Four-Park Synergy: New Airport City Drives Rapid Development of Daxing's Biopharmaceutical Industry

In recent years, driven by strong national policy support and growing market demand, biopharmaceutical parks in China have sprung up like mushrooms after rain. These parks are not only expanding rapidly in number but also demonstrating new potential in operational models, service systems, and innovation capabilities, thereby becoming a key driving force for the rapid and high-quality development of regional biopharmaceutical industries.

Amid the surging wave of rapid development in the biopharmaceutical industry, the Beijing Daxing International Airport Economic Zone (Beijing Section) is emerging as a key hub for the sector, leveraging its unique locational advantages and robust industrial support. By capitalizing on policy benefits such as bonded R&D, bonded manufacturing, and export tax rebates, along with its well-developed transportation networks, streamlined customs clearance, integrated research-and-production capabilities, and comprehensive industrial infrastructure, the zone provides a favorable environment for the growth of biopharmaceutical enterprises.

Figure:Comprehensive Bonded Zone International Biopharmaceutical Park

Among them, the International Biopharmaceutical Park in the Comprehensive Bonded Zone focuses on CRO/CDMO and the upstream and downstream pharmaceutical industry chains. By adopting an innovative “front-end R&D, back-end production” model, it is building a life and health industrial cluster integrating functions such as R&D, pilot-scale testing, manufacturing, warehousing, and office operations. The park is accelerating the translation of biopharmaceutical R&D achievements and has become the core carrier for the biopharmaceutical industry in the Airport Economic Zone.

The International Biopharmaceutical Park in the Comprehensive Bonded Zone is located at Gate 1 of the Comprehensive Bonded Zone within the Beijing Daxing International Airport Economic Zone, and is invested, constructed, and operated by Beijing New Airport City Holding Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “New Airport City”).

This project is a New Gateway International Life and Health Platform, established by the Comprehensive Bonded Zone to meet the development needs of its “R&D and Design” and “Processing and Manufacturing” industrial positioning. It aims to accelerate the implementation of the life and health industry and the translation of biomedical R&D achievements, integrating functions such as bonded biomedical R&D and bonded production.

The project is being developed in two phases. Phase I occupies 121 mu of land with a gross floor area of 109,000 square meters, while Phase II covers 79 mu with a gross floor area of 67,000 square meters. Phase I was officially put into operation in January 2024. Phase II is currently in the preliminary planning and design stage, with construction expected to commence by the end of this year.

As the first standard biopharmaceutical factory project in Beijing’s Airport Economic Zone, the Comprehensive Bonded Zone International Biopharmaceutical Park boasts numerous differentiated advantages. In terms of location, it features seamless connectivity among subway lines, expressways, and airport cargo channels, enabling an efficient customs clearance model under “one customs for both the airport and the Comprehensive Bonded Zone,” which significantly enhances logistics efficiency.

From an infrastructure perspective, the International Biopharmaceutical Park within the Comprehensive Bonded Zone has developed high-standard factory buildings and R&D facilities tailored to the specific needs of biopharmaceutical companies. With a ceiling height of 7 meters, the facilities meet GMP certification requirements, and the supporting steam supply system satisfies the process demands of biopharmaceutical manufacturing.

At the policy level, leveraging multiple supportive measures—including the opening-up and innovation pilot policies of the dual free trade zones, policies for comprehensive bonded zones, policies for the Beijing Digital Trade Pilot Zone, and industrial development support policies within the free trade zones—the park can offer enterprises preferential treatments such as bonded R&D and export tax rebates, thereby reducing operational costs. Meanwhile, the park will capitalize on the policy advantages of the Comprehensive Bonded Zone to promote innovative development in foreign trade, encourage foreign investment in key export-oriented industries, and foster new forms and models of foreign trade.

