Merck Life Science, the life science arm of Merck KGaA in Darmstadt, Germany, celebrated the fifth anniversary of its M Lab Collaboration Center in Songdo, Incheon, on Thursday.

The center is a non-GMP facility, equipped and designed to recreate the manufacturing environment, evaluate and resolve processes through hands-on and virtual training to support the needs of local and global pharmaceutical and bio-industry experts.

The Songdo M Lab Collaboration Center is one of the company’s nine centers worldwide opened since 2016. The site has held more than 540 training sessions, including hands-on knowledge transfer and training courses focused on automatic filter integrity testing and the operation of tangential flow filtration.

“Since its establishment in 2016, the Songdo M Lab Collaboration Center has supported more than 100 biopharmaceutical and biotech customers, including Samsung Biologics, Celltrion, and SK Bioscience,” said Kim Yong-seok, head of Merck Korea’s process solutions and life science business during a news conference. “The biopharmaceutical industry in Korea is growing exponentially with a strong emphasis on new drug development.”

Through its M Lab Collaboration Center, the company provides technical expertise and customized solutions in process development, from early-stage to industrial production, helping its partners release life science therapies in markets faster and safer, Kim added.

Kim also unveiled the company’s plans to organize a virtual open house on Nov. 4 for local university students.

“The program includes a virtual walk-through lab, showcasing Merck’s bioprocessing capabilities,” he said. “Besides, Merck will provide career consulting for the graduating students.”

Students interested in the virtual open house can submit their applications, he added.