Bormioli Pharma has acquired German glass pharmaceutical packaging company ISO Arzneiverpackungen.

ISO specialises in the production of tubular glass vials (Type I, II, III) designed for the injectable drugs, vaccines and chromatography markets.

ISO has an annual production of more than 100 million vials and its headquarters and production plant are located in Bad Königshofen, Germany, where it employs in excess of 100 people.

The acquisition – through Bromioli's German subsidiary Remy & Geiser – will allow Bormioli Pharma to broaden its range of packaging for parenteral drugs.

It follows recent investments in its Bergantino and San Vito al Tagliamento plants and the acquisition of GCL Pharma in Vasto, in April, which allowed for the addition of a wide range of rubber and aluminium closures for vials for injectable drugs to be added to the product portfolio.

Bormioli Pharma will double its production capacity of tubular borosilicate glass vials, placing it among the top 10 producers in Europe for the number of containers produced annually.

It will also increase its share of the Central and Northern European market where it had already strengthened its presence last year as a result of the acquisition of Remy & Geiser.

“Thanks to this acquisition, we continue with our expansion plan, further growing our industrial presence in a market that represents important development opportunities” said Andrea Lodetti, CEO of Bormioli Pharma.

“Our commitment does not end here, and over the coming months we will invest even further, particularly in the areas of product innovation and industrial automation and digitalisation in order to make our pharmaceutical and nutraceutical packaging range even broader, more diversified and able to support the needs of even the most demanding players in the market.”

The acquisition of ISO represents a further step in Bormioli Pharma’s growth and expansion plan since it became part of the Triton investment fund portfolio at the end of 2017.

Over the last 3 years, the company has invested into industrial enhancement and commercial growth projects, both organically and through acquisitions.

The Bergantino (Rovigo) and San Vito al Tagliamento (Pordenone) production plants have recently undergone renovation and expansion works with the refurbishment of the main furnaces and the installation of additional production lines.

An industrial digitalization and production line automation project was implemented at the Rivanazzano (Pavia) plant.