What Xpress Biologics does

Xpress Biologics is a Belgian contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) founded in 2014 and headquartered in Milmort, Belgium. The firm provides services spanning the design of expression systems through to production, with a primary focus on plasmid DNA manufacturing for use as starting material in mRNA and viral vector production, or as final drug substance.

The company's core offering is a validated plasmid DNA platform delivering manufacturing across four quality grades — Discovery, Research, GMP Principles, and full GMP — at scales ranging from micrograms up to gram-batch quantities. Technical capabilities include production of supercoiled or linear DNA using antibiotic-free, animal-free, TSE/BSE-free processes, with compliance to ICHQ7 GMP and Eudralex vol.4 Part II. Lead times are tiered from 3–4 weeks (Discovery) to 10 weeks (GMP Principles large scale).

The business model is services-based: customers engage Xpress Biologics on a project or batch basis, paying for plasmid DNA supply aligned to their development phase. The customer base spans human therapeutics developers, vaccine manufacturers, cell and gene therapy companies, and veterinary health firms. No pricing, customer count, or revenue figures are publicly disclosed in the available source material, and the company operates with a small team of 11–50 employees, consistent with a specialized European bioprocess services firm at an early-to-mid commercial stage.

Name

Xpress Biologics

Legal name

Sartorius AG

Website

https://xpress-biologics.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Xpress Biologics is a Belgian CDMO founded in 2014 that provides plasmid DNA contract manufacturing services across research and GMP grades for vaccine, cell/gene therapy, and therapeutic developers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Biophorum Plasmid DNA Contract Manufacturing

NAICS

Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Plasmid DNA & mRNA Manufacturing Services (HLAAAKAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Gene Therapy (Viral Vector/Plasmid) CDMO (HLAGABAE)

Keywords

• Plasmid DNA manufacturing
• Contract development services
• Biologics CDMO
• Cell and gene therapy
• GMP plasmid production

Headquarters

HQ city

Milmort

HQ country

Belgium

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain

Core offering

Xpress Biologics provides custom plasmid DNA manufacturing services for biotech and pharmaceutical clients, spanning Discovery, Research, GMP Principles, and full GMP grades with batch scales from micrograms to grams. The service supports production of supercoiled or linear DNA used as starting material for mRNA, viral vectors, and other biotherapeutics, or as final drug substance for vaccines, cell and gene therapies, and veterinary health applications. Complementary offerings include plasmid engineering and sequencing, process development for Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMPs), and fill and finish manufacturing of biologics.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Plasmid Manufacturing Service Contract plasmid DNA manufacturing across multiple quality grades and scales, delivering supercoiled or linear DNA for vaccine, cell and gene therapy, and veterinary health applications. Includes Discovery grade (1 µg to 50 mg, 3-4 week lead time), Research grade (50 mg to 20 g, 6 week lead time), and GMP Principles and GMP grades with regulatory documentation.
• Plasmid Engineering Service Plasmid design, engineering, and sequencing services supporting the design of expression systems for clients developing biologics and advanced therapies.
• Process Development for ATMPs Process development services supporting the manufacture of Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products, helping clients bridge research-stage plasmid and viral vector work toward clinical manufacturing.
• Fill and Finish Manufacturing Final fill and finish manufacturing services for biologics, completing the CDMO value chain from plasmid DNA production through to finished drug product.

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• PlasmidFactory: PlasmidFactory is a German specialist in plasmid DNA and linear DNA production for research, gene therapy, and cell therapy applications, competing in the same niche research/preclinical segment as Xpress Biologics.
• Cobra Biologics (Charles River Laboratories): Cobra Biologics, part of Charles River, provides plasmid DNA and viral vector CDMO services across research and GMP grades, competing head-to-head with Xpress Biologics in gene therapy and cell therapy supply.
• Aldevron: Aldevron is one of the largest dedicated plasmid DNA CDMOs globally (now owned by Danaher), producing research- and GMP-grade plasmid DNA for gene therapy, cell therapy, and mRNA developers — directly comparable to Xpress Biologics' core offering.
• VGXI: VGXI is a specialized plasmid DNA contract manufacturer offering preclinical through GMP-grade material for DNA vaccines and gene therapies, directly overlapping with Xpress's quality grade ladder.

Others

• Sartorius AG (parent): Sartorius AG is now the parent company of Xpress Biologics and markets the plasmid manufacturing capability as part of its Biologics Contract Services, serving as both parent and a channel for Xpress's services.

Broad incumbents

• WuXi Advanced Therapies: WuXi AppTec's Advanced Therapies unit offers plasmid, viral vector, and cell therapy CDMO services globally, competing with Xpress for outsourced plasmid DNA manufacturing contracts.
• Catalent: Catalent is a large global CDMO with biologic, cell therapy, and plasmid/viral vector capabilities that overlaps with Xpress's services as part of a broader development and manufacturing portfolio.
• Thermo Fisher Scientific (Patheon/Brammer Bio): Thermo Fisher, via its Patheon and Brammer Bio gene therapy CDMO units, provides plasmid DNA and viral vector manufacturing at scale, making it a large incumbent peer for Xpress's service lines.
• Lonza: Lonza is one of the world's largest CDMOs, offering cell and gene therapy services including plasmid DNA production, positioning it as a broad incumbent competitor to specialized plasmid CDMOs like Xpress.

Emerging players

• Genezen: Genezen is an emerging US-based viral vector and gene therapy CDMO that also offers plasmid DNA services, making it a partial peer competing for early-stage cell and gene therapy customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Xpress Biologics