Merck plans to shutter three NJ R&D facilities

A Merck spokesperson has confirmed to Pharmalot that the company plans to close two of its sites in New Jersey this year, with a third facility in the state being phased out by 2012. Following the big merger with Schering-Plough, Merck was left trimming big chunks of the combined operations. That process is proving immediately fatal to its Roseland and Lafayette sites, while the Union facility is being wound down at a later point. Layoffs will hit a group of R&D and...