Singapore's biomed sector ends six-month manufacturing slump

Sept output up 62%; EDB expects 1,000 jobs to be added in coming months

- Timothy Goh

Singapore's biomedical sector roared back to life in September, after a six-month manufacturing slump.

Data from the Economic Development Board (EDB) on Oct 25 showed that output of the sector, which includes the biopharmaceutical and medical technology segments, grew 62 per cent year on year in September.

This came after an overall drop of 22.4 per cent between January and August 2024, compared with the same period in 2023.

Industry players said the inherently volatile industry remains robust, with firms actively pursuing growth opportunities here.

EDB vice-president of health-care Chen Pengfei told The Straits Times that biopharmaceutical announcements in the coming months will add at least 1,000 new jobs when the facilities are fully operational.

With the recent and upcoming biopharmaceutical investments, as well as ongoing company expansions, there will be "significant" manufacturing job opportunities created for Singaporeans in the next few years, he noted.

These will include roles such as digitalisation and automation experts, process engineers, microbiologists, chemists and laboratory scientists.

Mr Chen said that the recent contraction is likely a demonstration of how the sector can be volatile due to different products being manufactured, rather than an indication of its prospects.

He explained that biopharmaceutical production is typically done in batches, with materials processed in stages that can take days or weeks, depending on the product. To keep costs down and avoid cross-contamination, manufacturing plants often run "campaigns", producing the same product across multiple batches over several months.

"The manufacturing output will therefore vary, depending on the product type and the length of each campaign", he said.