Made in the Brazos Valley
What started with one Brazos Valley customer and a unique concept for the bio industry has blossomed into an international operation which remains firmly rooted in the heart of the Texas Triangle.
G-CON Manufacturing started in 2009 after founder David Shanahan was contacted by his alma mater, Texas A&M University, to participate in the design of their National Center for Therapeutics Manufacturing. Shanahan shared his concept for mobile, prefabricated cleanrooms with A&M. Soon after, he landed the university as his first client.
G-CON calls its cleanrooms PODs. They come in numerous shapes, sizes and classifications. All are designed for pharmaceutical production, whether it be monoclonal antibodies, cell and gene therapies, vaccines, compounded drugs and other related production.

G-CON’s distribution of their PODs now reaches internationally with customers in Asia and Europe. So much of a demand has been created that the company now has an additional manufacturing operation located in Kilkenny, Ireland.
With this demand, the company’s employee count has risen significantly since its beginning. In 2009, there were only eight employees. That number grew to 25 in 2015 and has reached 65 as of the start of 2019, with a projected additional 65 employees in the year to come. G-CON employs people in internal sales, engineering, project management, quality and commissioning control, and those skilled in HVAC, electrical and architectural systems. The company’s annual payroll is approximately $14 million.
Sid Backstrom, Vice President of Business Management for G-CON, shared the advantages of doing business in the Brazos Valley:
“Since our first customer was here and there was a lot happening in biotech in the Brazos Valley, we decided to locate here due to the Brazos Valley’s ability to provide everything we needed – excellent engineering resources, skilled labor, plenty of cost-effective space, and good access to international ports. As we saw our business expanding to national and international markets, and with Pfizer taking an ownership position in our company, we were challenged by our Board to determine the best location for our business. We considered the bigger markets in Texas, but what we found was that the Brazos Valley had more to offer than all other considered markets for our type of business. The Cities of Bryan and College Station, the State of Texas and the Brazos Valley Economic Development Corporation all have encouraged and assisted in our continued growth and success since we opened our doors, and that is not something that is available in other markets.”
For more information on G-CON Manufacturing, visit their website, gconbio.com.
- LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/g-con-manufacturing/
- Twitter: @G_CON_PODs
- Facebook: @gconman
- Instagram: @gcon_pods
- Google+: +Gconbio
- YouTube: GCONPODs
Feature from January 2019