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- Esco Lifesciences Group soars to new heights with the founding family’s acquisition of CESCO Bioengineering Co., Ltd.—a Taiwan-based bioengineering firm that manufactures first-in-class, mission critical life sciences, healthcare tools for patented adherent cell culture including bioreactors, bioprocess instruments, and consumables.
- King Chang, patent inventor of Tide Motion technology, will join Esco Aster as the Chief Technology Officer (CTO), signifying a strategic move to strengthen leadership.
- Esco Bioengineering's unique intellectual property in synthetic biology will have a global impact, with plans to explore IP licensing and manufacturing in collaboration with Esco Lifesciences Group's global network.
SINGAPORE—27 October 2023— Esco Lifesciences Group’s (ELG) founding family is delighted to announce the acquisition of CESCO Bioengineering Co.Ltd., now rebranded as Esco Bioengineering (EscoBio). This strategic move aims to further expand ELG’s presence in the life sciences industry, providing a comprehensive range of innovative solutions and technologies worldwide.
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EscoBio will continue to focus on the production of patented Tide Motion bioreactors, a product that has undergone significant re-engineering under the visionary leadership of XL Lin who serves as ELG's Deputy Group CEO and Esco Aster's Founder, President, and CEO. Over the past eight years, he has led the charge to enhance these bioreactors and secure new patents, transforming them into state-of-the-art cGMP units designed in Singapore and made in PT Esco Bintan. Beyond their original applications in vaccine production, these fixed-packed bed adherent bioreactors are now poised for even broader utility in various fields such as cell and gene therapy, cultivated meat, specialty diagnostics (including applications in food and water safety, neglected tropical diseases, cancer diagnostics) as well as the development of cancer viral vectors. This expansion in our portfolio is the result of a collaborative effort between XL Lin and our dedicated team of bioprocess engineers, scientists, and application experts who have worked tirelessly over the past eight (8) years to bring this vision into reality.
In conjunction with the production of Tide Motion bioreactors, EscoBio will produce a range of single-use technologies such as glucose monitoring systems, tubing sets, single-use mixers, macroporous carriers, ancillary bioprocessing tools along with serum-free and animal component-free culture media. These diverse offerings are strategically designed to cater to global markets across rapid growth and emerging sectors.
Escobio will further enhance the single-use and recurring revenue portfolio and workflow solutions collaborating closely with ELG’s business units, Esco Healthcare. Such synergies will include providing Esco Healthcare filling line isolators with single-use assemblies to reduce cross-contamination from single-use mixers for drug substances connected to sterile filters and single-use filling needles. Other ancillary devices and appurtenances are being developed from drug delivery systems/containers to single-use beta bags for gamma-irradiated stoppers/caps as well as liquid, sharps, and solid waste. With Escobio, Esco Healthcare is well-positioned to enable a seamless workflow center solution for unit operations from upstream to downstream processing, and ultimately, fill and finish. These tools will be exclusively sold globally through ELG and selected distributors.
Licensing of background intellectual property (IP) in synthetic biology/bioindustry applications which includes cultivated meat and milk, collagen as well as potential extension into viruses, stem cells, and exosomes for animal health are granted solely to Esco Aster, a global Contract Research Development and Manufacturing Organization (CRDMO).
King Chang, the inventor of Tide Motion, Asia Pacific's first single-use bioreactor patent (2002), and the second globally after Wave Technology (1998), will join Esco Aster's C-suite team as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). This addition further fortifies Esco Aster's position as the first and only site globally utilizing patented adherent Tide Motion cell culture platforms in the CRDMO industry.
On a global scale, the applications of adherent Tide Motion bioreactors have spanned nine (9) distinct commercial products for human and animal health for key accounts in the USA, Spain, France, Japan, and Taiwan. Further applications are in induced pluripotent stem cells, secretome products for cosmetics/cosmeceuticals, and exosomes in countries ranging from the USA, Japan, Taiwan, and Singapore respectively.
Esco Aster’s commitment to the highest yield within shorter process development times extends to enhancing bioprocessing efficiency by further engineering scaled-down versions of Tide Motion bioreactors able to run in parallel 16-24 vessels. A pivotal aspect of this endeavor will significantly reduce process development, process optimization, and process characterization timelines. The adoption of the design of experiment (DoE) software, coupled with future AI/machine learning adaptive cell culture and advanced sensors, will usher in a groundbreaking era for microenvironment assessment at the cellular level, particularly within high-density fixed-packed beds.
With regards to fostering a sustainable future, our next step towards food innovation is to offer white-labeled cultivated meat products, active ingredients, and food additives, all available through both B2B and B2B2C models.
Esco Aster’s IP in patented suspension mammalian cell/plant cell bioreactors, liquid precision fermentation, and solid-state fermentation tools with proprietary IP will be provided as “Right of First Refusal (ROFR)” to Esco Bioengineering to manufacture these tools in Taiwan. The distribution will be seamlessly handled via Esco Lifesciences Group’s extensive global network spanning 42 locations in 25 countries.
With each step forward, we are driven by the unwavering support of our partners and the belief that science and innovation can transform the world. Let’s continue to push boundaries, create new possibilities, and make a lasting impact on the current and future generations to come. Together, we write the next chapter in this incredible story of discovery and success!
Esco Aster is a contract research development and manufacturing organization (CRDMO) founded and deeply rooted by scientists enabling fellow scientists to translate their bench work into life-saving diagnostics, medicines, therapies, cosmeceuticals, and cellular agriculture, at affordable prices for self-sufficiency of the country. We make complex manufacturing simple via our proprietary best-in-class continuous manufacturing platforms providing a reliable and linearly scalable outcome. Learn more at www.escoaster.com and connect with Esco Aster on LinkedIn.
Esco Bioengineering holds the distinction of being the first single-use bioprocessing platform patented in the Far East for adherent cell culture, with our pioneering patent dating back to 2002. Our mission-critical tools have been embraced by commercial clients worldwide, playing a vital role in the production of life-saving vaccines and promoting vaccine self-sufficiency.
Esco Lifesciences is a world-leading life science company with a diversified portfolio and sales in over 100 countries. As a manufacturer of laboratory and biopharma equipment, and IVF medical devices, Esco offers tailored solutions that fit the needs of laboratories in various industries.
Esco Lifesciences contributes to meet the challenges of the 21st century with a diverse range of business units. The company continuously innovates its products to help the clinical and industrial laboratories achieve successful conclusions in research and development, quality control, and analysis. We continue to provide reliable world-class equipment to help pharmaceutical companies make their products safer and more cost-effective. And with the increasing demand of the IVF industry, we have developed efficient ART equipment to enable equitable access to infertility care.