UK-based contract research organisation (CRO) Charnwood Molecular has revealed its plans for expansion in 2021, which includes becoming the sole occupier of a ‘substantial’ laboratory facility in Loughborough.

Charnwood Molecular recently announced a partnership with private equity fund Synoya to further its expansion plans.

This deal, according to the CRO, provided additional capital to support the company’s future development and growth, including hiring additional senior leadership team members.

The expansion plans include Charnwood Molecular becoming the sole occupier of a ‘state-of-the-art’ laboratory facility at Charnwood Campus, based in Loughborough.

This campus was recently designated a ‘Life Sciences Opportunity Zone’, Charnwood Molecular said in a statement, allowing for greater collaboration and accelerated business growth within the med-tech and biopharma industries.

The company’s expansion plans will support its growth across a wide range of contract research services, such as medicinal chemistry, chemical development and early process research through to developing a suite of complementary services.

“The truly world-class facilities at Charnwood Campus provide us with a key piece in our strategic plan to become the provider of choice for integrated drug discovery and development services within the global life sciences sector,” said Steve Allin, chief executive officer of Charnwood Molecular.

“The new laboratories will provide substantial capacity for future growth and expansion of our medicinal chemistry and process research teams, along with the addition of related drug discovery service lines,” he added.

“Our expansion plans for the business are now coming to fruition.  From hiring significant numbers of new scientists at both of our existing research sites, through to a doubling of our business development team and now adding much larger bespoke facilities, we are looking to the future to make Charnwood Molecular a very major player in the discovery CRO marketplace,” added John Handley, managing director of Charnwood Molecular.