During a visit to Fujifilm’s Tilburg site this month, I was able to witness something that’s not only innovative from a sustainability standpoint - but also could be a game-changer for pharmaceutical manufacturing.
Fujifilm
Fujifilm in Tilburg, The Netherlands, officially launched its brand-new electric boiler (e-boiler), a 7MW system now supplying green steam to the site’s operations. While that might not sound glamorous at first glance, the implications are huge. This hybrid boiler setup - part gas, part electric - is helping slash the facility’s Scope 1 carbon emissions by around 26% in just its first year of operation. And more notably for our sector, it now powers the production of cell culture media for bioproduction and cell & gene therapies at Fujifilm’s Life Sciences Manufacturing (LSM) plant.
This is the first electric boiler of its kind across the global Fujifilm Group, and it’s already being seen as a perfect example of how pharma manufacturing can genuinely align with net zero goals - without sacrificing reliability or scalability.
A pharmaceutical site with a vision
Fujifilm
Fujifilm’s Life Sciences Manufacturing facility (LSM) began construction in 2019 and started commercial production in June 2023. It manufactures only animal component-free (ACF) media—an increasingly critical demand from biopharma clients. The site is certified to ISO 13485 standards and produces both powder and liquid cell culture media, alongside water for injection (WFI), making it a vital node in the company’s European supply chain.
During the visit, the team made it clear: this isn’t about flashy greenwashing. The transformation has been years in the making, dating all the way back to 2006 when Fujifilm began its shift toward a sustainable future. The Tilburg site now operates on 100% renewable electricity - thanks in part to five wind turbines installed on-site back in 2011 - and features a wastewater purification system shared with neighbouring companies like Coca-Cola.
But the e-boiler adds something tangible and immediate: a way to ensure that the LSM plant’s heating and steam are as clean as the processes inside it. And because it’s integrated into the site’s central utilities, this green steam isn’t just limited to pharma production - it also supports the legacy photographic paper manufacturing that’s still ongoing on-site.
Clean utilities, clear goals
The LSM building itself was retrofitted from an old photographic film factory, but it was fully redesigned to run on electricity from day one. The only sticking point? Heating. Legacy infrastructure meant parts of the building still relied on gas produced steam heat. Now, with the new e-boiler in place, the entire facility, from sterile processing environments to office spaces, is powered using green electricity.
From a broader industry perspective, this shift is reflective of a rising trend among pharmaceutical manufacturers: building sustainability directly into the supply chain. According to Fujifilm’s Sustainable Value Plan 2030, the group aims to be completely CO2-neutral by 2040 across all operations globally. Tilburg is ahead of the curve, targeting 2030 for full neutrality.
In the biopharmaceutical space, green value manufacturing isn’t just a bonus, it’s increasingly a baseline requirement. As the sector puts pressure on its suppliers to decarbonise, sites like Tilburg are setting a blueprint others will likely need to follow.
Beyond the boiler
Of course, the e-boiler isn’t a silver bullet. Fujifilm openly acknowledges that further investment will be needed - heat pumps, residual heat recovery, and smart system optimisation are all part of the roadmap. But the company’s confidence in reaching its goals is grounded in hard evidence and clear planning. Even now, with the e-boiler running at 25% capacity, the site is already realising CO2 savings of over 2,000 tonnes annually.
As someone who’s seen a fair share of sustainability claims in the industry, I left Tilburg genuinely impressed. The transition to a greener pharmaceutical manufacturing model is happening - not just on paper, but in real steam, real facilities, and real production lines. Fujifilm’s Tilburg site shows that it’s possible to meet the rigorous demands of life sciences manufacturing while also standing at the forefront of climate action.
And if this launch was anything to go by, it won’t be the last bold step we see from Fujifilm in this space.