Cyclacel has raised a further £20m of venture capital funding for its Dundee-based cancer drugs business. [29-Dec-2003]
William Ransom is to acquire the natural healthcare brands portfolio of J Pickles of Harrogate for £0.6m, but Pickles will continue to manufacture the products under a long-term supply agreement. [24-Dec-2003]
Lubrizol is to acquire Avecia Additives, the Manchester-based manufacturer of colour additives with 110 staff, for undisclosed terms. [24-Dec-2003]
LGC, the forensic sciences group with about 700 staff, is to be sold by 3i to Legal & General Ventures for £70m. [24-Dec-2003]
Cytomyx Holdings is to raise £2m in a share placing to help fund the acquisition of Clinomics Biosciences of the US. [16-Dec-2003]
Peter Black Healthcare, the Swadlincote-based manufacturer of vitamin supplements and herbal remedies with 240 staff, has been acquired by Perrigo of the US for undisclosed terms. [16-Dec-2003]
BASF is planning to shed up to 35 of the 250 jobs at its nylon intermediates plant at Seal Sands. [15-Dec-2003]
East Anglian Pharmaceuticals has dropped plans to be acquired by AAH Pharmaceuticals, following the deal's referral to the Competition Commission. [11-Dec-2003]
NMT Group is to close its safety syringe factory in Livingston with the loss of 145 jobs, due to a shortage of orders. [10-Dec-2003]
Sinclair Pharmaceuticals has raised £22m in a share placing to fund the expansion of its drug development business. [05-Dec-2003]
BioProgress is looking to raise £6.6m for the development of a pharmaceutical production plant in Cambridgeshire, having won a contract to supply FMC of the US. [04-Dec-2003]
Invest NI is to support a £5.3m project by Kiel Laboratories of the US to set up a prescription medicines plant in Carrickfergus, with the creation of 100 jobs over the next three years. [04-Dec-2003]
Galen Holdings has sold its Pharmaceutical Development and Manufacturing Services business to the company's founder and former Chairman for £20m. [03-Dec-2003]
Johnson Matthey is looking to sell its structural ceramics and speciality coatings operations in Spain and Italy for about £170m. [28-Nov-2003]
Purely Proteins of Cambridge has received a first round of venture funding from Avlar BioVentures and Yorkshire Fund Managers, in order to expand its business providing human proteins for pharmaceutical research. [28-Nov-2003]
Xenova has raised £21m in a share placing to fund its drug development programme. [27-Nov-2003]
Antisoma is raising £14m in a share placing to fund acquisitions and clinical trials of its cancer treatments. [26-Nov-2003]
CeNes Pharmaceuticals has acquired TheraSci, the developer of drugs for the central nervous system, for up to £3.7m. [25-Nov-2003]
Duke Street Capital has acquired Accantia, the Birmingham-based toiletries manufacturer, from ABN Amro Capital for £225m. [24-Nov-2003]
Cambridge University has won government permission to develop a £24m laboratory for behavioural neuroscience, although it may not be built for some time. [24-Nov-2003]
Invista, the DuPont lycra business with about 500 staff in Northern Ireland and 375 in Wilton, is to be acquired by Koch Industries of the US in a £2.7bn deal. [20-Nov-2003]
Celltech is to close its proteomics research operation, which was previously part of Oxford Glycosciences, with the loss of 40 jobs, while a drug discovery operation in the US will also close with the loss of 90 jobs. [19-Nov-2003]
The Specials Laboratory is to relocate its tailor-made pharmaceuticals business to a new £1m site in Northumberland next year, and the 35-strong workforce will expand. [18-Nov-2003]
Lorantis has raised £25m to fund clinical trials of new biotechnology-based treatments for allergy, arthritis and transplant rejection. [17-Nov-2003]
The Welsh Development Agency is in discussions with a number of companies interested in relocating to the newly-completed £3.3m Medi-Science Campus at Gwaun Elai, near Llantrisant. [13-Nov-2003]
Transad International has acquired Personal Screening, the supplier of home health testing kits, from Wellbeing Screening for £0.6m. [13-Nov-2003]
