Introduction to a Biotech Incubator
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Introduction to a Biotech Incubator
As an introduction to the future facility spotlights from Luminogenics’ National Wet Lab Resource Directory I will describe the structure and function of a biotech business incubator. Biotech incubators tend to provide the same resources as a traditional incubator except they also have specialized facilities to support the business of biotechnology. Not all incubators are the same, some have higher demands for space and so they demand more from tenants, but as industry and innovation expand so do advances and technologies. Requiring more space, more funds and hopefully producing better gains. However, they all want the same thing, they want your business to grow, they want your business to stay local, and they want your business to attract more of the same.
Biotechnology may seem to be a bit of a buzzword these days, but it’s just the implementation of genetic research into practical uses. One reason that biotech is becoming such a hot topic is because innovation happens on a daily basis, and innovation is becoming more frequent and more relevant to today’s lifestyle and economy. Biotechnology is going to revolutionize the world we live in just as the industrial revolution did, and the information revolution is today. Understanding the business of the science is just as important as understanding the science of the business.
Generally a business incubator whether virtual, traditional or tech specialized, performs the same functions:
1. Provides business space at a cost affordable for a small business.
2. Provides a resource of personnel to help manage an early stage business.
3. Provides a structural support for the business in terms of directing the company to optimal growth by developing a solid business plan.
In addition to those three factors a specialized biotech incubator fulfills three more functions:
1. Access to external funding sources by venture capital funds and angel investors.
2. Provides a community network for intellectual resources and expertise, (this goes beyond simple management practices, some incubators are closely tied to research institutions.)
3. Provides a platform for growth and acceleration.
Biotech incubators also have state of the art facilities at their disposal, whether on site or located within the confines of the research park/ academic institution, including waste disposal and animal facilities; or expensive equipment like autoclaves, purified water, HVAC systems, industrial plumbing and even sequencing facilities. They also always have experienced veterans from industry; people who have worked in the laboratory and who also know how to run a successful business.
Biotech incubators initially arose out of research faculty’s need for additional space to develop and commercialize discoveries or inventions developed within the traditional academic setting. Some incubators are still only open to faculty and students on campus who have a technology they want to commercialize. In other cases incubators are open to companies awarded acceptance through a business plan competition, and in some cases the space is available to those who can afford it. Whatever the reason might be for how you got there the same thing is expected of you, you are expected either to already have a proof of concept or to be ready for the next stages of scaling up and building your management team.
The incubator is looking to find tenants with viable products. The goal is for you to graduate from the incubator and move on to a larger facility, sometimes this is an accelerator, other times it is space on the site of the incubator/ research park where you began. This way your business will be able to continue to grow with the help of the network you developed while in the incubator. Hopefully you will be able to start hiring a workforce and be able to sustain the business in the same locality where it originated. And this is why incubators are so important to the future of the economy, biotech is still new, many people don’t even understand what it is; but some are aware of its importance and they want it, they want your industry in their town, and an incubator might just be the best way to get it.
Additional articles on biotech incubators:
Expansion Management, 2002, The Anatomy of a Biotech Incubator www.expansionmanagement.com/cmd/articledetail/articleid/15643/default.asp
Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News, 2009, Building a Successful Biotech Incubator
www.genengnews.com/articles/chitem.aspx?aid=2962
*Updated 7/21/09
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Luminogenics is a resource with interests in systems of technology commercialization in the life sciences. Included here is a directory of hundreds of biotech incubators, research parks, and associations.