Even more noteworthy is the industrial chain services established by the park. For instance, for enterprises with both raw material sourcing and product sales located overseas, which need to reduce tariff costs and optimize cash flow in raw material imports and finished product exports, the park’s bonded policies and export tax rebates can provide financial support. For CRO/CDMO companies primarily engaged in overseas business, whose needs include rapid customs clearance, bonded R&D, and production qualifications, the Comprehensive Bonded Zone status and the laboratory animal platform can offer industrial chain resources. For leading non-local biopharmaceutical companies seeking to establish a presence in Beijing, which require proximity to the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) and the National Institutes for Food and Drug Control (NIFDC), as well as policy support, the Airport Economic Zone’s talent policies and customized facilities can also provide assistance.

Leveraging its policy, location, facility, and industrial advantages, the park has attracted multiple innovative enterprises, including Karis Medical, Yuma Biotech, Yisheng Biotech, Zhongke Juyan, and Hexiang Technology, accelerating the translation of industrial innovation achievements.

Among them, Kaersi is a key project supported by the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission, focusing on the research and development, production, and sales of Class III medical devices, specifically dental implants and bio-membranes. The company stems from a major national scientific and technological achievement transformation project led by Professor Su Yucheng and holds the largest market share for domestically produced dental implants in China. According to Kaersi, the company launched its sales operations in October 2024, with an expected annual output value of RMB 400 million within three years and a cumulative output value of nearly RMB 1 billion over the same period. Currently, the company is located in Building 1 of the International Biopharmaceutical Park within the Comprehensive Bonded Zone, occupying a construction area of 8,600 square meters. Its facilities include a precision machining center, a Class 10,000 clean production area, a surface treatment center, an R&D center, an inspection center, and a laboratory center.

As another representative enterprise settled in the park, Yuma Biotechnology is constructing the Daxing Airport International Laboratory Animal Platform within the park. This initiative will significantly promote the rapid aggregation and international development of the life and health industry in the Daxing Airport Economic Zone, while further improving the public technical service system for high-end medical devices and the upstream and downstream industrial chains in the zone. By empowering Chinese medical device companies to expand into overseas markets, the project will effectively enhance their international competitiveness and accelerate the international industrial clustering within the park. The project is located in Building 5 of the Comprehensive Bonded Zone International Biopharmaceutical Park, covering an area of approximately 3,200 square meters.

Furthermore, Yisheng Bio focuses on the R&D and manufacturing of iPSC stem cell therapeutics. Its founder, Liu Tongri, was awarded the “Daxing New Gateway Talent” title, while the project has received honors including “Zhongguancun High-Tech Enterprise” and “National High-Tech Enterprise.” Originating from a Sino-British joint R&D effort, the project will significantly accelerate its development cycle by leveraging the expedited customs clearance policies for biological products available in the Comprehensive Bonded Zone (CBZ). With fixed asset investments exceeding RMB 10 million, the project drives annual import and export volumes of no less than RMB 3 million. It is located on the third floor of Building 8, International Biopharmaceutical Park, within the CBZ, covering an area of approximately 1,600 square meters. The project officially moved into the facility in September 2024 and obtained approval for bonded R&D activities in November 2024.

According to the introduction, the industrial park will leverage its existing resident enterprises and platforms to focus on the production of high-end medical devices, with a particular emphasis on building a medical device industry cluster centered around dental care. It will also concentrate on a CDMO platform for the improvement of chemical drug formulations, prioritizing the creation of an export base for pharmaceuticals by developing innovative dosage forms such as freeze-dried orally disintegrating tablets. Furthermore, it will focus on a biopharmaceutical innovation R&D cluster, aiming to establish a CGT (Cell and Gene Therapy) industry cluster in the airport economic zone by centering on innovative drug R&D technologies such as stem cells, immune cells, and gene therapy.

The International Biopharmaceutical Park in the Comprehensive Bonded Zone is a flagship development of the New Airport City. The New Airport City has developed four industrial parks with a total gross floor area of approximately 500,000 square meters. Centered on the International Biopharmaceutical Park in the Comprehensive Bonded Zone, it integrates with the Beijing Free Trade Zone, the International Regenerative Medicine Industrial Park, and the International Medical Device Industrial Park. Each park has its distinct industrial focus, forming a complementary and synergistic industrial ecosystem.