Chiron of the US is looking to sell its SBL vaccines division in Sweden, in order to help fund a £85m expansion plan that will safeguard 600 jobs at the recently-acquired Powderject plant on Merseyside. [13-Nov-2003]
Simon Storage is planning a £98m expansion programme for its bulk chemical storage business, with financial backing from Bank of Scotland, Royal Bank of Scotland and Investec Structured Finance. [13-Nov-2003]
PPL Therapeutics has shed 20 of the 55 jobs in its biotechnology business, and plans are being prepared to sell off the company and its headquarters and laboratories near Edinburgh. [12-Nov-2003]
Ferraris is looking to sell its life sciences division next year, and the proceeds will be invested in medical diagnostics. [11-Nov-2003]
Akzo Nobel is to shed 25 of the 760 jobs at its decorative coatings factory in Darwen, and further jobs will be lost at sites in Hull and Warrington. [11-Nov-2003]
GlaxoSmithKline is to shed 40 jobs at its pharmaceuticals plant in Ulverston. [10-Nov-2003]
Schering-Plough has confirmed plans to close its pharmaceuticals plant in Mildenhall, Suffolk, with the loss of 120 jobs. [10-Nov-2003]
GlaxoSmithKline is planning to establish a new research unit to handle all of its existing biotechnology projects by the end of the year. [07-Nov-2003]
Sun Chemical is considering plans to close its printing ink factory in Watford with the loss of up to 120 jobs. [06-Nov-2003]
Lubrizol, the US-based manufacturer of high-performance chemicals for transport and industry, is to shed 20 jobs at its Hazelwood plant in Derbyshire. [06-Nov-2003]
Lux Biotechnology has secured about £0.6m of funding from Archangel Informal Investments, in order to expand its research capability, recruit more staff and exploit its biosensor biological detection technology. [03-Nov-2003]
Tepnel Life Sciences is to acquire Orchid Diagnostics, the US biotechnology company, for £2.5m. [03-Nov-2003]
Astex Technology has acquired MetaGen Pharmaceuticals, a spin-out from Schering, and about eight of MetaGen's 40 staff will transfer from Berlin to Cambridge. [31-Oct-2003]
Intercare, the pharmaceuticals manufacturer, is to be acquired by Cardinal Health of the US for £306m. [30-Oct-2003]
The Scottish Executive is to provide about £2m of regional selective assistance to PharmaImaging Group to set up a new £15m pharmaceutical research facility in Livingston, with the creation of up to 250 jobs. [30-Oct-2003]
Sinclair Pharmaceuticals has appointed RW Baird to consider a number of fundraising options, in order to buy new products and make acquisitions. [29-Oct-2003]
Allergy Therapeutics is planning to raise up to £15m in a flotation on Aim over the next 18 months, to fund the development of an allergy vaccine. [28-Oct-2003]
Alizyme has raised a further £11m in a share placing, in order to help negotiate licensing deals for its new drugs. [23-Oct-2003]
Safa Group, the supplier of healthcare and first aid products, is to be acquired by Healthcare Enterprise Group in a £12m deal. [21-Oct-2003]
AstraZeneca is to invest £60m in Abgenix, the US biotechnology company, in order to collaborate in the area of antibody drug development. [17-Oct-2003]
Monsanto is to withdraw from the European seed cereal market with the loss of 125 jobs in Cambridge, and its crop protection business will move to a new site nearby. [16-Oct-2003]
Bodycare International is to close its toiletries factory in Eastbourne with the loss of 150 jobs. [10-Oct-2003]
Amersham, the biotechnology and medical imaging group with a valuation of £4.5bn, has received a takeover approach from General Electric of the US. [09-Oct-2003]
Lundbeck Pharmaceuticals is to shed 50 jobs at its chemical plant at Seal Sands, and a further 150 jobs will be lost at its headquarters in Denmark. [06-Oct-2003]
Lucite International is to build a £60m methyl methacrylate production plant in China, as part of an integrated chemical complex being built in Caojing. [03-Oct-2003]
Arrow Therapeutics has raised £21m in a private finance round to fund trials of new biotechnology-based treatments for hepatitis C and respiratory syncitial virus. [02-Oct-2003]
