Evonik has revealed that it is building a $7.9 million plant to produce ultra-high purity colloidal silica at its site in Weston, Michigan. Due onstream in 2024, this will be the first of its kind in North America. The investment was supported by a $900,000 performance-based grant under the Michigan Business Development Programme.

Piramal Pharma Solutions has begun production of initial batches of APIs in new reactor suites at its facility in Riverview, Michigan. This, the company said, represent the first in a three-step process for the development and manufacturing of Phase II clinical trial materials. As part of the programme, technicians are scaling up material from 10-15 kg to 75-80 kg.

Dow’s headquarters site at Midland, Michigan, was hit by flooding on the morning of 20 May following the collapse of two dams. The company has now stated that “significant progress continues to be made on clean-up and recovery”, including the restoration of utilities, infrastructure, and logistics across the site to normal operations.