GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) \u2014 A Grand Rapids company is producing the next great hope for ending the pandemic.<\/p>\n
Grand River Aseptic Manufacturing is already making Johnson & Johnson\u2019s one-shot COVID-19 vaccine, which is expected to get the green light from federal regulators any day now.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t know if a lot of people have realized that there\u2019s a pharma company here that is contributing to this mission right now,\u201d Steven Nole, vice president of operations for GRAM, said.<\/p>\n
GRAM, which launched operations in Grand Rapids in 2010, was awarded a contract from the federal government last summer to\u00a0handle the fill-finish portion of the vaccine production<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cWe take the drug substance, which is actually a concentrated bulk of the vaccine, and we basically formulate that into injectable vials,\u201d Nole explained. \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of steps in between there. But the bulk product is sterile-filtered and then it\u2019s filled in a sterile environment.\u201d<\/p>\n Many large drugmakers, like Johnson & Johnson, contract out the fill-finish part of the process.<\/p>\n GRAM began the production process, which is overseen by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, last fall. Security concerns prohibit GRAM from talking about details like the number of vials produced, where it\u2019s stored and other places it\u2019s being produced, but Nole could say GRAM is well prepared for the challenge.<\/p>\n