Great Lakes Chemical Corp is to close its bromine extraction plant at Amlwch on Anglesey later this year with the loss of up to 100 jobs, while a further 100 jobs are under threat at its Newton Aycliffe plant. [01-Oct-2003]
Evolution Group is planning to float its IP2IPO intellectual property business on Aim later this month, in order to raise £25m and help universities benefit financially from their research. [01-Oct-2003]
Biocatalysts, the supplier of enzymes to food manufacturers, is to relocate to a new £2m 23,000 sq ft building at Parc Nantgarw in Treforest next year, and expects to double the 26-strong workforce. [29-Sep-2003]
Clariant is to close its hydrosulphite production facility in Widnes with the loss of up to 63 jobs. [26-Sep-2003]
Manchester Innovation is to consider a number of rival bids to build a £25m biotechnology centre on the Manchester University campus, including laboratories, offices and conference facilities. [25-Sep-2003]
Cambridge Antibody Technology is to sell an 11% equity stake to Genzyme of the US for £23m, as part of a collaboration between the two companies in the development of drugs for fibrotic diseases. [23-Sep-2003]
Abbott Laboratories is to create 125 new jobs through the £39m expansion of its Dartford Murex diagnostic treatments manufacturing plant in Kent by the end of next year. [22-Sep-2003]
BOC is to close its helium gas plant in Leeds over the next two years with the loss of 90 jobs, and production will be transferred to a new plant in the South. [18-Sep-2003]
Oxford Biomedica is planning to raise £20m in a rights issue, in order to strengthen its balance sheet and prepare for the negotiation of new drug licensing deals. [17-Sep-2003]
PPL Therapeutics has appointed KPMG Corporate Finance to find a buyer for its biotechnology business. [16-Sep-2003]
Eastman Peboc is to shed 35 of the 113 jobs at its chemical processing plant in Llangefni, Anglesey, by the end of the year. [12-Sep-2003]
Schering-Plough has warned that it may have to close its pharmaceuticals packing plant in Mildenhall, Suffolk, with the loss of 120 jobs. [08-Sep-2003]
Finance Wales is to support the expansion of MGS Micropure, the Cwmfelinfach-based manufacturer of preservatives for cleaning products, and six new jobs will be created. [08-Sep-2003]
BioCity Nottingham has secured a £0.5m government award to support the formation and development of new bioscience and healthcare businesses in the East Midlands. [05-Sep-2003]
Intercare is looking to spend up to £40m on acquisitions to expand its pharmaceutical manufacturing business. [05-Sep-2003]
Biotrace International has acquired International BioProducts, the US germ detection company, for £6.4m. [05-Sep-2003]
Roche, the Swiss pharmaceuticals group, has awarded a £40m contract to PCM to build a new headquarters for 1,100 staff in Welwyn Garden City by late 2005. [04-Sep-2003]
Chemical Synthesis Services is planning to invest £25m in the expansion of the former research and services division of Galen in Craigavon. [01-Sep-2003]
Protherics is considering plans to recruit a US sales force of 15 people, in order to market a new cancer drug to primary care centres. [29-Aug-2003]
Chemical Corporation, the Caerphilly-based chemicals and lubricants company, has secured a regional selective assistance grant for a 9,000 sq ft extension to its premises on the Bedwas Business Park. [28-Aug-2003]
Acordis is to close its cellulose acetate plant in Lancaster in October, with the loss of 120 jobs. [27-Aug-2003]
Genzyme has won US and European approval to start producing ingredients for a kidney drug at its new £55m plant in Haverhill. [25-Aug-2003]
Evolutec has raised a further £0.7m to fund the expansion of its Oxford-based biotechnology business, and hopes to float on Aim next year. [25-Aug-2003]
Simbec Research, the Merthyr-based pharmaceuticals research company with 80 staff, has undergone a management buy-out from Merck Sante SAS of France for undisclosed terms. [21-Aug-2003]
The Darwin Centre for Biology & Medicine is seeking European funding to build a £15m international science centre in Pembrokeshire, with the creation of 45 jobs. [18-Aug-2003]
