The expanded facility will include cold chain storage required for temperature-sensitive genomic and bioreagent products.
“Following in the wake of recent natural disasters and severe weather events, we are taking steps to further ensure continuous service to customers,” said Henrik Ancher-Jensen, senior vice president, Agilent, and president of order fulfillment and supply chain, in a statement.
The expansion comes on the heels of Agilent completing its acquisition of Lasergen, a biotechnology company that researches and develops technologies for DNA sequencing. Agilent made an initial investment in the Houston, TX-based company in 2016 and since then, the companies have collaborated to develop a workflow solution for clinical applications based on next-generation sequencing.
“In 2016 we began our collaboration with Lasergen that reinforced our confidence in the team and technology,” said Kamni Vijay, vice president and general manager of Agilent’s genomics division, in a press release announcing the completed acquisition.
“As a unified team, we now have new opportunities to leverage our combined strengths and create significant value for our customers as we work towards our goal of creating an integrated clinical workflow solution and providing more labs with access to molecular diagnostics,” Vijay added.