For over 40 years, human health has been the focus of research at the Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine ITEM. At three locations – at the institute’s headquarters in Hannover as well as in Regensburg and Braunschweig – its approximately 450 employees focus on drug development and chemical safety in airway research. The Braunschweig location’s core activities involve research into pharmaceutical biotechnology (bioprocess development) and the GMP (good manufacturing practice)-compliant production of investigational medicinal products.

However, from a business perspective, the Braunschweig location has been operating at a significant and ongoing multi-million-euro deficit for several years. This is mainly because its business model conflicts with German association law, to which the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft is subject. Given the current circumstances, this trend is unlikely to reverse in the future. There is also not sufficient financial leeway to adjust the current business model or develop a new one. In addition, the location would require approximately 100 million euros of infrastructure investments over the next few years.

In light of these challenges, the institute management of Fraunhofer ITEM approached the executive board of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft back in 2022 to seek a financially viable solution that would serve the interests of both the employees in Braunschweig and the institute as a whole. 

Takeover by a private company

Given the location's strong ties to industry and its highly entrepreneurial business model, the institute management, together with Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft’s headquarters, has been advocating for a takeover of the location and its staff by a private company since 2022. As anticipated, the Braunschweig location attracted considerable interest from numerous biotech companies.

However, despite more than two years of intensive efforts, a viable solution involving a private company has not yet been found, which has also been more difficult in the current volatile market environment. At the request of the Fraunhofer ITEM institute management and following a thorough review, the executive board of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft has now approved the closure of the Fraunhofer ITEM location in Braunschweig as of February 28, 2026. This decision also reflects the need to ensure the responsible use of public funds. The executive board would like to expressly point out that this will not involve closing the institute as a whole. Fraunhofer ITEM, with its three Hannover-based divisions Safety Assessment and Toxicology, Preclinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, and Airway Researchֿ as well as its Personalized Tumor Therapy division in Regensburg, are not affected by this closure. The institute will thus remain operational.

Ongoing takeover talks

While preparations for implementing this decision are now underway, there is still the possibility of selling the location to a company from the private sector. With this in mind, ongoing discussions will continue, with the goal of transferring both the location and its employees.

If the transfer to a private company proves unfeasible, setting a firm closure date ensures that all necessary steps – such as negotiating a reconciliation of interests and a social compensation plan – can be prepared in a timely manner. This approach aims to provide the 60 affected employees with the clarity they need to prepare for the transition.

The institute management of Fraunhofer ITEM and the executive board of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft are fully aware of the consequences of this difficult decision and deeply regret having to close the location. However, they do believe that this step is absolutely necessary to ensure the economic viability of Fraunhofer ITEM as a whole in line with the Fraunhofer model and the mission of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, should it not be possible to finalize a handover. 

The local works council at Fraunhofer ITEM and the central works council of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft have been informed and are involved as part of the codetermination process. The necessary steps, including negotiations for a reconciliation of interests and a social compensation plan, are now being taken to mitigate, as far as possible, the impact of the closure in a fair and responsible way in the best interests of the employees.