Dr. Weichang Zhou is Executive Director of the Board, Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of WuXi Biologics. With more than 25 years of industry experience, Dr. Zhou provides strategic leadership to the firm as he leads a biologics development team of more than 3,000 employees supported by over 300 experienced scientists – recognized as one of the five largest biological development teams in the world. Dr. Zhou specializes in biologics manufacturing process development, scale-up, characterization, technology transfer, manufacturing and regulatory support.
Prior to joining WuXi Biologics in 2012, Dr. Zhou served in senior leadership positions with multiple Chemistry, Manufacturing, and Controls (CMC) teams, including as Senior Director of Commercial Cell Culture Development at Genzyme (a Sanofi company), Senior Director of Process Sciences and Engineering at PDL BioPharma, and Associate Director of Fermentation and Cell Culture at Merck.
Dr. Zhou has authored and published over 50 scientific papers and holds several patents. He has delivered over 200 presentations and lectures at multiple international conferences and professional courses, and is active in organizing and chairing conferences and symposia related to the development and commercialization of vaccines and biologics. Dr. Zhou served as Chair of the Cell Culture Engineering (XIV) 2014 Conference, Biochemical Engineering (XIII) 2003 Conference, and 2004 Program of the Division of Biochemical Technology of the American Chemical Society (ACS) at the 227th ACS Spring National Meeting. Dr. Zhou was elected as an American Chemical Society fellow in 2013 and an American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (AIMBE) fellow in 2002. He previously served as an executive committee member of the Division of Biochemical Technology (BIOT) at the American Chemical Society between 2003 and 2014. He also served as the Division’s Program Chair (2004), Awards Chair (2005-2008), Chair-Elect (2008), Chair (2009) and Past-Chair (2010).
Dr. Zhou obtained a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Hannover in 1989 and conducted postdoctoral research at the German Association of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, and the University of Minnesota.