Charles River Strengthens Global Microbial Solutions Network Through Investments in Manufacturing, Customer Support, and Sustainability

The South Korea service depot supports direct commercial markets and distributor-supported markets across Asia-Pacific.

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Enhancements across Europe, Asia-Pacific, and North America expand operational capacity, improve customer responsiveness, and advance sustainable laboratory practices

WILMINGTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Charles River Laboratories International, Inc. (NYSE: CRL) has announced a series of strategic investments and operational enhancements across its global Microbial Solutions network designed to strengthen the infrastructure that supports customers worldwide. Through investments in manufacturing capacity, regional service capabilities, and sustainable laboratory operations, the company continues to build a more connected, resilient, and customer-focused organization that helps pharmaceutical, biotechnology, cell and gene therapy, and medical device manufacturers accelerate critical quality control workflows while maintaining the highest standards of product quality and patient safety.

“These investments reflect our commitment to continually strengthening the capabilities that customers rely on throughout their manufacturing journey,” said Kerstin Dolph, Corporate Senior Vice President, Global Manufacturing, Charles River. “By enhancing how we manufacture products, support customers, and operate our laboratories, we are creating a stronger global network that improves responsiveness, reliability, and long-term sustainability.”

Building a More Connected Global Microbial Solutions Network

To support customers across every stage of the quality control lifecycle, Microbial Solutions has recently expanded capabilities across three key areas: manufacturing excellence, regional customer support, and sustainable laboratory operations.

Expanding Manufacturing Capacity in Europe

To meet growing global demand for endotoxin testing products, Charles River has expanded production capabilities for Endosafe^® Accessories glassware through the addition of a dedicated production suite in Dublin, Ireland.

The facility introduces custom automation that improves efficiency, consistency, and quality controls while reducing manual handling. The investment establishes Dublin as an additional manufacturing site for Endosafe Accessories, strengthening supply continuity and increasing production capacity for customers across Europe and global markets.

Twelve accessory glassware formats have been successfully transferred to the Dublin facility and are actively produced at the site. The expansion also includes a dedicated depyrogenation suite featuring three validated depyrogenation ovens, designed to eliminate endotoxins from glassware prior to sterile processing, and has created new employment opportunities within the region.

Bringing Service Expertise Closer to Customers in Asia-Pacific

Complementing these manufacturing investments, Microbial Solutions has expanded regional customer support capabilities through the launch of a new Instrument Service Depot in South Korea. The facility serves as a centralized hub for complex instrument repairs and maintenance, enabling faster turnaround times, enhanced regional responsiveness, and access to specialized technical expertise closer to customer operations.

The depot supports customers throughout direct commercial markets, including South Korea, Australia, Singapore, India and China, while also serving distributor-supported markets across the broader Asia-Pacific region.

“The launch of our regional service depot strengthens our ability to deliver timely, high-quality support while helping customers maximize instrument performance and uptime,” said Matthew Hewitt, Corporate Vice President, Chief Technology Officer, Manufacturing, Charles River.

Advancing Sustainable Laboratory Operations

Alongside investments in manufacturing and customer support infrastructure, Microbial Solutions continues to advance sustainability across its laboratory network. Most recently, the Charleston, South Carolina Celsis^® Application Laboratory achieved Gold-Level Certification from My Green Lab^®, the leading global standard for laboratory sustainability.

The certification reflects the successful implementation of initiatives focused on reducing environmental impact, embedding sustainable practices into daily laboratory operations, and improving resource efficiency. The achievement serves as a catalyst for broader sustainability efforts across the Manufacturing Solutions division.

Building on Charleston’s success, additional laboratories in Germany, France, Ireland, and the United States have committed to pursuing My Green Lab certification, further expanding sustainable laboratory practices throughout the organization’s global footprint. According to the company’s My Green Lab program dashboard, certified and participating laboratories have collectively generated measurable environmental benefits, including:

• More than 584,000 kWh of annual energy savings
• Approximately 1.4 million liters of annual water savings
• An estimated reduction of 306 metric tons of CO₂ emissions
• Reduction of laboratory waste and chemical consumption across participating sites

“Achieving Gold-Level Certification demonstrates that scientific excellence and environmental stewardship can advance together,” said Miriam Guest, Executive Director and Scientific Advisor, Microbial Solutions, Charles River. “As we expand these efforts globally, we are creating a more sustainable laboratory network while continuing to deliver the scientific expertise our customers expect.”

Together, these investments reflect Charles River's continued commitment to building a stronger global Microbial Solutions network. By expanding manufacturing capacity, bringing service expertise closer to customers, and advancing sustainable laboratory operations, the company is enhancing the infrastructure, expertise, and operational excellence that help customers accelerate product release, optimize quality control workflows, and maintain the highest standards of product quality and patient safety worldwide.

About Charles River
Charles River provides essential products and services to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, government agencies and leading academic institutions around the globe accelerate their research and drug development efforts. Our dedicated employees are focused on providing clients with exactly what they need to improve and expedite the discovery, early-stage development and safe manufacture of new therapies for the patients who need them. To learn more about our unique portfolio and breadth of services, visit www.criver.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20261112694521/en/

Charles River Investor Contact:
Todd Spencer
Corporate Vice President,
Investor Relations
781.222.6455
todd.spencer@crl.com

Charles River Media Contact:
Amy Cianciaruso
Corporate Senior Vice President,
Chief Communications Officer
781.222.6168
amy.cianciaruso@crl.com

Source: Charles River Laboratories International, Inc.

Key Terms

depyrogenation technical

Depyrogenation is the process used to remove or inactivate pyrogens—substances, most commonly bacterial endotoxins (lipopolysaccharides), that can cause fever—on equipment, containers, or in solutions used for drugs, medical devices, or laboratory work. Common methods include high-temperature dry heat or steam cycles, chemical treatments, and specialized filtration or adsorption for liquids; these methods target the heat-stable endotoxin molecules rather than only killing living microbes. Depyrogenation is distinct from sterilization because sterilization eliminates or inactivates viable microorganisms but does not necessarily remove or destroy heat‑stable pyrogens.

endotoxins medical

Endotoxins are heat-stable molecules called lipopolysaccharides that form part of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria; when released into blood or tissues they can trigger strong inflammatory and fever responses. In regulated medical and pharmaceutical contexts endotoxins are treated as contaminants that must be measured and limited for injectable drugs, biologics, and some medical devices using standardized tests (for example, the Limulus amebocyte lysate or recombinant assays); they are distinct from other types of pyrogens produced by different organisms.