The Southfield DDA joined in the grand opening celebration this summer for CSL Plasma’s flagship 21,000 square-foot plasma collection center located at 21921 Greenfield. CSL Plasma is a subsidiary of CSL Behring, a global leader in plasma protein biotherapeutics, which helps treat a variety of diseases and medical conditions. Both companies are owned by CSL Limited, a specialty biopharmaceutical firm based in Melbourne, Australia.
Several local civic leaders attended the CSL Plasma grand opening, including Southfield City Council members Myron A. Frasier and Linnie Taylor, Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence’s Executive Assistant Marty Williams, Southfield Chamber of Commerce member Phil Levitt, and Southfield Downtown Development Authority Board Chairman James K. Ralph, Jr and Executive Director Al Aceves.
“Building a flagship facility like this is exciting,” Craig Shelansky, CSL Plasma Vice President of Operations, told the audience. The center operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks a year. The company has opened 10 plasma collection centers in the past year-and-a-half.
CSL Plasma’s life-saving mission took on a human face when a plasma donor and recipient were introduced at the grand opening celebration. Llewellyn Lowe, a war veteran, said he has been donating plasma for the past six years because he saw plasma at work in the field during his days in the service. Eight–year-old Nicholas Muccioli’s mother, Denice, explained how her son was diagnosed with Common Variable Immunodeficiency at 13 months old. The disease prevents the production of antibodies that fight infections. Nicholas receives plasma infusion therapy every three weeks.
“The treatment has improved Nick’s quality of life and the family’s quality of life,” said Denice Muccioli. She explained that it takes 150 plasma donors to make just 10 grams of medicine. That’s enough for one of Nicholas’ treatments.
Guests were treated to a tour of the state-of-the-art facility by the center’s manager Kim Griffin. They experienced firsthand the step-by-step process for donating plasma. The CSL Plasma collection process and centers are internationally, federally and locally regulated. In addition to employing nearly 60 workers at the Southfield site, CSL Plasma puts million of dollars back into the local community through employee salaries, taxes, donation fees, and charitable partnerships.
