BioMADE announced an agreement with Lygos, Inc. (Berkeley, Calif.) to transition its pilot-scale biomanufacturing infrastructure into a nationally available, multi-user facility. BioMADE will independently operate the pilot-scale facility as the second announced site in its national network of bioindustrial manufacturing infrastructure. The move enables both organizations to expand their impact: BioMADE by accelerating and broadening access to scale-up infrastructure, and Lygos by focusing resources on commercialization of its high-performance sustainable solutions.
The nearly 25,000 square foot facility will include piloting, processing, and analytical space. BioMADE will independently operate the Hayward facility, while Lygos will remain a key customer of the facility’s expanded capabilities. BioMADE will acquire the processing equipment and further invest in the facility to expand capabilities in fermentation capacity and downstream processing. Taken together, the project represents an investment of at least $80M, with funding provided by the U.S. Department of Defense.
For Lygos, the transition supports a capital-efficient growth model, allowing the company to prioritize commercialization of its biodegradable performance polymers and accelerate time-to-market through partnerships that provide access to commercial scale assets. By enabling broader access to its advanced infrastructure, Lygos is doubling down on its mission to deliver high-performing sustainable solutions at commercial scale. Lygos also announced last year a collaboration with CJ Bio to construct a large biorefinery in Iowa.
“This facility will play a critical role as America works to regain dominance in the biotechnology and biomanufacturing industry,” said Douglas Friedman, Chief Executive Officer. “Other countries around the world have been investing in biotechnology for decades, and the U.S. is at risk of falling behind. Expanding nationwide capabilities to produce chemicals and materials needed for defense and consumer applications will strengthen national security and secure domestic supply chains.”
The facility will focus on a broad range of products – including chemicals, materials, and food – to serve a variety of innovative biotechnology companies in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. It will feature multiple aerated stirred tanks with volumes of up to 4,000 liters along with downstream processing capabilities including harvest tanks, centrifuges, membrane filtration, evaporation, and spray drying. It will also have the ability to bring in third party equipment skids for additional downstream processing operations.
Pilot-scale facilities represent a critical step to move products out of the lab and into the defense and commercial market. The bioindustrial manufacturing industry in the U.S. currently faces a scale-up challenge due to a critical lack of infrastructure. As a result, American companies often have to seek relevant facilities overseas, taking American R&D efforts with them and risking IP loss. BioMADE is working with the U.S. Department of Defense and partners across the country to establish a nationwide network of pilot- and demonstration-scale facilities to address this gap. This announcement of a pilot-scale facility in California complements BioMADE’s announcement yesterday of a new demonstration-scale facility in Minnesota.
“Lygos has built a foundation that enables high-performing, sustainable solutions to be delivered at scale, right now,” said Eric Steen, CEO of Lygos. “This represents an opportunity to focus on our commercial growth while accelerating broader access to world-class biomanufacturing infrastructure — we’re proud to partner with BioMADE on a shared vision to strengthen U.S. capabilities.”
“This acquisition represents a unique opportunity for BioMADE to provide more rapid access to critical bioindustrial manufacturing infrastructure,” added Friedman. “California was one of six states that BioMADE identified last year for potential infrastructure investment. This facility is placed near one of the densest populations of biotechnology companies in the world. The Hayward facility provides a key pilot-scale steppingstone before companies transition to demonstration-scale production in the industrial Midwest.”
As a multi-user facility, the Hayward site will serve companies across a wide range of applications, from small-scale development capabilities to commercial testing and process refinement. BioMADE aims to open the facility to customers in early 2026.