4. 11. 2015
Krka opens Notol 2 plant – our largest investment to date
4 min. read
On 4 November 2015 Notol 2, solid dosage forms production plant, has been officially opened at Krka’s main location with the Slovenian Prime Minister Dr Miro Cerar attending the ceremony.
The investment is worth EUR 200 million and provides Krka new capacities for applying the vertically integrated business model, allowing it to control the entire process from development to production of raw materials and finished products. The new plant will facilitate the production of 4.5 billion tablets and capsules per year; production started earlier this year in February. Its advantage is a high level of automation and computer support with an emphasis on a computer-controlled production system and an automated computer-controlled system of material flow. The conceptual design of the plant is the result of knowledge and teamwork of Krka’s experts.
“The investment into a new solid dosage forms production plant, Notol 2, which will allow Krka to significantly increase its production capacities, is the result of our desire to increase production due to market needs. With Notol 2 and other investment projects – there are currently around 20 of them underway in the Krka Group – Krka will increase its production capacities by 40% in the next five years, and the scope of production in terms of quantity will increase to 17 billion tablets and capsules per year”, explained Krka’s President of the Management Board and Chief Executive Jože Colarič. He emphasised that Notol 2 is an important achievement for Krka also because it applies the philosophy of the vertically integrated business model. This is one of key strategic advantages in managing the development and production of products from the production of APIs to the production of finished products, and to launching those products to the market.
The investment is worth EUR 200 million, whereby EUR 3 million was contributed by the European Union from the European Regional Development Fund. The Notol 2 plant will provide for the production of strategically important pharmaceutical products, increasing the competitiveness of Krka’s products and consolidating the company’s position on all its markets. Vertically integrated products are the result of Krka’s own development and know-how, representing more than 70% of Krka’s portfolio.
A modern plant with a surface area of 55,000 m2 was completed in two and a half years.
The construction of four buildings with a total surface area of 55,000 m2 connected with bridges to the solid dosage forms production plant Notol and the Finished Products Warehouse started in June 2012 and lasted two and a half years. The building was built in the autumn of 2013 and facility installations were ready for clean rooms to be set up and logistic and technological equipment to be installed.
In 2014, qualifications and validations of systems (the logistic system, technological equipment and technological media) were carried out. They were quite challenging due to the complexity of the plant and the high level of automation. In September 2014, the plant passed a technical inspection and in November 2014 it acquired the approval for test operations. Production started in February 2015 after having successfully passed the verification inspection conducted by the Agency for Medicinal Products and Medical Devices of the Republic of Slovenia.
