What Clean Biologics does

Clean Biologics is a privately held French B2B biopharmaceutical services group (CDMO) headquartered in Montaigu-Vendée and majority-owned by healthcare-focused private equity firm ARCHIMED since its formation in 2018. The group operates through four wholly owned subsidiaries: Clean Cells (founded 2000, GMP quality control, biosafety testing, cell and virus banking, secure storage); Naobios (acquired 2019, GMP viral vaccine and oncolytic virus manufacturing for clinical phases); Biodextris (acquired May 2021, Canadian CDMO offering analytical, process development, and manufacturing services); and Karyologic (acquired 2025, North Carolina-based US operations). Group revenue reached €30M in 2024 with 175+ employees and a footprint spanning France (Montaigu-Vendée, Saint-Herblain, Lyon), Canada (Laval, Quebec), and the United States (Research Triangle Park, NC).

The group's core offering is an integrated suite of GMP-compliant services for biopharmaceutical sponsors: process development and scale-up (up to 200L, with BSL2/BSL3 capabilities), GMP manufacturing of cell banks, virus banks, viral vaccines, oncolytic viruses, and viral vectors, a catalog of 702+ validated GMP assays spanning biosafety, identity, purity, and potency testing, plus secure long-term storage of biological materials. Technology platforms include Next-Generation Sequencing, Solentim VIPS PRO single cell cloning, Waters Xevo G3 QTof mass spectrometry, G-banding/FISH cytogenetics, and qPCR/ELISA-based assays. The new 5,300 m2 Clean Cells facility (opened March 2023, €22M investment) is described as Europe's largest dedicated biopharma quality control site with 9 production suites and quadrupled capacity.

Clean Biologics generates revenue primarily through project-based B2B contracts with enterprise biopharmaceutical sponsors across four primary segments: vaccine developers, cell and gene therapy (ATMP) developers, monoclonal antibody and recombinant protein developers, and oncolytic virus/immunotherapy developers. GTM is enterprise field sales executed by a dedicated business development team (7+ professionals led by François Pedelaborde), supported by content marketing (quarterly "Clean Mails" scientific journal), conference participation, and PR via Andrew Lloyd & Associates. Notable commercial relationships include Naobios' multi-year process development and cGMP manufacturing partnership with FluGen for the M2SR influenza vaccine and Biodextris' clinical supply agreement with Calder Biosciences for the DT-preF RSV vaccine candidate. The group is led since May 2025 by CEO Laurent Claisse (ex-Sartorius SVP Operations), with co-founder Marc Meichenin as CSO and Stéphane Vapillon as CFO/COO.

Name

Clean Biologics

Legal name

Clean Biologics

Website

https://clean-biologics.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Clean Biologics is a French privately-held B2B CDMO group serving biopharmaceutical sponsors with integrated GMP-compliant services spanning process development, viral vaccine and ATMP manufacturing, biosafety/quality control testing, and secure biological storage across France, Canada, and the US.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biopharmaceutical CDMO Services

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Services-Testing Laboratories (8734), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Analytical Development & QC Testing (Release/Stability/Potency) (HLAGAGAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

GMP Quality, Validation & Regulatory Support (GMP/CSV/Qualification) (HLAGAGAL), Process Development & Tech Transfer Services (upstream/downstream) (HLAAAKAF)

Keywords

• Biopharmaceutical CDMO services
• GMP quality control testing
• Viral vaccine manufacturing
• Cell and gene therapy services
• Biosafety testing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Lyon

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. GMP Quality Control & Biosafety Testing Services: Contract services for quality control testing of biopharmaceutical products covering biosafety, identity, purity, and potency. Revenue generated through project-based contracts with biopharma sponsors, with 702+ assay references in the catalog as of 2024. Services provided across pre-clinical, clinical, and commercial phases.
2. GMP Manufacturing & Development Services: Contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) services including cell and virus bank production, clinical batch manufacturing of viral vaccines, oncolytic viruses, and viral vectors. Revenue is project-based, typically spanning process development through GMP manufacturing for clinical trial materials.
3. Secure Storage Services: Long-term secured storage of biological materials including cell lines, virus stocks, and reagents at GMP-graded facilities. Storage services offered across multiple temperature ranges (LN2, -80°C, -20°C, +4°C) with 24/7 monitoring, provided as a standalone or bundled service with manufacturing and QC.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Clean Biologics is a French biopharmaceutical services group providing GMP-compliant contract development, manufacturing, and quality control testing for biopharmaceutical products. Through its subsidiaries Clean Cells, Naobios, Biodextris, and Karyologic, the group offers an integrated portfolio spanning process development, cell and virus banking, clinical manufacturing of viral vaccines, viral vectors, and oncolytic viruses, comprehensive biosafety/identity/purity/potency testing, and secured long-term storage of biological materials. Services are delivered from BSL2/BSL3 facilities in France (Montaigu-Vendée, Saint-Herblain) and North America (Laval-Canada, North Carolina-USA).