Hickson & Welch, the Castleford-based chemicals manufacturer with 300 staff, has undergone a £21m management buy-out backed by Dunedin Capital Partners. [15-Aug-2003]
Xenova has announced a £8.5m takeover bid for KS Biomedix, and expects to raise at least £9m in a share issue to fund the development of KSB's leading drug. [15-Aug-2003]
The School of Tropical Medicine in Liverpool is seeking a £25m grant that would enable it to double in size. [13-Aug-2003]
Slough Estates is considering plans to demerge or sell off its $1bn portfolio of biotechnology parks in the US. [11-Aug-2003]
Amgen, the US pharmaceuticals group, is seeking a suitable 150,000 sq ft site near Heathrow to establish a European headquarters. [04-Aug-2003]
Ineos Chlor has secured a £50m DTI grant to expand its chlorine production plant in Runcorn, which will involve a £389m investment in new equipment. [01-Aug-2003]
ICI has announced plans to shed a further 1,400 jobs, including 300 in the UK, and is looking to raise £100m from the sale of various assets. [01-Aug-2003]
Shire Pharmaceuticals is considering plans to close its early-stage drugs research unit, sell off its vaccines business and seek large acquisitions in the US. [01-Aug-2003]
Onyx Scientific is to create a further 20 jobs at a new pharmaceuticals research laboratory in Sunderland over the next two years, and expects additional investment to provide 120 vacancies over the next seven years. [24-Jul-2003]
Elan is in discussions to sell Quadrant Healthcare, its Nottingham-based drug delivery business, to a management team. [21-Jul-2003]
The Forensic Science Service is to be partially privatised by the government, in order to raise about £30m to fund new laboratories. [18-Jul-2003]
Powderject's new US parent Chiron is to relocate 12 senior managers from Uxbridge to the Powderject office in Oxford. [16-Jul-2003]
Chemring is to sell its Alloy Surfaces chemicals business in the US to Akron Paint & Varnish for up to £2.5m. [14-Jul-2003]
Osmetech, the developer of electronic odour sensors, has closed its Crewe headquarters with the loss of 20 jobs, in order to relocate its research and development operation to the US. [10-Jul-2003]
CP Pharmaceuticals, the Wrexham-based supplier of drugs to hospitals, has been acquired by Wockhardt of India for £11m. [10-Jul-2003]
Axis-Shield has sold its autoimmune diagnostics business to the Euro-Diagnostica Group for £2.2m. [07-Jul-2003]
Whatman is to close Biometra, its German laboratory instruments subsidiary, with the loss of 65 jobs. [07-Jul-2003]
Vernalis is to merge with British Biotech to create a combined biotechnology group with a market capitalisation of £90m, and the staffing levels will be cut from 204 to 130. [04-Jul-2003]
Biotrace International has acquired Maltec, the Danish supplier of microbiological and life sciences products, for a nominal sum. [03-Jul-2003]
IVAX Pharmaceuticals has secured a £3.7m regional assistance grant to complete the building of a £25m manufacturing plant at Preston Brook in Cheshire, which will secure 385 jobs. [02-Jul-2003]
Avecia has agreed to sell its Metal Extraction Products and Intermediates & Stabilizers operations in the US to Cytec for about £60m, which will involve the transfer of 200 staff. [01-Jul-2003]
Huntsman has shed 85 jobs at its chemical plant in Whitehaven, and a further 200 jobs are said to be at risk. [30-Jun-2003]
Formedix, the Glasgow-based developer of software for the pharmaceutical industry, has raised £0.5m to fund the opening of a new US office in Philadelphia later this year. [30-Jun-2003]
GW Pharmaceuticals is planning to raise £20m in a share placing in order to improve its ability to arrange licensing deals for its cannabis-based medicines. [27-Jun-2003]
Norgine has raised a further £4.3m to invest in new production lines and improvements at its pharmaceuticals manufacturing plant near Caerphilly, with the creation of 66 jobs. [26-Jun-2003]
National Starch & Chemical is to sell its Plasticoat cheese coatings business to DSM for undisclosed terms. [23-Jun-2003]
PPL Therapeutics is said to be planning to shed at least 90 jobs at its research facility in Roslin, after partner Bayer stopped a project to develop treatments for lung disorders. [20-Jun-2003]
