Eli Lilly and Company and local and state government officials have invested $140 million to expand company's Indianapolis insulin manufacturing operations which will enable the manufacturing of insulin cartridges to meet the growing diabetes demand in the US, represents one of the most significant investments in Lilly's US-based manufacturing operations in the past decade.

Construction will begin immediately with completion expected in March 2014. During this period, construction trade staffing will average 250, with peak employment at approximately 350 workers at the site. Once operational in 2015, more than 100 full-time, highly skilled, specialized technicians, scientists, and engineers will be needed to manage the operations.

Diabetes care is a major segment of Lilly's pharmaceutical business with projections from health care experts — including the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention — indicating that as many as one in three US adults could have diabetes by 2050. The rise in prevalence of the disease is due, in part, to an aging population more likely to develop type 2 diabetes, increases in minority populations that are at high risk for type 2 diabetes, and people with diabetes living longer. Diabetes afflicted 366 million people worldwide last year, according to the International Diabetes Federation.

John C Lechleiter, PhD., Lilly's chairman, president, and chief executive officer, said that Lilly's commitment to meeting the long-term needs of people with diabetes in the US, as well as its role as a biomedical leader in Indiana, drove the company's decision to build this state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Indianapolis.

"Lilly is committed to providing a full range of innovative treatment options for people with diabetes," said Lechleiter. "The need in our country is great — and it is growing. This investment will help us to better meet that need while expanding our advanced manufacturing footprint in our home state — helping to strengthen Indiana's bioscience industry."

Lechleiter said the new facility will manufacture insulin cartridges for people with diabetes. It will be a first-of-its-kind facility for Lilly in the US.

Lilly's reorganisation of its diabetes operations almost three years ago has provided greater focus on its innovation-based product portfolio and pipeline of potential new medicines. Today, the company has 10 potential new diabetes medicines in various stages of clinical development including oral medications, insulins, and a once-a-week treatment to meet the needs of people with diabetes.

Lilly's $140 million expansion is one of the largest economic development investments in both the city and state in 2012.

"Lilly is the premier pharmaceutical company in the world and their commitment to research keeps them ahead of the medical curve," said Lt. Governor Becky Skillman. "This expansion is just further proof that Indiana is a fiscally strong state, and we thank Lilly for their confidence in our state and our people."

"Lilly's expansion brings new jobs and investment of new capital to our local economy, demonstrating the company's confidence in doing business in Indianapolis and strengthening our advanced manufacturing and bioscience industries," said Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard. "We are pleased to see this industry leader that calls Indianapolis home continuing along its growth path, which is good for our community and the Central Indiana region as a whole."

Lilly, a leading innovation-driven corporation, is developing a growing portfolio of pharmaceutical products by applying the latest research from its own worldwide laboratories and from collaborations with eminent scientific organizations.