Six NHS trusts in the West Midlands have launched a procurement process for a £290m regional sterile medicines manufacturing facility, intended to replace ageing aseptic production units currently operating across the region.
The regional sterile medicines, or aseptic, units are used to produce critical injectable medicines in a controlled, contamination-free environment.
The trusts involved are: University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust, George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust, and Wye Valley NHS Trust.
According to a notice published on Find a Tender, the Trusts are seeking a commercial partner to design, build, commission, and operate a new MHRA-licensed sterile drugs production facility.
The facility will supply critical injectable medicines to all six trusts collectively, rather than operating as a single-trust service.
The contract is expected to run for an initial 10 years, with the option to extend to up to 15 years, and has an estimated total value of £290m including VAT.
Replacing ageing infrastructure
The procurement notice states that existing aseptic facilities across the region are “ageing” and no longer meet future service or capacity requirements.
The new hub is intended to consolidate production into a single, modern facility, providing greater resilience and standardisation. The hub will manufacture a range of sterile compounded medicines, including:
- Chemotherapy and other cytotoxic preparations
- Centralised intravenous additive services (CIVAS)
- Outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy (OPAT) products
- Non-cytotoxic injectables, including monoclonal antibodies and advanced therapy medicinal products
Radiopharmaceuticals and investigational medicinal products for clinical trials are excluded from the scope.
What happens next?
Following publication of the notice, the Trusts will complete market engagement with potential suppliers, which closes in January 2026.
Feedback from industry will be used to refine the scope, delivery model, and commercial structure ahead of the formal tender.
The full tender is expected in March 2026, setting out detailed requirements, evaluation criteria, and contract terms.
Once bids are assessed and a preferred bidder identified, the trusts will seek the necessary internal and NHS England approvals before awarding the contract.
If appointed, the successful partner will move into detailed design, mobilisation, and regulatory planning, ahead of construction, MHRA licensing, and the future transition of sterile medicines production into the new facility.