facility has been named ENTRI, acknowledging its role in lifting barriers to entry for biotech and medtech scale-ups in Australia and enabling the translation of research from bench to bedside.

“ENTRI is ideally situated on the Princess Alexandra Hospital campus and within Brisbane’s thriving Boggo Road Innovation Precinct, and will launch Queensland as the epicentre of biomanufacturing in Australia,” the Deputy Premier said. “As part of the Queensland Government’s refocus on three new priority industries, including biomedical, I’m looking forward to seeing the industry development and innovation that will take shape at ENTRI and the broader precinct.”

ENTRI is jointly funded by TRI and the Queensland Government and will address a critical capability gap in Australia, enabling companies to access cGMP cleanrooms, the global gold standard for biomanufacturing.

TRI Chief Executive Officer Professor Maher Gandhi said the more than $100 million investment will accelerate research from the bench to the bedside and create a pipeline for future jobs in the health, medtech and biological sector.

“This will really make people sit up and take notice,” Gandhi said. “Ahead of the international launch of our Expression of Interest campaign at BIO 2025, we have had some great discussions with key life sciences stakeholders.

“We are confident our new capability will be attractive to international companies because it enables the integration of manufacturing with clinical trials in Australia, enabling internationals to take advantage of Australia’s speed to the clinic and further reducing the overall cost of development programs through Australia’s R&D Tax Incentive.”

TRI Head of Commercial Operations Dr Ryan Parlett said the facility will enable the manufacture of a range of products, including biologics (both mammalian and microbial), pDNA, RNA-based products (including mRNA-LNP), cell therapies (both allogeneic and autologous), drug–device combination products, and support drug product (including sterile liquid vials).

“Tenants will have access to cGMP cleanrooms, PC2-compliant wet labs and office space to enable companies to undertake their own cGMP manufacturing, onsite quality control, process and analytical development,” he said. “Combined with onsite technical support and training, companies will be able to scale up and continue ongoing cGMP manufacturing for Phase 1, Phase 2 and Phase 3 clinical trials that meets both international and Australian requirements.

“ENTRI offers the benefits of in-house manufacturing, combined with the advantages of an external site. This delivers strategic benefits, streamlined operations and long-term cost efficiencies.”

AusBiotech CEO Rebekah Cassidy welcomes the announcement, saying it sends a signal regarding the Queensland Government’s ongoing commitment to strengthening critical capabilities and accelerating the scale-up of Australian health innovation.

“Australia’s life sciences sector is thriving, with close to 1600 biotech and medtech companies nationwide. ENTRI will be a game changer, enabling companies to scale and manufacture on home soil. We look forward to supporting the pipeline of innovation this investment will unlock.”

Image: On a site tour of ENTRI are Deputy Premier Jarrod Bleijie, Professor Maher Gandhi and Emeritus Professor David Siddle.