Ferraris is to acquire Bionostics, the US supplier of liquid formulations to test the accuracy of medical diagnostic equipment, for £19m. [16-Jun-2003]
Powderject is planning to invest £85m at its vaccine production plant in Liverpool over the next five years, with the creation of an unspecified number of jobs. [11-Jun-2003]
Millennium Pharma is to close its drug discovery operation in Cambridge by the end of 2004, with the loss of 210 jobs. [09-Jun-2003]
Protherics is seeking financial assistance from the Welsh Assembly to expand its biotechnology-based production plant in Llandysul. [09-Jun-2003]
The Irish Fertilizer Industries factory in Belfast is to be dismantled and shipped to Finland and China, having been sold by the liquidator to Kemira GrowHow and an unnamed Chinese company. [05-Jun-2003]
AstraZeneca is planning to invest £19m in a new research facility in India to develop treatments for tuberculosis. [02-Jun-2003]
Eli Lilly is to set up a European Centre for Neuroscience at Windlesham, Surrey, with the creation of 120 scientific jobs over the next five years. [29-May-2003]
Bespak, the manufacturer of drug delivery equipment, is to shed 107 jobs throughout the UK over the next eight months, which will affect sites in King's Lynn and Milton Keynes. [28-May-2003]
Eli Lilly is to invest more than £30m in the expansion of its biotechnology production plant in south Liverpool, with the creation of up to 75 new jobs. [23-May-2003]
Merck Sharp & Dohme has awarded a £6m fit-out contract to Cubitt of Brentford, for work at its pharmaceuticals facility in Hoddesdon, Herts. [22-May-2003]
Inverness Medical is in talks to acquire the former engineering works of AI Welders in Inverness, to use as a warehouse for its self-diagnosis kits. [21-May-2003]
Powderject, the vaccine maker, is to be acquired by Chiron of the US for more than £540m. [20-May-2003]
Evolution Group's IP2IPO intellectual property subsidiary is to invest £5m in companies spun out from King's College London over the next five years, enabling King's to commercialise its expertise in medical research and life sciences. [16-May-2003]
Weston Medical has raised £1.2m from the sale of its Intraject needle-free syringe technology to Aradigm of the US. [16-May-2003]
Angel Biotechnology is seeking a second site in Northumberland to expand its medical research business, with the creation of up to 50 new jobs. [15-May-2003]
BP is planning to shed a further 190 jobs at its petrochemicals site in Grangemouth over the next 12 months. [15-May-2003]
British Biotech is forming an alliance with MerLion Pharmaceuticals of Singapore to develop anti-bacterial treatments from natural products. [15-May-2003]
Xenova is planning to cut jobs and operating costs following the suspension of trials of its lead drug. [14-May-2003]
Imperial College London is linking up with Bioscience Managers Limited to create a £50m venture capital fund to invest in early-stage medical and life science companies. [12-May-2003]
Axis-Shield is to relocate its biotechnology laboratory division from Norway to Dundee by the end of the year, with the creation of up to 20 jobs. [09-May-2003]
Pfizer is to close the Pharmacia drug development centre in High Wycombe with the loss of 164 jobs, although some jobs will be relocated to its site in Kent. [09-May-2003]
Astex has agreed a £64m deal with Schering to use X-ray crystallography to help discover new cancer treatment drugs, and has also announced plans to raise up to £15m in a funding round. [06-May-2003]
BioProgress is planning to raise £2m in a flotation on Aim to fund the commercial development of its soluble capsules for the pharmaceutical industry. [06-May-2003]
Protherics is to acquire Enact Pharma, the biopharmaceuticals company, for £7.9m, and has also announced plans to raise £3m in a share offer. [06-May-2003]
Vernalis is planning to raise £14m in a share offer to fund the expansion of its drug development business, while talks are taking place about a possible bid for the company. [02-May-2003]
