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Home / Growth & Expansion / Business Sectors / Life Sciences
Life SciencesThe Ann Arbor region is one of the country’s nerve centers for Life Sciences. Over 80 life science companies, ranging in size from 2 to 3000 employees, are located in the region. Area life science companies engage in a wide variety of disciplines, including:
 The University of Michigan in Life Sciences The University’s Life Sciences Institute is the hub for research and teaching in the life sciences. It is a $230 million interdisciplinary collaboration housed in state-of-the-art wet labs at the very center of the Ann Arbor campus. It is adjacent to a new 140,000-square-foot teaching building for undergraduate science, and a 99,000-square-foot Commons building designed for meetings and small conferences. The Commons also houses the University’s Bioinformatics Program. The Institute is the scientific fulcrum for investigation in the schools of Medicine, LS&A, Engineering, Public Health, and other departments engaged in cross-disciplinary life sciences research. The U-M Medical Center is the world’s largest complex devoted to health education, research, and patient care. Research at the Medical Center focuses on basic science, clinical, and animal research. www.med.umich.edu The University of Michigan Business School plays a special role in supporting business start-ups and growth. The Business School facilitates collaborations with faculty, staff, and students throughout the University and the Life Sciences Corridor, and plays a key role in helping graduates find rewarding careers in Michigan companies. www.bus.umich.edu The University of Michigan’s Office of Technology Transfer is committed to ensuring that applicable University technology be developed into new business ventures. In 2004, the Medical School’s Technology Transfer and Corporate Research (TTCR) office resulted in 105 invention disclosures and $6.5 M in royalty revenue. www.techtransfer.umich.edu The huge Pfizer Global Research and Development facility near the University of Michigan Medical Center anchors the industry. In 2001, their $800 million expansion allowed Pfizer to consolidate their entire Ann Arbor operations and 2,700 employees onto one campus. Fortune Magazine ranks Pfizer as one of the "100 Best Companies to Work for in America." www.pfizer.com The Ann Arbor region received funding from the Michigan Tri-Technology Corridor (MTTC) as well. Of the $27 million awarded in 2005 by the MTTC, $14 million, or 51%, was awarded to Ann Arbor companies and/or University of Michigan related proposals. The SmartZone houses both the Ann Arbor IT Zone and the Business Accelerator. The IT Zone is an “incubator without walls” that focuses on information technology. The Business Accelerator provides business assistance to technology-based companies. www.michigan.org/medc/smartzones/szsum/annarborypsilanti The Biotechnology Business Consultants (BBC) provides assistance to life sciences companies with services that include:
The New Enterprise Forum serves to connect companies seeking funding with VC and Angel investors. www.nef.bizserve.com Ardesta is a MEMS industry accelerator that invests in MEMS technology. Life sciences applications include:
Assay Designs develops, manufactures and markets immunoassay (ELISA) kits, luminescent reagents, antibodies, proteins, DNA products, and extracts that are used for life sciences research. The company recently expanded its presence in Ann Arbor with the relocation of its headquarters to a new a 27,000 square foot custom-designed facility in the State Street Business Park. The new facility provides an improved work environment for Assay Designs’ 85 employees as well as the infrastructure required to expand Assay’s research, sales and marketing efforts. view complete story Rapid Thermal eXchange (RTX), a novel, non-invasive patented technology, is developed by AVAcore Technologies, Inc. RTX is known commercially as CoreControl™, and it rapidly cools or heats the body’s core temperature, ultimately enhancing performance and reducing heat-induced fatigue. CoreControl has applications in athletics as well as industrial settings where workers are exposed to extreme conditions. view complete story NSF International certifies products and writes standards for food, water, air and consumer goods worldwide. NSF is currently investing $23 million to double laboratory space at its Ann Arbor headquarters to support fast-rising demand for its testing and certification services. A new 82,000 square foot addition adjacent to its current building should be complete by the first quarter of 2007, creating 100 new technical jobs. www.nsf.org Other businesses in Life Sciences in the Ann Arbor Region include: BioMedware DNA Software Gene Codes Genetics Squared NanoBio Aastrom Cancer Cell Genomics QUATRx Velcura NanoCure HandyLab Sensigen
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