LabCentral Announces $22.4 Million in Committed Funding for LabCentral 238 including New Sponsors Thermo Fisher Scientific and Waters Corporation
CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 18, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- LabCentral, the first-of-its-kind shared laboratory space designed as a launchpad for high-potential biotech startups, today announced a total of $22.4 million in sponsorship commitments for LabCentral 238, a fully functional life sciences laboratory with a focus on scale-up bio-manufacturing. Thermo Fisher Scientific and Waters Corporation join Astellas and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MSLC) as sponsors. Part of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's (MIT) South of Main Street (SoMa) Development in the heart of Kendall Square's innovation hub, LabCentral 238 is currently under construction and is expected to open in November 2021.
Representatives from the Baker-Polito Administration, MLSC, LabCentral, Astellas, Thermo Fisher Scientific and Waters Corporation will be discussing the news in a webcast this morning at 10 a.m. ET (click here to watch live or for a recording of the webcast).
Key Facts:
-- Serving start-ups at a more advanced stage from LabCentral's current
base of resident companies at its existing facilities, LabCentral 238
will bridge the gaps that fast-growing start-ups are experiencing as
they design and test the processes for their compounds prior to
full-scale GMP (Good Manufacturing Practice) production.
-- Originally announced in October 2019, LabCentral 238 was started with a
Founding Sponsorship from Astellas, a grant from the MLSC and key
support from MITIMCo (MIT Investment Management Company). New
sponsorship commitments include Thermo Fisher Scientific and Waters
Corporation with additional sponsorship commitments expected.
-- LabCentral already has commitments from two companies to occupy space
when LabCentral 238 opens, including one researching gene therapies for
rare diseases and another developing a rapid, low-cost molecular
diagnostic platform.
-- Aligned with the new LabCentral Ignite initiative, LabCentral 238 also
presents the opportunity to expand and diversify the skilled workforce
to support bio-manufacturing and life sciences technical talent for the
Massachusetts economy.
Executive Quotes:
-- "LabCentral 238 continues our mission of creating new facilities and
opportunities to accelerate science through public-private partnerships.
We welcome our new sponsors as we collaborate to help high-potential
start-ups begin their process development activities much earlier and
create a new community around bio-manufacturing including the
development of a more diverse and inclusive biotech workforce."
- Johannes Fruehauf, co-founder and president of LabCentral
-- "I applaud our partners at LabCentral for securing additional support
for this innovative project that leverages the Commonwealth's investment
and further drives the biotech engine of Massachusetts' economy.
LabCentral 238 truly represents the power that public-private
partnerships have in unlocking new opportunities that create jobs, spur
economic development, and strengthen burgeoning areas of our economy
such as bio-manufacturing."
- Mike Kennealy, Massachusetts Housing and Economic Development Secretary, co-chair of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center Board of Directors
-- "LabCentral remains an essential anchor institution for the future
success of the next generation of start-ups, and our life sciences
ecosystem more broadly. Its new facility represents the opportunity
Massachusetts has to lead in the bio-manufacturing space, pairing high
quality facilities with equally high quality workforce programming that
expands biotech jobs in Massachusetts."
- Kenn Turner, president and CEO of MLSC
-- "Cell and gene therapy represent the next frontier in medical research,
with the potential to develop transformative treatments for patients
across a wide array of disease areas. We are proud to help guide and
develop this next generation of companies and researchers that will
inhabit LabCentral 238 as they seek to access the promise of these
rapidly evolving fields."
- Yoshitsugu Shitaka, President of Astellas Institute for Regenerative Medicine (AIRM)
-- "The biotech pioneers who progress through LabCentral 238 will transform
medicine and improve lives. Our support of them, through technology and
mentorship from our own scientists, is a privilege, and we look forward
to joining them in their journey from discovery to commercialization."
- Sandy Pound, VP and chief communications officer of Thermo Fisher Scientific
-- "At Waters, we're excited about LabCentral's mission and track record
supporting scientific entrepreneurs and new frontiers of therapeutic
modalities. Through contributing analytical technologies, expertise and
access to our nearby Immerse Cambridge collaborative research lab, we
are committed to supporting the next generation of biopharma and biotech
innovators that will occupy LabCentral 238."
- Rob Carson, Senior Vice President, Corporate Development, Waters Corporation
Additional Resources:
-- LabCentral 238 video
About LabCentral
A private, non-profit institution, LabCentral was founded in 2013 as a launchpad for high-potential life-sciences and biotech startups. Operating a total of 100,000 square-feet in the heart of Kendall Square in Cambridge, Mass., LabCentral offers fully permitted laboratory and office space for as many as 70 startups comprising approximately 500 scientists and entrepreneurs. More information is available at www.labcentral.org.
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SOURCE LabCentral
