Berkeley takes dose of Bayer.(Brief Article)

Pharmaceutical giant plans big boost, hiring, new drug at East Bay campus

German pharmaceutical giant Bayer Corp. is spending $120 million to expand its Berkeley campus, add 300 employees and double production there as it ramps up plans for a new drug.

Bayer has acquired 14 acres adjacent to its 34-acre campus at 7th and Dwight Way and will break ground on two new buildings of 100,000 and 80,000 square feet in October. It's part of an aggressive expansion by the company, which recently received approval in the U.S., Canada and Europe for a new version of its hemophilia treatment.

"The expansion helps us 'de-bottleneck' the (drug-producing) process, …