Global health care company could be headed to Canton

The Board of Selectmen and Town Counsel Paul DeRensis are negotiating with Fresenius Kabi, a global health care company based in Germany, to open a new facility at 20 Dan Road in Canton, the site of the former Copley Controls Co., which left the town five years ago.

The enticement for the company is a Tax Increment Finance (TIF) agreement; however, selectmen and town counsel want to include a provision that would shield the town from any financial impacts should the company decide to leave before the TIF expires.

Such a provision likely takes on added significance given the expected departure of Reebok, which recently announced plans to relocate to Boston in 2017 despite having a TIF agreement with Canton that is not set to expire until FY19. Selectmen Chairman Bob Burr told the Citizen recently that town officials are still assessing the financial impact of the move and are holding out hope that Reebok may reconsider its decision.

Fresenius Kabi (FK), which is headquartered in Bad Homburg, Germany, specializes in creating lifesaving medicines and technology for critical and chronically ill patients. Its products are used for infusions, transfusions, and clinical nutrition and are manufactured and sold throughout the United States. The company’s North American headquarters is located in Lake Zurich, Illinois. FK employs more than 30,000 people worldwide and has annual sales of more than $5 billion.

FK’s parent company, Fresenius SE & Co., also owns a 31 percent stake in Fresenius Medical Care, whose North American branch is headquartered in Waltham. Fresenius SE is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50, an index made up of 50 of the largest companies in the Eurozone.

Derek Bonner, vice president of global compounding strategy, said FK would like to develop a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility at 20 Dan Road, where approximately 200 to 250 products would be made. The company plans to invest more than $8 million in the facility and create 67 jobs over the next five years and expand to 80 jobs at full operational capacity. The jobs will include management positions, pharmacists, lab technicians, logistics and warehousing positions, and marketing positions with salaries ranging from $50,000 to $200,000. This would be the first compound pharmaceutical manufacturing site in the United States for FK.

Bonner said the company likes the Canton site and chose the town over two other communities. He said the company would like to get involved in the Canton community through membership in the Canton Association of Business and Industry and the awarding of scholarships to CHS students. FK would also give priority consideration to Canton residents for employment.

Gene Manning, who recently stepped down after many years of service as chairman of the Economic Development Committee, has agreed to return to assist the town with this agreement. Manning told selectmen that FK is ready to sign a 10-year lease with an option for 10 more years, and the new agreement could provide for $240,000 annually in tax revenue.

No agreements were reached Tuesday night as Manning updated selectmen on the status of the project and asked that the board insert a placeholder article in the warrant for the 2017 annual town meeting …

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Posted by Mike Berger on Dec 2 2016. Filed under Business. Both comments and pings are currently closed.