#United States #Charlotte #CSL Behring #Project Aurora #ISPE FOYA

CSL Behring Takes the Crown at the 2025 ISPE Facility of the Year Awards

In a shining moment for pharmaceutical innovation, CSL Behring has been named the Overall Winner of the 2025 ISPE Facility of the Year Awards (FOYA) for their remarkable Project Aurora. The award was presented at the 2025 ISPE Annual Meeting and Expo, held in Charlotte, North Carolina, marking a significant achievement as the FOYA program celebrates its 20th anniversary.

A Night of Recognition and Celebration

The FOYA Awards Ceremony, which took place on the evening of October 26, brought together industry leaders, service providers, and professionals from across the pharmaceutical sector. This gathering was not just to applaud the winners but to foster engaging conversations focused on the future of pharmaceutical manufacturing and innovation.

Mike Martin, President and CEO of ISPE, praised CSL Behring’s Project Aurora, emphasizing that the project embodies the essence of the FOYA program: a convergence of innovation, impact, and excellence. He highlighted the facility’s cutting-edge automation, sustainable design, and extensive scalability, noting that it establishes a new standard for integrating Pharma 4.0™ technologies into biomanufacturing processes.

What Makes Project Aurora Stand Out?

CSL Behring’s Project Aurora is a pivotal expansion of the plasma base fractionation capabilities at their Broadmeadows Campus in Victoria, Australia. This state-of-the-art facility is not merely a technical feat; it represents a transformational leap in the end-to-end manufacturing process of key plasma-derived therapies.

Through innovative automation and advanced robotics, Project Aurora significantly boosts production capacity—up to nine times greater than before. This translates to a remarkable capability of processing more than 10 million liters of plasma each year, facilitating the supply of vital intermediate products to support CSL's existing immunoglobulin and albumin production facilities.

The journey to this accolade began with Project Aurora being recognized as a finalist in the FOYA submissions at the 2025 Facilities of the Future Conference. It was also awarded the category win for Pharma 4.0™ at the ISPE Europe Annual Conference, underscoring its industry-leading innovations.

A Vision for the Future

The recognition of CSL Behring and Project Aurora serves as an inspiration for continued advancement within the pharmaceutical engineering domain. This accolade motivates other organizations to explore innovative solutions and inefficiencies in manufacturing processes.

In addition to celebrating this year’s winners, the ISPE is already looking forward, inviting new submissions for the 2026 FOYA program. The deadline for entries is set for December 5, 2025, with finalists to be announced at next year’s Facilities of the Future Conference in San Diego.

For in-depth insights on submitting for the upcoming FOYA program and to explore more about its initiatives, interested parties are encouraged to visit ISPE's FOYA webpage.

About the ISPE and FOYA Program

The ISPE (International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering) has been at the forefront of pharmaceutical advancements since 1980, operating globally with over 24,000 members. The FOYA program, initiated in 2005, showcases state-of-the-art projects that apply innovative technologies to enhance drug quality and production efficiency. The program not only highlights facility design and construction innovations but also brings into focus the relationship between technology application and quality manufacturing within the pharmaceutical sector.

In conclusion, the recognition of CSL Behring at this year’s FOYA Awards is a testament to the critical advancements being made in pharmaceutical manufacturing. With Project Aurora leading the way, the future looks bright for innovative solutions in this essential industry.