Every year for Site Selection’s U.S. state business climate rankings found elsewhere in this issue, we send out a survey seeking corporate executives’ input. This year, I heard back from one executive in particular about what he deemed a significant omission.
“I must respectfully say that I’m disappointed because of the fact that Puerto Rico is not included as a possible selection in your survey,” wrote Victor Sanchez, president and CEO of Pharma-Bio Serv, Inc., a compliance and validation consulting services firm. “While I recognize that you are talking about states, Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory and an important contributor to U.S. commerce and exports. It needs to be recognized that Puerto Rico is the first manufacturing state of drugs and medical devices, ahead of the next two combined (Indiana and California). Puerto Rico alone accounts for $25 billion in goods related to pharma and medtech and our exports contribute 17.6% of total U.S. pharmaceutical exports.”
Not only is the island the sole or primary manufacturer of 30 drug products and 10 biological devices that are medically critical according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, he continued, Puerto Rico also is an important player in the U.S. government’s national security and reshoring strategy. And while the island is indeed in the Caribbean, investing there is not near-shoring, he reiterated.
“Puerto Rico is, in fact, a reshoring destination — fully integrated within the U.S. legal, regulatory and economic framework,” said Sanchez, who also serves as vice president of the Puerto Rico District Export Council. “This distinction is critical for understanding the true value proposition Puerto Rico offers to American businesses.”
Juncos Continues to Work for Amgen
As if to prove his point, within a few weeks of his message, Amgen sent a message of its own by announcing “a $650 million expansion of its U.S. manufacturing network” that will create nearly 750 construction and skilled manufacturing jobs with increased drug production at the company’s biologics manufacturing facility in Juncos, Puerto Rico, which originally opened in 1993. “This expansion underscores Amgen’s commitment to U.S. biomanufacturing and to strengthening the resilience of our global supply chain,” said Robert A. Bradway, Amgen chairman and CEO.
“Puerto Rico has a rich history in pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical manufacturing which is only bolstered by the island’s remarkable combination of scientific expertise, operational maturity and adaptability of its workforce.”
— Amgen Manufacturing Limited Site Head and Vice President Thomas Seewoester
Asked for context for the investment decision, Amgen Manufacturing Limited Site Head and Vice President Thomas Seewoester says by email, “At Amgen, we operate one of the company’s largest and most sophisticated manufacturing sites here in Juncos. Puerto Rico has a rich history in pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical manufacturing which is only bolstered by the island’s remarkable combination of scientific expertise, operational maturity and adaptability of its workforce. The talent here understands not only how to run highly regulated operations but also how to adapt and innovate — whether it’s implementing digital technologies, advancing process analytics or driving sustainability.”
Amgen has invested more than $40 billion in U.S. manufacturing and R&D since the passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017, including a $600 million science and innovation center in California and manufacturing expansions of $900 million in Ohio and $1 billion in North Carolina.
PharmaBioServ, like Amgen, has been operating in Puerto Rico since 1993. Victor Sanchez says the company employs between 150 and 160 people around the world, including close to 70 employees in Puerto Rico. Factor in individual contractors and the firm’s network climbs to more than 400, he says.
While he’s not in agreement with some of intrusions into science by political leaders in Washington, Sanchez is encouraged by measures being taken to streamline FDA processes and approvals. He’s particularly intrigued by House Resolution 3042, the Medical Manufacturing, Economic Development, and Sustainability Act of 2025. It’s a proposal to not only provide incentives but to waive some requirements for companies that want to repatriate medical manufacturing to some of the less developed territories in the U.S. He sees this as particularly important for a country that depends on India and China for 80% of its active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) production.
Victor Sanchez, President and CEO, Pharma-Bio Serv Inc.
Rivalry and Talent
Puerto Rico’s chief rival in the Caribbean is Costa Rica, whose stable politics and rich medical device industry continue to attract investment. Sanchez says Puerto Rico has around 70 medical device facilities now, while Costa Rica has around 180 sites. Freudenberg Medical recently inaugurated its second production facility, a $25 million plant in the Coyol Free Zone that will grow the company’s team from 350 to over 900 employees over the next three years. “This new facility underlines Freudenberg Medical’s confidence in Costa Rica as an integral part of our global growth strategy,” said Róger Gómez, VP and General Manager of Freudenberg Medical Costa Rica.
Helping both territories are free trade zones. Sanchez thinks Puerto Rico would compete even better if it had more direct passenger flights to more European destinations like Costa Rica does. But make no mistake: He is a champion for Puerto Rico’s pharmaceutical ecosystem and logistical connectivity to the Americas and Europe. Most of all, he’s a tout for the island’s talent — “good professionals with decades of experience” and available at salaries that can be 60% of continental U.S. salaries.
“The most important thing is the knowledge and experience of the people,” says Sanchez, who performs pro bono consulting work on occasion for Invest Puerto Rico. “We do business in more than 30 countries and have been in business for 32 years. I can tell you it’s really difficult to find better professionals than in Puerto Rico.”
He says in countries such as Germany and Switzerland, you find among top management and senior directors a healthy cohort of Puerto Ricans. “It’s the most important competitive advantage we have.”