Product overview

Clean Biologics is a French international group providing comprehensive biopharmaceutical services through three main subsidiaries: Clean Cells (quality control testing and cell/virus banking), Naobios (viral vaccine and oncolytic virus manufacturing), and Biodextris (Canadian CDMO for analytical and process development services). The group also includes recently acquired US subsidiary Karyologic. Clean Biologics offers an integrated portfolio spanning GMP-compliant manufacturing and development of virus-based medicines, comprehensive quality control and biosafety testing services, process development and optimization, cell and virus banking, and secure storage. The companies specialize in serving developers of vaccines, monoclonal antibodies, recombinant proteins, cell and gene therapies, and phage therapy products, with facilities ranging from BSL2 to BSL3 biosafety levels.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• GMP Quality Control and Biosafety Testing Services

Quantifiable outcome

• 702 GMP assay references available in catalog as of 2024, with 25 new references added that year
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and supporting.

• KaryologiccoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025US-based company acquired by Clean Biologics in 2025, based at Research Triangle Park in Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina. Provides complementary biomanufacturing and QC testing capabilities in the US market, supporting the group's strategic North American expansion.
• FluGen Inc.majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 August 2023Naobios partnered with FluGen for the process development and cGMP manufacturing of FluGen's M2SR (M2-deficient double reporter) influenza vaccine candidate. Naobios subsequently began process optimization for a quadrivalent version of the vaccine. A multi-year collaboration supporting clinical advancement of the influenza vaccine.
• Calder BiosciencesmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Biodextris entered a clinical supply agreement with Calder Biosciences to manufacture DT-preF, Calder's lead RSV vaccine candidate for treating acute lower respiratory infections. This vaccine would be the first product manufactured at Biodextris' new facility, built with support from Investissement Québec and Economic Development Canada.
• Biodextris Inc.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 May 2021Canadian CDMO based in Laval, Quebec, specializing in analytical, process development, and manufacturing services for vaccine and biologics clients. Acquired by Clean Biologics in May 2021 to expand the group's presence in North America and enhance service offerings. Also engaged in clinical supply agreements with partners such as Calder Biosciences.
• Univercells TechnologiessupportingTechnology or IntegrationNaobios collaborated with Univercells Technologies to assess the performance of Vero cells cultured within Univercells' scale-X fixed-bed bioreactor for viral-based bioproduction. The assessment aimed to evaluate compatibility and efficiency of the novel bioreactor platform for manufacturing viral vaccines and oncolytic viruses.
• SolentimsupportingTechnology or IntegrationClean Cells implemented Solentim's VIPS PRO, a state-of-the-art single cell cloning platform, to isolate potent clones and characterize monoclonality of biotherapeutics-producing cell lines with increased traceability as part of a regulatory-compliant approach.
• Waters CorporationsupportingTechnology or IntegrationBiodextris deployed Waters Xevo G3 QTof mass spectrometry system under GMP conditions for comprehensive biologics characterization and quantitative analysis, enabling detailed testing of biologics including purity, degradation pathways, and production process characterization.
• Laporte EurosupportingImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLaporte Euro was selected as the specialist firm for the design and construction of Clean Cells' new 5,300 m2 pharmaceutical laboratory facility in Montaigu-Vendée, completed in 2022-2023.

Scale indicators16 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Eurofins Scientific: Global testing services giant with significant biopharma and biosafety testing capabilities. Overlaps with Clean Cells' QC testing portfolio but as part of a much broader lab services franchise rather than biopharma-specialized offering.
• Sartorius: Global bioprocessing equipment and services provider for the biopharma industry. Adjacent overlap through bioprocess development consumables and the recent acquisition of Polyplus, where Clean Biologics CEO Laurent Claisse previously held senior operating roles.
• Catalent: Large global CDMO with biologics, cell therapy, and viral vector manufacturing capabilities. Represents the scale benchmark Clean Biologics competes against in attracting larger sponsor programs.
• Charles River Laboratories: Global CRO/CDMO with biologics testing, cell banking, and viral clearance services. Comparable scope to Clean Cells' biosafety testing and cell/virus banking, but at much larger scale and as part of a broader preclinical services portfolio.

Direct peers

• Richter-Helm BioLogics: German CDMO offering GMP microbial and mammalian biopharmaceutical manufacturing plus QC services. Comparable mid-sized European CDMO with similar biologics manufacturing and quality testing scope.
• ABL Bio (ABL Manufacturing): French GMP contract manufacturer specialized in viral vaccines, gene therapy vectors, and oncolytic viruses. Direct geographic and capability peer to Naobios within the French biomanufacturing ecosystem.
• Vibalogics: German-based CDMO specialized in viral vaccines, viral vectors (AAV, lentiviral), and oncolytic viruses for clinical and commercial supply. Closest direct competitor to Naobios in BSL2/BSL3 viral manufacturing and a comparable mid-size specialty CDMO.
• Yposkesi: French CDMO producing GMP-grade viral vectors for cell and gene therapy, with comparable BSL2 manufacturing and ATMP-focused service portfolio. Directly overlaps Naobios and Biodextris in viral vector manufacturing.

Emerging players

• Genezen: US-based viral vector CDMO focused on lentiviral and AAV production for gene therapy developers. Comparable emerging-stage specialty player targeting similar ATMP customers as Clean Biologics' viral vector offering.
• Exothera: Belgian viral vaccine and viral vector CDMO with BSL2 capabilities. Similar profile to Naobios as a mid-size specialty manufacturer serving vaccine and gene therapy developers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Clean Biologics