ICI is planning to shed 700 jobs in its worldwide chemicals business by 2005, including about 200 at paint plants in Slough, Stowmarket and Prudhoe. [01-May-2003]
Inpharmatica is forming a drug discovery alliance with Galapagos Genomics of Belgium, in which its chemogenomics technology will be used to identify suitable targets for drug development. [30-Apr-2003]
PPL Therapeutics has dropped plans to build a £42m biotechnology plant near Edinburgh, and may now outsource its manufacturing operations. [29-Apr-2003]
Powderject, the vaccine maker, is facing the prospect of a £500m takeover bid from Chiron of the US. [28-Apr-2003]
Adprotech has shed 20 jobs at its drug discovery business near Cambridge. [25-Apr-2003]
Amersham is to merge its prostate cancer treatment business with the urology division of US-based Galil Medical. [23-Apr-2003]
CeNes has raised £9m from the sale of its diconal, cyclimorph and valoid pharmaceuticals to Waymade Healthcare. [18-Apr-2003]
Shire Pharmaceuticals has awarded a $18m contract to AMEC to build a global vaccines research centre at its site in Laval, Canada. [17-Apr-2003]
Molecular Sensing, the Melksham-based genetics company, has appointed PricewaterhouseCoopers to help it find a buyer. [17-Apr-2003]
SembCorp Utilities of Singapore has acquired the Enron Teesside Operations chemicals site at Wilton for £83m, securing the future of 579 jobs. [16-Apr-2003]
Oxxon Pharmaccines has raised £15m in a private financing exercise to expand its Oxford-based biotechnology business. [15-Apr-2003]
Network Health & Beauty, the Farnborough-based distributor of beauty and personal care products with 47 staff, has been acquired by EPIC Brand Investments and the Lornamead Group. [15-Apr-2003]
Aroma & Fine Chemicals has secured a £5.7m funding package from the Royal Bank of Scotland to expand its Widnes-based speciality chemicals manufacturing business. [14-Apr-2003]
Oxford Glycosciences has recommended that shareholders accept a £101m takeover offer from Celltech. [14-Apr-2003]
PPL Therapeutics is to sell its xenograft and stem cell activities to a newly-formed US company called Regenecor Holdings, in which PPL will hold an equity stake. [11-Apr-2003]
MedPharma is planning to raise £8.8m in a flotation on Aim next month, in order to fund the expansion of its Oxfordshire-based pharmaceuticals business. [07-Apr-2003]
Osmetech has announced a £2.2m deal to acquire Roche's US-based OPTI range of blood gas analysers. [04-Apr-2003]
Aortech is to abandon plans to commercialise its polymer-based heart valve, with the loss of about 30 jobs in Lanarkshire. [02-Apr-2003]
ReNeuron, the biotechnology company, has agreed terms for a £3.6m management buy-out backed by private equity vehicle St James's. [02-Apr-2003]
Elan has raised £57m from the sale of its investments in Xcel Pharmaceuticals of the US, as part of the ongoing process to rebuild its balance sheet. [02-Apr-2003]
British Vita has acquired Synco, the Italian colour and additive masterbatch producer, from Cognis for £1.3m. [01-Apr-2003]
GlaxoSmithKline is seeking another buyer for its pharmaceuticals plant in Montrose, after Akzo Nobel withdrew from an agreement in principle to acquire the site. [31-Mar-2003]
BP is planning to build a £200m purified terephthalic acid production plant at its Geel site in Belgium by 2006, and design work will be carried out by Technip Italy. [28-Mar-2003]
DuPontSA is planning a £28m upgrade of its polyester resins plant at Wilton near Redcar, securing the future of almost 200 jobs, and the DTI is providing a £3m grant. [28-Mar-2003]
BioWisdom has raised £2.5m to fund the expansion of its ontologies business, in which software applications are used to improve access to biomedical information. [28-Mar-2003]
ML Laboratories is to sell its Icodextrin glucose polymer manufacturing business in Liverpool to Baxter Healthcare for £6.5m. [25-Mar-2003]
British Biotech is to merge with RiboTargets, creating a combined biotechnology group with a market value of £52m. [24-Mar-2003]
The East of England Development Agency is promoting the case for the development of a £600m national nanotechnology research centre in Cambridge, and production could be located on Humberside and administration in Cranfield. [19-Mar-2003]
