Novartis to give MIT $65m to find new way to produce drugs

Novartis to give MIT $65m to find new way to produce drugs.
Drug giant Novartis AG says it will give its Cambridge neighbor, MIT, $65 million over 10 years to create a research program, likely to be the biggest in the world aimed at revolutionizing the way drugs are made. The goal is to help companies move from making drugs in batches to using a continuous high-tech process that will save time and money. 'It would be a sea change,' said Tom Van Laar, global head of technical operations for the Swiss company, which over the past five years has established two major drug divisions in Cambridge - including its global headquarters for drug research - that employ about 1,500 scientists and other workers. The partnership with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, set to be formally unveiled today, underscores the symbiotic relationship between the region"s booming life sciences sector and its academic research institutions.