RTI Biologics breaks ground on new facility in Florida
The US$14m investment will include new laboratories and cleanrooms
RTI Biologics Inc (RTI), a provider of orthopedic and other biologic implants, celebrated the ground breaking of its new 41,165ft2 logistics and technology centre on 7 January.
RTI, which is headquartered in Alachua, Florida, is a leading provider of sterile biologic implants for patients around the world. Its Logistics and Technology Center, a US$14m investment, will be home to the company’s research and development offices and laboratories, cleanrooms, warehouse, shipping and finished implants and other support functions. In addition, the new facility will include space for production of RTI’s forthcoming map3 cellular allogeneic bone grafts.
“RTI began operations in 1998 when it spun off from the University of Florida Tissue Bank. At that time, our offices, labs and cleanrooms occupied approximately 45,000ft2 of total space in Progress Corporate Park, housing about 200 people,” said Brian K. Hutchison, RTI president and CEO.
“Today we have more than 700 employees globally. This new facility represents the continued growth and expansion of our company and allows us room for future growth.”
This new facility represents the continued growth and expansion of our company and allows us room for future growth
The Logistics and Technology Center, along with the company’s recent acquisition of a 15,425ft2 office building in the park, will expand RTI’s total occupied space to about 200,000ft2.
Occupancy of RTI’s Logistics and Technology Center is expected in early 2014. The project is managed by Charles Perry Partners, Inc. Other groups that have been instrumental include Affiliated Engineers, Causseaux, Hewett, & Walpole, Inc., the City of Alachua, RS&H and Gyllstrom Architecture and Consulting, Inc.
RTI’s innovations have raised the bar of science and safety for biologics – it was the first company to offer precision-tooled bone implants and assembled technology to maximise each gift of donation, and has invented validated sterilisation processes that include viral inactivation steps.
The company says its processes — BioCleanse, Tutoplast and Cancelle SP DBM — have a combined record of more than four million implants distributed with zero incidence of implant-associated infection. The processes have been validated by tissue type to inactivate or remove viruses, bacteria, fungi and spores from the tissue while maintaining biocompatibility and functionality.
