National Resilience shutters plants amid biotech slowdown

National Resilience, a tech-focused CDMO startup, revealed plans to consolidate operations, focusing on high-growth segments of advanced therapeutics manufacturing.

In a letter to customers, Resilience CEO William Marth said that “sites not being fully utilized needed to be wound down in a prompt and efficient manner through legal proceedings commenced by a leaseholder affiliate.” The six sites included in the streamlining efforts include facilities in Alachua, Florida; Fremont and San Diego, California; and Allston, Bedford and Marlborough, Massachusetts. A subsidiary of the company has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Resilience’s packaging and fill/finish site in Cincinnati, GMP manufacturing site in Toronto, cell therapy ‘center of excellence’ in Philadelphia and viral vector manufacturing site in Raleigh-Durham will continue to operate and are not included in the legal proceedings.

Launched in 2020 after raising $800 million in capital, Resilience promised to “dramatically increase overall production capacity” for cell and gene therapies, viral vectors, vaccines, and proteins by “radically improving biomanufacturing technologies.” The company secured additional funding from HHS’ Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) and the Department of Defense to boost domestic production.

But there have been signs of capacity mismatch. In February 2023, Resilience said it would cut over 200 jobs at its Allston, Massachusetts site, which it had acquired from Sanofi in 2021. Then in December 2024, the CDMO laid off 105 employees at its Alachua site, which it had picked up through the acquisition of Ology Bioservices in 2021. This past January, Resilience said it would cut 120 jobs at its facility in North Carolina, acquired as part of a 2021 partnership with bluebird bio.