Boehringer's Chinese subsidiary was established in 1994 and has more than 3,500 employees, the company said. The German drugmaker decided several years ago that China, with its huge population and growing appetite for the latest medicines, was a good place to establish a biologics contract manufacturing operation. In May 2017, it opened a $77 million facility in Shanghai to capitalize on that bet. The plant has a single-use bioreactor that can handle clinical supplies or commercial production up to 2000 liters. The facility, which employs about 65, was designed so Boehringer Ingelheim could add fill-finish capabilities, as well as more 2000 L single-use bioreactors.