FREDERICK, Md. – Ellume, an Australian-based company that develops diagnostic solutions for infectious diseases, announced plans today to open a new manufacturing facility in Frederick County. The facility, Ellume’s first in the United States, will produce tests for infectious diseases, including at-home rapid tests for COVID-19 to support ongoing U.S. pandemic preparation and response. The company will invest $16 million into Frederick County, occupying 180,000 square feet of space on Executive Court South in the Progress Labs corporate park. The project is expected to create about 1,500 new jobs by the end of 2022.
“This is great news for Frederick County,” Frederick County Executive Jan Gardner said. “Ellume is on the cutting edge, making products that will help the world to overcome this health pandemic. We are excited to welcome Ellume to our thriving life science and biopharma family. Frederick County has delivered on our fast-track permitting process to accelerate this project so production can begin in the second half of 2021. Frederick County is a great place to do business.”
"We look forward to building the foundation for Ellume’s long-term vision in the U.S. and recruiting the highly skilled talent in Maryland’s Biotech Corridor needed to fuel our flagship U.S. facility,” said Jeff Boyle, PhD, Ellume U.S. President. “Frederick is the ideal location for Ellume as we continue to work closely with the U.S. Government in delivering COVID-19 tests to communities across the country. The facility will serve as a foundation for Ellume to support the domestic response to the COVID-19 pandemic and better prepare the U.S. for future public health crises.”
Ellume is a digital diagnostics company that develops, manufactures, and commercializes high-performance, connected products for healthcare professionals and consumers. Ellume’s key focus is on the detection of common infectious diseases which affect the global population across all diagnostic settings, including at-home, point-of-care and in-laboratory. Its novel detection technology is powered by unique quantum dot nanoparticles and integrates optics, electronics, biologics and software.
The Ellume COVID-19 Home Test was the first rapid self-test for COVID-19 detection to receive Emergency Use Authorization by the U.S. FDA for both asymptomatic and symptomatic use without a prescription. With the CDC reporting that at least 50% of COVID-19 cases are transmitted asymptomatically, Ellume’s test will play a crucial role as one of the only diagnostic tools authorized for non-prescription use as a screening tool in the United States. Further information can be found at ellumehealth.com.
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