Amgen Opens State-of-the-Art Biotechnology Research Campus
40-Acre Seattle Campus Focuses On
Advancing Cancer and Immunology Therapies
SEATTLE, Feb. 25 -- Amgen Inc. (Nasdaq: AMGN), the
world's largest biotechnology company, today announced the official opening of
its new state-of-the-art research and development campus. The 750,000 square
foot facility was designed in collaboration with scientists as an environment
for the creation of breakthrough therapies. Helix will house researchers,
process development scientists and support personnel. The completion of the
Helix campus, located on the waterfront of Seattle's Interbay neighborhood,
reflects the company's commitment to continuing the growth of the biotech
industry in the region.
More than 750 staff from several locations throughout Seattle are
scheduled to move into the new $625 million Helix campus, which includes the
latest technological advances in computerization and robotics to maximize
efficiencies in research and process development. "Amgen's state-of-the-art
biotechnology campus, the largest of its kind in the Northwest, is designed to
optimize scientific exploration, discovery and collaboration," said Roger M.
Perlmutter, M.D., Ph.D., executive vice president of Research and Development.
"Ultimately, we're looking to accelerate the drug discovery process in order
to deliver groundbreaking inflammation and oncology therapies to patients as
quickly as possible," added Perlmutter. The location of the campus will
further enhance scientific learning by increasing opportunities for Amgen
scientists to collaborate with leading Seattle research centers such as the
University of Washington, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and the
Institute for Systems Biology.
About the Campus
The 40-acre campus houses six buildings including lab and supporting
office space, totaling 750,000 square feet. Additionally, Amgen built an
adjacent award-winning pedestrian bridge to provide staff and local residents
with direct access to waterfront parks. A substantial portion of the facility
has been set aside as green space with extensive landscaping that complements
the waterfront location.
About Amgen
Amgen is a global biotechnology company that discovers, develops,
manufactures and markets important human therapeutics based on advances in
cellular and molecular biology.
FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
This news release contains forward-looking statements that involve
significant risks and uncertainties, including those discussed below and
others that can be found in our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2002, and in our periodic reports on Form 10-Q and Form 8-K. Amgen is
providing this information as of the date of this news release and does not
undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in
this document as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
No forward-looking statement can be guaranteed and actual results may
differ materially from those we project. The Company's results may be
affected by our ability to successfully market both new and existing products
domestically and internationally, sales growth of recently launched products,
difficulties or delays in manufacturing our products, and regulatory
developments (domestic or foreign) involving current and future products and
manufacturing facilities. In addition, sales of our products are affected by
reimbursement policies imposed by third party payors, including governments,
private insurance plans and managed care providers, and may be affected by
domestic and international trends toward managed care and healthcare cost
containment as well as possible U.S. legislation affecting pharmaceutical
pricing and reimbursement. Government regulations and reimbursement policies
may affect the development, usage and pricing of our products. Furthermore,
our research, testing, pricing, marketing and other operations are subject to
extensive regulation by domestic and foreign government regulatory
authorities. We, or others could identify side effects or manufacturing
problems with our products after they are on the market. In addition, we
compete with other companies with respect to some of our marketed products as
well as for the discovery and development of new products. Discovery or
identification of new product candidates cannot be guaranteed and movement
from concept to product is uncertain; consequently, there can be no guarantee
that any particular product candidate will be successful and become a
commercial product. In addition, while we routinely obtain patents for our
products and technology, the protection offered by our patents and patent
applications may be challenged, invalidated or circumvented by our
competitors. Further, some raw materials, medical devices, and component
parts for our products are supplied by sole third party suppliers.
CONTACT: Amgen, Thousand Oaks
Mary Klem: (805) 447-4587 (media)
Cary Rosansky: (805) 447-1060 (investors)
Helix Campus, Seattle
Carol Pawlak: (206) 579-0654 (Washington media)
NOTE TO EDITORS: An electronic version of this news release may be
accessed via our Web site at www.amgen.com . Journalists and media
representatives may sign up to receive all news releases electronically at
time of announcement by filling out a short form in the Media section of the
Web site