Clean Room Technology Essential To Vaccine Production

Samsung Electronics will provide clean room technology to Samsung Biologics.

Samsung Electronics has decided to provide support for Samsung Biologics’ contract manufacturing of Moderna COVID-19 vaccines.

Morderna announced on July 28 that there was a problem with its overseas vaccine production plant. The announcement made Samsung Biologics tense. The company has been preparing for the fill and finish manufacturing of the vaccine. But its preparations would be futile if undiluted vaccine solutions do not come from overseas factories. Industry insiders believe that the plant that had a problem is a factory in Switzerland, which is responsible for producing and delivering undiluted vaccine solutions to Samsung Biologics.

Samsung Biologics' intention is to make its production system ready so that it can start production as soon as undiluted vaccine solutions come in. One of the most important things in a vaccine production process is to keep the production sites clean. In clean room technology, Samsung Electronics is most advanced in the world.

If Samsung Electronics’ clean room technology is added to Samsung Biologics’ manufacturing expertise, Moderna can expect a faster pace in technology transfer to Samsung Biologics and quality improvement in vaccine production. Above all, it can also serve as an opportunity to dispel domestic and foreign concerns about Samsung Biologics’ vaccine production capabilities. Although demand for mRNA vaccines has increased due to the spread of variants such as the delta variant, there have been concerns whether Modena will be able to keep up with surging demand.

Moderna has selected Korea as the only country for contract manufacturing of its vaccines in the world except the United States and Europe. With Asia's vaccination rate significantly slower than those of the United States and Europe, the recurrence of a supply delay could have a negative impact on Asia as well as Korea.

As of the end of the first quarter of 2021, Samsung Electronics had a 31.5 percent stake in Samsung Biologics and is the second largest shareholder of the bio-tech company following Samsung C&T (43.4 percent).

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