New syringe production line up and running at BD

NORTH CANAAN — New production lines installed in 2024 at Becton, Dickinson and Company’s Connecticut and Nebraska plants are now pumping out critical medical devices — including syringes, needles and IV catheters — to meet the burgeoning needs of the nation’s health care system.

One syringe production line is already fully operational at the vaccine manufacturer’s 385,000 square foot North Canaan plant, with additional lines expected to start up in the coming months, the leading global medical technology company announced on Jan. 15.

The new production lines will boost BD’s capacity for safety-engineered injection devices by more than 40% and conventional syringes by more than 50%, adding millions of units annually to support hospital procedures, vaccinations, medication preparation and drug delivery to patients, company officials said.

The Connecticut plant manufactures small-size syringes and syringe and needle combination products. Operations take place around the clock and are sold in every region worldwide.

“Domestic manufacturing is crucial for ensuring a resilient supply of essential healthcare devices,” said Eric Borin, president of Medication Delivery Solutions at BD.

“By expanding our production capacity, we are not only meeting the critical needs of patients and providers, but we also are reinforcing our commitment to the nation’s health care infrastructure,” Borin said.

To support this production, the vaccine manufacturer has hired more than 215 full-time employees at its facilities in Nebraska and Connecticut, with more than 145 of those jobs based in North Canaan, boosting that plant’s employee roster to more than 540.

The North Canaan plant, which opened in 1961 with eight employees and a 25,000 square foot facility, is Northwest Connecticut’s largest employer.

In 2024, the company invested more than $10 million to expand its manufacturing capacity at its Connecticut and Nebraska facilities in response to quality issues with plastic syringes imported from China that were uncovered in late 2023 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

In late November 2023, the FDA announced its probe into reports of leaks, breakages and other quality problems with China-made plastic syringes not cleared by the FDA, and in August 2024 recommended that healthcare providers “use syringes not manufactured in China, if possible.”

At that time, Fallon McLoughlin, director of public relations and corporate communications for the Franklin Lakes, New Jersey-based company, announced that production lines and production staff were being relocated to North Canaan from other BD plants as part of the expansion.

Becton, Dickinson and Company, which operates more than 30 manufacturing and distribution facilities around the country, announced plans last week to invest more than $30 million in 2025 to expand manufacturing capacity for IV lines at its plant in Utah. That facility, said officials, is the largest producer of IV catheter lines in the world.

The company’s Connecticut, Nebraska and Utah plants alone have collectively 200 years of experience in manufacturing critical medical devices, company officials said, and are the only remaining large-scale manufacturing sites in the country.