Dundee University has secured £15m to conduct research into protein phosphorylation, in partnership with GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim and Merck. [18-Mar-2003]
Miza Pharmaceuticals has been bought out of administration by a management-led consortium operating under the name of Inyx Pharma, securing 138 jobs at its Runcorn factory. [14-Mar-2003]
The Department of Trade & Industry has announced plans for a £30m biosciences facility at the Estuary Business Park on Merseyside, including three laboratories, one production plant and the creation of 1,000 jobs. [13-Mar-2003]
Crispin & Borst has won a £1.8m contract to refurbish a chemistry laboratory in Sutton, Surrey, for the Institute of Cancer Research. [13-Mar-2003]
Cytomyx has expanded its life sciences business with the £0.1m acquisition from Cytocell of assets for the manufacture of kits utilising DNA probe technology. [12-Mar-2003]
Norgine is creating 200 new jobs at its pharmaceuticals plant in Caerphilly, following a recent £8m investment in a packing facility. [12-Mar-2003]
Peri-dent is to invest £2m in the expansion of its oral-care products factory in Galashiels, with the creation of up to 60 jobs. [12-Mar-2003]
Evolution Beeson Gregory and Oxford University have created a new drug discovery business called VASTox, which will help pharmaceutical companies reduce their research and development costs. [11-Mar-2003]
Alliance UniChem is seeking acquisitions to expand its drugs distribution business in eastern Europe, and is particularly interested in Poland, Russia and the Baltics. [11-Mar-2003]
CellFactors has announced a cash call to raise £3.5m, in order to fund the commercial development of its biotechnology-based stem cell technology. [11-Mar-2003]
Bristol-Myers Squibb, the US pharmaceuticals company, is said to be seeking up to 80,000 sq ft of office space in the Heathrow area, while Sony Broadcasting & Professional Systems and Heathrow Airport Ltd have similar requirements. [10-Mar-2003]
Galen is to spend £310m on the acquisition of three women's healthcare products from Pfizer of the US, which will increase its turnover by two-thirds. [07-Mar-2003]
Distillex, the Leyland-based solvent recovery company with 44 staff, has been acquired by P&R Disposal Services of St Helens for undisclosed terms. [05-Mar-2003]
ClinPhone, the clinical trials company, is to expand its Nottingham headquarters into a new 5,843 sq ft office nearby. [05-Mar-2003]
Theratase is considering plans to extend its Biozyme Laboratories plant in Blaenavon by 50%, to increase production of enzymes and biochemicals for the diagnostic and pharmaceutical industries. [04-Mar-2003]
EVC is to upgrade its vinyl chloride monomer plant in Runcorn at a cost of £1m. [28-Feb-2003]
Dundee University has finalised plans to invest £30m in the development of a new life sciences centre and computing building over the next three years. [27-Feb-2003]
Celltech has launched a £101m hostile takeover bid for Oxford Glycosciences, trumping last month's agreed deal with Cambridge Antibody Technology. [27-Feb-2003]
Amersham is to shed 400 of the 10,200 jobs in its medical diagnostics business, including 100 at its UK sites in Buckinghamshire and Cardiff. [27-Feb-2003]
Provalis has secured a £1m Welsh Assembly grant to expand production of medical testing kits at its Deeside factory. [26-Feb-2003]
Weston Medical, the needle-free injection company, is said to be seeking a £10m financing package to secure the future of its 100-strong workforce. [19-Feb-2003]
The University of Birmingham has secured £27m of additional funding for research projects in medicine, biosciences and engineering, as part of the £1bn being given to 150 universities and other institutions by the Research Investment Fund. [13-Feb-2003]
Maelor, the Wrexham-based medical research company, is planning to raise £2.9m in a share issue to fund the development of its existing product portfolio, acquire additional products and grow overseas markets. [07-Feb-2003]
