A world-class biologics manufacturing facility at the heart of Ireland’s life sciences industry — delivered with a comprehensive Lean Construction programme from ground-breaking through to CQV.
Last Planner® System
Takt Planning
Kaizen Events
Value Stream Mapping
CQV Delivery
| Project Value | Project Duration | Teams Collaborated | Systems Installed & Comissioned | Partners Trained & certified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Bn | 36 Months | 10 | 650 | 650 |
| Project Value | 1Bn |
|---|---|
| Project Duration | 36 Months |
| Teams Collaborated | 10 |
| Systems Installed & Comissioned | 650 |
| Partners Trained & certified | 650 |
The MSD Biotech Dublin facility is a landmark in biopharmaceutical innovation, strategically located in Swords, Ireland. This world-class biologics manufacturing site is central to MSD’s global supply chain, enabling the production of groundbreaking immuno-oncology therapies and large-scale sterile drug substances.
Developed on a complex Brownfield site, the project included both new construction and the retrofit of existing structures. This initiative not only strengthened Ireland’s role in the global life sciences market but also demonstrated the power of Lean Construction in delivering high-value, regulation-intensive projects.
Why Lean Construction? On a project of this scale — €1Bn, 36 months, 650+ systems to commission — traditional construction scheduling approaches simply cannot manage the interdependencies, multi-trade interfaces, and regulatory compliance demands. Lean construction, and specifically the Last Planner® System and Takt Planning, gave all stakeholders a shared language, a shared plan, and a shared commitment to delivery.
Our Lean Scope –
Lean Touch Solutions was engaged as a trusted lean construction delivery partner from ground-breaking through to CQV (Commissioning, Qualification, and Validation). We deployed a comprehensive, sector-tailored lean programme designed for the unique demands of pharmaceutical facility construction in Ireland — combining collaborative planning, visual management, waste elimination, and continuous improvement.
Embedded across all work-package teams to drive collaborative weekly work planning, 6-week look-ahead scheduling, and structured constraint removal. LPS created the accountability framework that kept 10 trade teams aligned throughout a 36-month programme.
Used to synchronise task execution across multiple disciplines in parallel. Takt established reliable, predictable trade flow across construction phases, eliminating the waiting waste and overproduction that derails complex builds.
Deployed to identify inefficiencies in the CQV workflow. VSM sessions mapped current-state process flows, pinpointed bottlenecks and non-value-adding steps, and enabled targeted improvements that compressed commissioning cycles.
Structured rapid-improvement workshops delivered at identified bottleneck areas throughout the project lifecycle. Kaizen events brought cross-functional teams together to solve persistent problems in days, not weeks.
Comprehensive visual management tools deployed on-site and in planning rooms to provide real-time project status, early issue detection, and rapid decision support at all levels of the project team.
Cultural transformation coaching aligned with the five lean behaviours: trust, accountability, transparency, respect, and continuous improvement — the human foundation without which lean tools fail to deliver their full potential.
Project Approach –
The success of the MSD Biotech Dublin facility was rooted in a structured, jointly developed lean construction strategy built in close partnership with MSD leadership, joint-venture partners, and on-site trade teams. From the outset, the lean programme was designed not as an overlay but as the operating system of the project itself.
Current-state assessment of project workflows, team structures, site logistics, and planning systems. Lean programme designed around project-specific constraints, regulatory requirements, and stakeholder culture. Key performance indicators established — including baseline PPC targets, constraint removal rates, and CQV cycle time benchmarks.
Last Planner® System launched with all trade-package teams. Pull planning sessions held to establish master schedule milestones and phase pull plans. Takt planning production systems designed for major construction phases. Lean behaviours training delivered to site leadership, planners, and key foremen. Visual management boards installed across site.
Weekly work planning cycles sustained across all teams. PPC measured and reviewed weekly with structured root-cause analysis on missed commitments. Kaizen events run at identified bottleneck areas. Value Stream Mapping sessions used to redesign CQV workflows as the project transitioned from construction to commissioning phases.
Lean construction principles extended into Commissioning, Qualification, and Validation — a critical and often under-managed phase on pharmaceutical builds. Pull planning applied to IQ/OQ/PQ protocols, constraint removal processes embedded in commissioning teams, and visual management adapted to regulatory documentation workflows.
Outcomes & Results –
The lean programme on the MSD Biotech Swords facility delivered measurable improvements across schedule reliability, team collaboration, waste reduction, and CQV cycle times. These results reflect the power of a fully embedded lean culture — not just lean tools applied at the surface.
Distinct trade teams brought into a single collaborative planning system
Month programme delivered to regulatory standard on one of Ireland's most complex brownfield pharma builds
Systems installed and commissioned — each tracked through lean-enabled CQV workflows
Why Lean Construction Works in Pharma –
Biopharmaceutical facility construction is among the most demanding project environments in the world. Regulatory compliance, complex MEP and process systems, multi-contractor interfaces, extreme commissioning pressure, and global supply chain dependencies make these projects intolerant of wasted time and unplanned stoppages.
The MSD Biotech Swords project demonstrates that lean construction is not just compatible with pharmaceutical construction — it is essential to it. The collaborative planning culture, real-time visibility, and continuous improvement discipline that lean creates are precisely what complex, regulation-intensive projects require to succeed.
Lean Touch Solutions brings over 13 years of lean construction experience, including multiple major MSD facility programmes across Ireland, to every pharmaceutical engagement. We are an LCI-registered lean construction trainer in Ireland — and we have the track record to prove it.
Tell us about your project and we’ll explain how our lean programme can improve your outcomes.
Pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical construction is uniquely demanding. GMP regulatory requirements, complex multi-trade interfaces, concurrent construction and commissioning activities, and global supply chain deadlines create an environment where traditional scheduling simply cannot keep pace with reality.
Lean construction — and specifically the Last Planner® System and Takt Planning — provides the collaborative planning infrastructure that pharmaceutical projects need. By creating a shared, visual, commitment-based planning system, lean gives every stakeholder — from JV partners to trade foremen — the clarity and accountability they need to perform.
The MSD Biotech Swords facility is one of five major MSD pharmaceutical construction programmes Lean Touch Solutions has supported across Ireland. Our engagements span the full MSD Irish campus network, including Carlow Rathgal, Carlow Expansion, Ballydine OSD, and Ballydine API — a combined programme value exceeding €2Bn in pharmaceutical construction.
This track record reflects the trust MSD places in our lean practitioners — people who understand the regulatory context, speak the language of CQV, and know how to embed lean culture in teams that may never have encountered it before.
Many lean consultants teach theory. We embed practice. Our lean practitioners work on-site alongside your project teams — facilitating weekly work planning sessions, training foremen in pull planning, running kaizen events in real project conditions, and coaching lean leaders at every level of the organisation.
Based in Naas, Co. Kildare, Lean Touch Solutions serves clients across Dublin, Leinster, and the rest of Ireland — as well as international clients seeking LCI-accredited lean construction expertise for their European projects.
If you’re planning a pharmaceutical, biotech, or life sciences construction programme in Ireland or Europe and want to understand how lean construction can improve your outcomes — contact our team. We’ll arrange a no-obligation conversation with one of our senior lean practitioners.
