An animal pharmaceutical company just made a bigger investment in Wilmington after moving its headquarters from New Jersey to the Port City in 2015.

Pharmgate Animal Health recently purchased the nearly 7,500-square-foot office building at 1800 Sir Tyler Drive for $1.25 million, according to a deed recorded Jan. 11. 

Pharmgate specializes in the development and marketing of medicines to control disease in North American livestock and poultry.

The company, which is currently leasing space at 1015 Ashes Drive, bought the building “to meet the needs of our growing business and allow investment in the Wilmington area,” said Peter Criddle, vice president of finance and operations for Pharmgate, in an email Tuesday.

Criddle said the new office location will serve as Pharmgate’s global headquarters.

“We will occupy 70 percent initially and continue with the existing tenants in the remaining 30 percent,” he said.

The company branched out with a merger last year. Established in 2008, Pharmgate acquired ProtaTek International, which specializes in developing biological vaccines for use in pigs, horses and cows, and had facilities in Minnesota and Arizona, in October.

Pharmgate officials plan to move to 1800 Sir Tyler Drive on March 31, Criddle said.

“We will be growing to 15 [employees] in N.C. in 2017 and 100 in total including our field sales/veterinarians and our manufacturing sites in Nebraska and Minnesota,” he said in the email.

In the purchase of 1800 Sir Tyler Drive, Katie Moore of Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage represented the building's previous owners, Norman St. Pierre and wife, Rosyln Speros, while Pharmgate was assisted in the transaction by David Benford of Landmark Sotheby’s.