Sharp expands injectable packaging capacity with multi-million investment
Key takeaways
- Sharp invests over €20 million in Belgian and Dutch facilities to meet increasing injectable market demand.
- Expansion includes enhanced cold-chain, ambient storage, and new syringe assembly lines.
- Sharp integrates renewable energy systems and Cobot technology to support sustainable growth.
Sharp, a pharmaceutical packaging company, has invested over €20 million (US$21.6 million) in its European packaging facilities in response to “strong market demand” for injectables.
The investment aims to increase capacity for the assembly, labeling, packaging, and cold storage of different injectable formats at Sharp’s facilities in Hamont-Achel, Belgium, and Heerenveen, Netherlands. Injectable formats include autoinjectors, pen devices, prefilled syringes, and vials — all necessary in the pharmaceutical industry.
Robert O’Beirn, managing director for Sharp Clinical and Sharp Europe, says: “Our European facilities have a long-established reputation for successfully delivering the complex packaging services required for injectable drug formats.”
“This investment represents an increase in our capacity to support our pharma clients, as sustainably as possible, with their injectable drug launches in the EU market.”
Sharp explains that the Belgian facility expansion will quadruple the cold-chain warehouse capacity and double ambient storage space. It will also add a new syringe assembly and blister packaging area to the facility. Sharp’s Cobot technology has been added to the facility to enhance production for pre-filled syringe and autoinjector packaging lines.
Expanding capacity
The Hamont-Achel facility has been upgraded to include a carport solar system to deliver renewable energy. The system is expected to supply 50% of the site’s electricity capacity once running.
At the Netherlands facility, Sharp aims to expand its good manufacturing practice production capacity. The site will feature two grade D packaging suites to support increased syringe and packaging assembly.
The investment is part of a larger US$100 million investment announced in November 2025.
In recent pharmaceutical developments, Domino Printing Sciences is currently showcasing 2D codes on pharmaceutical packaging at Pharmapack Europe 2026 in Paris, France (January 21–22), positioning them as a strategic tool beyond regulatory compliance.
Last week, Südpack Medica introduced MedHub, a service for consumers to order high-quality, pre-made medical pouches in standard sizes and defined batch quantities.
