South San Francisco & Tokyo– Cellares, a leader in automated cell therapy manufacturing, has announced a major step forward in advancing access to next-generation cancer treatments in Japan. In collaboration with real estate and life sciences giant Mitsui Fudosan, the company is establishing Japan’s first Integrated Development and Manufacturing Organization (IDMO) Smart Factory dedicated to commercial-scale production of CAR-T cell therapies.
The new facility is under construction in Kashiwa City, a growing biotech hub northeast of Tokyo. Once operational, the Smart Factory will employ approximately 350 people and is designed to deliver scalable, cost-effective manufacturing of cell therapies for patients across Japan and neighboring regions. The plant is part of Cellares’ broader international strategy to enable global availability of cell and gene therapies through localized, fully automated production.
Cellares’ Kashiwa site will utilize its proprietary technologies, Cell Shuttle™ and Cell Q™, to automate both the manufacturing and quality control of cell therapies. These systems are designed to cut production costs by as much as 50% and eliminate bottlenecks that typically arise from manual production processes at traditional contract development and manufacturing organizations (CDMOs). The integrated design of the Smart Factory will ensure a streamlined, end-to-end operation that supports rapid delivery and scale.
Fabian Gerlinghaus, CEO and Co-Founder of Cellares, emphasized the significance of establishing a local production base. “Our new facility in Kashiwa City enables our pharma partners to supply Japan from within Japan,” he said. “This approach simplifies the cold chain, speeds up delivery, and reduces costs—ultimately helping patients get life-saving treatments faster.”
The facility is expected to improve the approval and delivery timelines for CAR-T therapies in Japan by reducing reliance on overseas production and accelerating the tech transfer process. Cellares plans to leverage standardized, software-enabled platforms across its global network of Smart Factories, allowing manufacturing capabilities to be replicated and scaled at digital speed.
Dr. Toshihiko Doi, Chairperson of the Kashiwa-no-ha Life Science Committee, welcomed the development, noting its potential to transform care for cancer patients in Japan. “This facility opens the door to cutting-edge therapies and helps address the historical delays in drug delivery, particularly for rare diseases and oncology,” he said.
Mitsui Fudosan’s deep connections within Japan’s life sciences ecosystem played a key role in facilitating the partnership, helping bridge efforts between the pharmaceutical industry, government stakeholders, and healthcare institutions.
The Kashiwa Smart Factory marks Cellares’ first expansion into Japan and signals its long-term commitment to bringing advanced manufacturing capabilities to one of the world’s most important healthcare markets.
