Insulet breaks ground on new manufacturing plant in Mass.

Insulet (NSDQ:PODD) reportedly broke ground on a new manufacturing facility on a site it bought earlier this year in Acton, Mass.

The $100 million, 350,000-square foot plant is being built on a 26-acre lot Billerica, Mass.-based Insulet acquired for $9.3 million in February, according to the Worcester Business Journal.

Insulet uses a quarter of contract manufacturers to make its flagship OmniPod insulin management system, but plans to transition to a more modern operation once the new plant goes on line, expected in 2019. The heavily automated Acton facility is designed to produce up to 70% more devices with up to 90% fewer employees, compared to all four of its Chinese partners, Insulet has said.

The new facility is expected to add hundreds of jobs in Massachusetts over the next 5 years, according to the company.

Last October, Leerink Partners analysts said that drug-delivery business will be a long-term growth driver for Insulet by as much as 20% per year for the next few years.

Insulet generates 86% of its revenue from its OmniPod insulin delivery device, according to Leerink. The OmniPod technology could be easily adapted to other drugs, according to the investment bank, which cited Insulet’s partnership with Amgen (NSDQ:AMGN) as a foundation for other wearable drug-delivery products.

Residents of Acton voted in April to approve zoning changes to the new site, expanding the facility from 300,000 square feet to 350,000 square feet. Insulet said it plans to break ground in June, according to the Boston Business Journal. 

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