In addition to the International Biopharmaceutical Park in the Comprehensive Bonded Zone, the Beijing Free Trade Zone Innovation Service Center is the first industrial carrier in the Airport Economic Zone, located 3 km from Daxing International Airport, marking a breakthrough from zero in terms of park infrastructure. The project is positioned to “fully leverage the combined advantages of institutional innovation within the Free Trade Zone, Zhongguancun’s technological innovation policies, and Beijing’s policies on expanding openness in the service sector, thereby attracting top-tier domestic and international financial services and medical industry players to establish their presence.”

Figure: Free Trade Zone Innovation Service Center

The International Regenerative Medicine Industrial Park is Beijing’s first specialized park themed around regenerative medicine, located within the International Life and Health Community in the Daxing Airport Economic Zone. This project integrates production facilities, pilot-scale R&D, and supporting infrastructure, aiming to gather production-oriented, professional service-oriented, and innovative regenerative medicine enterprises. It strives to build a Zhongguancun-style specialized industrial park focused on industries such as cell therapy, gene therapy, and tissue engineering. The park is positioned to prioritize cell and gene therapies as its leading industries, with “incubation + production + application” at its core. By centering on the regenerative medicine industry chain, it seeks to assemble production-oriented, professional service-oriented, and innovative enterprises, fostering an innovative industrial cluster dominated by cell therapy, gene therapy, and tissue engineering, and establishing a regenerative medicine industry hub based in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region with global reach.

The International Medical Device Industrial Park is the first specialized medical device park within the Airport Economic Zone (Beijing). Located in the International Life and Health Community of the Daxing Airport Economic Zone, it attracts enterprises engaged in the R&D, manufacturing, and sales of medical devices, supporting their growth through technological innovation, technical upgrades, and accelerated production launch. Upon completion, the project is expected to introduce more than 100 medical device and related supporting companies, accelerating the development of the medical device industry. The project is positioned as “an international high-end medical device industrial park with leading technology and a comprehensive innovation ecosystem, centered on ‘incubation + manufacturing + import/export,’ and serving as a demonstration park featuring the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements by national-level key talents in the life and health sector.”

The layout of the four major industrial parks demonstrates the diversification and interconnectedness of New Airport City’s offerings, fostering an ecosystem of industrial interaction and coordinated development centered on the Comprehensive Bonded Zone, with the other three parks playing supporting roles.

In summary, it is evident that New Hangcheng has developed a unique approach to industrial park development, centered on policy integration, functional enhancement, and spatial adaptability, to deliver end-to-end services for the biopharmaceutical industry.

In terms of the policy environment, it leverages the advantages of policies such as Free Trade Zones, Zhongguancun, and Comprehensive Bonded Zones to offer incentives including bonded R&D and export tax rebates. Regarding functional layout, it integrates office, R&D, production, pilot-scale testing, and warehousing functions to meet enterprises’ end-to-end needs. In terms of spatial design, it provides flexible spaces with a ceiling height of 7 meters, equipped with specialized facilities tailored to the requirements of biopharmaceutical companies.

In addition to the aforementioned “standard” advantages, the most critical aspect of developing park infrastructure for the biopharmaceutical industry lies in demonstrating professionalism.

Based on this, New Airport City has established precise industrial positioning, with a clear focus on the biopharmaceutical sector, and further subdivides industrial directions according to the unique characteristics of each industrial park. For instance, the International Regenerative Medicine Industrial Park centers on the regenerative medicine industry chain, introducing R&D and manufacturing enterprises specializing in immune cells, stem cells, tissue engineering, and genetic engineering, with the aim of building an international innovation hub for regenerative medicine products. Meanwhile, the International Medical Device Industrial Park attracts enterprises engaged in the R&D, production, and sales of medical devices, supporting their development in technological innovation and upgrades.

Looking ahead, New Airport City will further optimize park planning and industrial layout, focusing on frontier areas and key technologies in the biopharmaceutical industry. It aims to build a complete biopharmaceutical industrial chain, foster agglomeration effects and collaborative innovation advantages within the regional biopharmaceutical sector, and propel the regional biopharmaceutical industry toward a higher stage of development.