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A Bristol-based company specializing in cell and gene therapy (CGT) has received a £ 12 million investment to fund expansion plans that could create 160 new jobs.

Exmoor Pharma plans to use initial funding from healthcare investment firm MVM Partners to build a new 50,000 square foot facility in the city.

The company said the new location would help increase process development capacity and improve clinical manufacturing practices for CGT and viral vectors – tools molecular biologists use to deliver genetic material into cells.

The company plans to increase its workforce from 40 to 200 within five years and intends to expand its translation consulting and capital projects teams. The latter will design the new system in-house under the direction of Director Gavin Sutton.

Based in the Future Space laboratory on the University of West England’s Frenchay campus in Bristol, Exmoor has built a portfolio of clients across the UK and internationally over the past five years, completing over 400 projects in 15 countries.

The company hopes its expansion will help provide additional manufacturing capacity in the global industry, particularly in the viral vectors space.

Angela Osborne, Exmoor’s founder and chief executive officer, said the deal gave the company a “strong foundation” for future growth – not just in the UK and Europe, but in other international markets, particularly North America.

“CGT is such an important area in biomedical research, capable of treating, preventing, and potentially curing diseases that affect people around the world,” she said.

“The Bristol area is a great place to build on our highly skilled and knowledgeable advisory and process development teams and attract talent from the great local universities in Bristol, Bath and Cardiff.

“We have been fortunate to be able to continue and expand our activities at the University of the West of England at Oxford Innovation’s Future Space Innovation Center and we would like to thank them for their continued support.”

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Exmoor has formed a new leadership team to oversee the expansion. Former McLaren Applied Technologies CEO Ian Rhodes joins the company as Director of Consulting and Finance.

Under the new agreement, MVM will hold a significant minority stake in the company, with MVM partners Thomas Casdagli and Jack Tanaka joining the Exmoor board of directors and board observer, respectively.

Mr. Casdagli said: “Exmoor is a pioneer in the manufacture of cell and gene therapy and has one of the most experienced teams in all areas of translating CGT innovations into scalable and robust manufacturing processes.

“With this investment, Exmoor now has the broadest and most flexible offering of CGT services on the market.

“Exmoor can support its customers from PD to GMP to commercial manufacturing either in a dedicated facility specified and supported by Exmoor or at an Exmoor operated facility.

“I am very excited to be supporting the company at this crucial time and look forward to working with the broader team in the months ahead.”