Evonik, a specialty chemicals company headquartered in Essen, Germany, will invest $100 million over the next five years to modernize its drug substance contract manufacturing facility in Lafayette (Tippecanoe), Indiana, expanding capacity to support growing demand for U.S.-based contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) services.

The investment will upgrade key manufacturing assets, including 100-cubic-meter reactors and other production systems, with the goal of improving equipment reliability, increasing automation, enhancing operational efficiency, and supporting the manufacture of more complex active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), according to the company.

Evonik said the investment is part of its strategy to strengthen its North American manufacturing footprint while balancing drug substance production capacity across North America, Europe, and Asia. The company also said the modernization is intended to support more energy-efficient manufacturing processes while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The Tippecanoe facility serves as a key site within Evonik’s global drug substance CDMO network for small molecule APIs. According to the announcement, the site includes high-potency API manufacturing capabilities, general API reactor capacity, large-scale fermentation operations, and multiple advanced manufacturing technology platforms.

Evonik said growing geopolitical uncertainty and increasing demand for domestic pharmaceutical manufacturing have reinforced the need for U.S.-based production capacity. The company also noted that the increasing complexity of modern drug molecules requires continued investment in advanced synthesis and manufacturing capabilities.

The announcement follows another recent manufacturing investment by Evonik. In April 2026, the company announced an approximately $93 million investment to expand downstream fermentation capacity at its biotechnology site in Slovenská Ľupča, Slovakia. The expansion is intended to improve scalable drug substance manufacturing for complex pharmaceutical ingredients while strengthening the company’s biotechnology manufacturing capabilities.