Agilent Technologies Inc. has chosen to modernize and expand its existing manufacturing facility in Newport, Delaware to meet growing global demand for its biopharma consumables. Aa global leader in analytical instrumentation development and manufacturing, the company is one of Delaware’s largest private-sector employers.
Agilent plans to invest nearly $22 million to increase the capacity of its lab-based manufacturing site in Newport, leasing 12,000 square feet adjacent to its existing facility and fitting out 9,900 square feet as lab space with new infrastructure, equipment and instrumentation. Over half of the remaining square footage will become a warehouse, storage and shipping/receiving area, and the balance will be used for offices.
“Agilent has been operating in Delaware for more than 20 years, and we are pleased to continue investing in our manufacturing and R&D facilities in the First State,” said Henrik Ancher-Jensen, Agilent’s Order Fulfillment and Supply Chain president. “We are honored to be part of this dynamic community that supports innovation and growth and attracts top talent.”
“Delaware has a strong manufacturing history, and this latest investment by Agilent Technologies confirms the company’s commitment to innovating in the First State.”
— Governor John Carney.
This latest expansion follows another investment by Agilent last year to its Wilmington-area Little Falls R&D labs. Agilent employs 18,000 people worldwide, including more than 950 in Delaware. The Newport site employs 110 workers, and the expansion is expected to create additional new jobs over the next 10 years.
“Delaware has a strong manufacturing history, and this latest investment by Agilent Technologies confirms the company’s commitment to innovating in the First State,” said Governor John Carney. “We are pleased Agilent will be expanding and bringing more good-paying jobs to the state’s strong science, technology and biopharmaceutical sectors.”
The Newport facility, one of several Agilent manufacturing sites across the United States, produces liquid chromatography columns used for chemical and biochemical analysis, drug discovery, environmental control and analytical chemistry. Growing worldwide demand for these analytical consumables led the company to review its U.S. facilities to determine the best opportunity to grow production capacity. Agilent’s decision to invest in its Newport site in New Castle County reflects confidence in Delaware’s dynamic business environment and the large pool of regional talent.
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Delaware Levels Up Workforce“Agilent’s latest expansion is proof that New Castle County is a great place to create and grow your business,” said New Castle County Executive Matt Meyer. “It’s become well known that we have the resources and the talent to continue to be a leader in the chemical and biopharma industry.”
Delaware Prosperity Partnership (DPP) worked with Agilent as the company explored its growth possibilities in Delaware. DPP supported Agilent’s request to the Council on Development Finance for a Delaware Graduated Lab Space Grant of up to $693,000 from the Delaware Strategic Fund.
Nonprofit Picks Wilmington For $2.3M Medical Scheduling Center
Blindsight Delaware Enterprises (BSDE), a nonprofit social business enterprise founded in 2021, has chosen Wilmington as the site for a $2.3 million regional medical scheduling hub. BSDE train and employ more than 225 Delawareans with economic vulnerabilities at the facility, while helping to alleviate staffing shortages created by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As a former commercial banker and a 30-year Delaware not-for-profit leader providing direct services to those in need along with employment throughout Delaware, I have been honored to lead this social business enterprise to both employ and serve Delawareans and our high-priority industries, while drawing contracts from Philadelphia, Southern New Jersey, Baltimore and Chicago to make Delaware the call center hub of our region,” said John Baker, BSDE executive director and CEO. “We could not do this without the support and vision of DPP, the CDF and other visionary Delaware leaders.”
DPP supported BSDE’s application for a Jobs Performance Grant of up to $608,000 from the Delaware Strategic Fund.
BSDE’s call center will be located in the CSC Station coworking space, adjacent to Joseph R. Biden Jr. Railroad Station in downtown Wilmington. It will provide on-site and fully remote jobs to Delawareans with physical and socioeconomic challenges while serving healthcare providers throughout Delaware and beyond and generating revenue to support local social service programming.
“The BlindSight Delaware Enterprises medical scheduling hub will not only create more than 200 good jobs for economically vulnerable Delawareans, but also will help solve a healthcare staffing problem to support services for our state’s blind and visually impaired residents,” said Gov. Carney. “This project builds on Delaware’s strong healthcare foundation and is a great example of how innovative Delaware’s business and nonprofit communities are.”
BSDE will hire 227 Delawareans who are blind or visually impaired, have other disabilities, are military veterans and/or live in economically disadvantaged Promise Communities in New Castle, Kent and Sussex counties by the end of 2025. Most of these employees will be full-time medical schedulers, whose duties will include scheduling and confirming appointments, answering questions, providing directions and reminders and resolving problems for patients of Beebe Healthcare and other providers that contract with BSDE.
“We couldn’t be happier to welcome BlindSight Delaware Enterprises to Wilmington,” said Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki. “Governments and businesses strive for excellence in customer service every day, and having a locally based scheduling center in Wilmington will not only improve the experience of individuals looking to schedule medical appointments, it will also provide good jobs to hundreds of Delawareans in need of just such an opportunity. The City stands ready to support this effort in any way that we can, and we wish BlindSight Delaware Enterprises much success.”
Nationwide, the demand for medical schedulers has increased dramatically since the COVID-19 pandemic escalated turnover in hospital staffing. BSDE’s call center will help solve this problem in Delaware while also helping to alleviate underemployment among some of the state’s most economically vulnerable populations and generate income to support other social service programming for local residents who are blind or visually impaired.