Rhodia of France is planning to close ten chemical plants worldwide over the next two years, prompting speculation about the future of a number of its pharmaceutical and agrochemical sites in the UK. [07-Feb-2003]
AstraZeneca has announced plans for a £61m cancer research centre at its Alderley Park site in Cheshire, which will employ more than 240 scientists and other staff. [06-Feb-2003]
Fisher Scientific is creating 24 new jobs for development chemists, following the expansion of its chemical manufacturing and distribution operation in Loughborough. [06-Feb-2003]
Phoqus Pharmaceuticals has raised £7m to fund the expansion of its tablet manufacturing process, which is designed to prevent drug counterfeiting. [06-Feb-2003]
Boots is to close its cosmetics plant in Airdrie over the next two years with the loss of up to 1,000 jobs, and production will be transferred to Nottingham, France, Germany and Thailand. [05-Feb-2003]
Degussa is to sell speciality chemical operations in Barry, South Wales, and Hythe, Southampton, to Cognis for undisclosed terms, as part of the regulatory agreement for the acquisition of Laporte in 2001. [05-Feb-2003]
BP has agreed to sell the Fosroc Mining chemicals division of Burmah Castrol, including 13 manufacturing sites in seven countries, to a management buy-out backed by Close Brothers Private Equity for £32m. [31-Jan-2003]
DCC has acquired Shannon Environmental Services, the Irish waste chemical treatment company, for about £4m. [29-Jan-2003]
Amarin has raised £13m in a share placing to fund the launch of new biotechnology-based products and expand its neurology sales force. [29-Jan-2003]
Alizyme, the biotechnology company, has raised £16m in a share placing and is said to be seeking a licensing partner for its three main products. [29-Jan-2003]
DuPont UK is to relocate its agricultural division and up to 100 jobs from Stevenage to Milton Keynes by the middle of next year, and its Hemel Hempstead branch will also move there. [28-Jan-2003]
ICON has acquired Medeval Group, the Manchester-based provider of clinical pharmacology services to the pharmaceutical industry, for about £10m. [27-Jan-2003]
Cambridge Antibody Technology has offered to acquire Oxford Glycosciences for £110m, and the group's combined cash reserve of £260m will be used to license new drugs or acquire another biotechnology company. [24-Jan-2003]
GlaxoSmithKline is to close a pharmaceutical manufacturing site in Dartford, with the loss of 360 jobs over the next three years. [22-Jan-2003]
The Office of Fair Trading has recommended complete deregulation of the pharmacy market in order to give consumers more choice about where to get NHS prescriptions, which is expected to lead to supermarket groups setting up their own dispensing chemists. [20-Jan-2003]
Skyepharma has invested £2.5m in Micap of Newton-le-Willows, in order to investigate the pharmaceutical applications of Micap's micro-encapsulation technology. [16-Jan-2003]
United Phosphorus has announced a £10m refinancing package to fund the expansion of its Cheshire-based pesticides business. [15-Jan-2003]
Herefordshire County Council is in talks with Bioganix about the possibility of building a £3m plant to transform waste into fertiliser. [10-Jan-2003]
Biotica Technology has raised £3m of venture capital to expand its Cambridge-based drug discovery business, which is focusing on polyketide biosynthesis. [09-Jan-2003]
BP is to sell Sericol, the speciality printing chemicals business with 1,200 staff worldwide and a factory in Broadstairs, to US investment firm Saratoga Partners for £75m. [08-Jan-2003]
Enact Pharma has acquired De Montfort Biopharma of Leicestershire for an initial £0.5m. [07-Jan-2003]
Replizyme has raised £1m from investors to expand its drug discovery business in York, and its full-time scientific staff will rise from six to 15. [07-Jan-2003]
GlaxoSmithKline is to acquire a group of lung treatments being developed by Theravance of the US for up to £350m, in order to maintain its leading position in the market for respiratory products. [07-Jan-2003]
Medipure is planning to set up a factory in Denbigh to develop new disinfectants for hospitals, with the creation of about 20 jobs over the next two years. [06-Jan-2003]