The life sciences sector is evolving fast, driven by three imperatives: efficiency, innovation and adaptability. In the past decade, healthcare venture capital has soared from $63 billion to $293 billion, fueling demand for facilities that can keep pace with scientific progress. Yet as therapies become more advanced, the gap between what science needs and what infrastructure delivers is widening. This represents a 365% increase in just ten years, creating unprecedented pressure on manufacturing capacity.

At the core of this transformation lies operational complexity and risk. Traditional drug production relies on stable, repeatable processes that scale predictably. Cell and gene therapies, by contrast, operate at the edge of possibility—dependent on living cells, cryogenic logistics and near-flawless coordination. In many cases, material must travel from patient to processing site and back within just 24 hours, stored at -150°F or below. One disruption at any point in that chain can mean an entire batch is lost—often representing hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost product and, more critically, delayed treatment for patients.

“About 50% of vaccines don’t actually make it through to the market because of breakdowns in the supply chain,” said Matt Jackson, Managing Director of Business Consulting at JLL. “You need an operation that is very stable, with reliable electricity, redundancy in the sources and an environment that is predictable. With biologics, it’s just a different animal in terms of stability and risk. As a result, you often trade off higher costs for reliability.”

That trade-off defines today’s challenge. Facilities handling complex therapies can’t afford interruptions or uncertainty. They demand purpose-built infrastructure—designed, validated and maintained to an entirely different standard than conventional pharma plants.

Most legacy pharma facilities weren’t built for today’s scientific demands. Fixed layouts, aging utility systems and rigid processes make even minor changes costly and time-sensitive.

Add global component shortages—with lead times now stretching 25 weeks for critical HVAC and cleanroom components—projects can stall completely. The result is predictable: higher capital costs, delayed product launches and infrastructure that can’t keep pace with innovation.

Many manufacturers are still trying to retrofit outdated plants to handle advanced therapies. But factors like airflow, humidity, power redundancy and cleanroom zoning quickly become barriers. To stay competitive, biomanufacturing needs infrastructure built for adaptability—not as an afterthought, but from day one.

Leading life sciences firms are already making that shift. One global biopharma company partnered with JLL to divest legacy sites and invest in new manufacturing facilities built specifically for cell and gene therapy production. Instead of patching old assets, the company focused on strategic locations with the right talent pools, supply chain access and regulatory support.

It was more than a real estate play; it was a mindset shift. In the new era of complex therapeutics, infrastructure must evolve at the same pace as science itself.

Not all biomanufacturing infrastructure is built to handle the future of science. The industry operates across a spectrum of complexity—from straightforward drug production to therapies that rely on living cells and sub-zero logistics.

Companies that continue to retrofit outdated spaces will struggle to keep pace with innovation. Those that invest in modular, data-enabled, resilient and locally optimized facilities will gain the flexibility and resilience needed to thrive in this new era.

It’s not just about building faster. It’s about building smarter, ensuring that the next breakthrough therapy doesn’t just get discovered but achieves reliable, scalable production and delivered to patients who need it.