Visiting bioMérieux’s North American Headquarters in Durham, French Consul General Recognizes bioMérieux U.S. Leadership in Rapid Identification of Infectious Diseases

11 February, 2015

French Consul General Denis Barbet, accompanied by the new scientific, cultural, and press attachés, Anne Corval, Alexandre Durand, and Heather Clavé, spent the morning Wednesday, February 4, at the North American headquarters of bioMérieux in Durham, North Carolina.

The representatives from the Atlanta office of Consulate General of France visited several French companies with a presence in North Carolina and recognized bioMérieux’s pioneering commitment in designing innovative high medical value diagnostic solutions to address the major global public health challenges.

  • Late last year, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted bioMérieux fast-track emergency use authorization for the use of BioFire FilmArray® for the rapid diagnosis of the Ebola virus. The test can detect the presence of the virus in about 60 minutes.
  • In the second half of 2014, bioMérieux officially broke ground on the expansion for a new BacT/ALERT® bottle production line on its Durham site, a capital investment of about €60 million. Significant investments were made in resources, hiring more than 90 new fulltime employees that joined the quality and operation’s team.
  • In January of 2015, bioMérieux expanded its offering by signing a strategic alliance with COPAN, for the distribution and co-development of automated solutions dedicated to microbiology lab efficiency. This agreement combines COPAN’s unique know-how in preanalytics with bioMérieux’s cutting-edge expertise in microbiological diagnostics.

French Consulate in the U.S. represents French citizens and corporations working in the U.S. The site visit to bioMérieux was part of an effort to recognize French companies in the U.S. that are making significant contributions to their industries and customers.

An estimated 4,500 French nationals call North Carolina home, along with more than 60 French companies operating on more than 90 sites across the state. These companies belong to a diverse array of sectors such as biotechnology, aerospace, energy, telecommunications, or chemicals.

In addition to meeting with bioMérieux’s U.S. leadership, the Consul General honored seven American veterans of World War II from North Carolina with the French Legion of Honor during a ceremony that was held at the State Capitol on February 3.

The Consul General concluded the North Carolina tour with a gala organized by Ecole, the French school in Raleigh, during which Denis Barbet and his team had the opportunity to exchange with the local French community.

Pioneering Diagnostics