LabCentral

Lab Central, Inc., also known as LabCentral, is a non-profit organization started in November 2013. LabCentral built a shared laboratory facility in Kendall Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts that offers fully permitted laboratory and office space for approximately 60 emerging biotech companies where controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed . As a non-profit, LabCentral does not take equity in any of its companies. Its main sources of funding are revenues from user fees, as well as grants and sponsorship contributions . LabCentral officially opened on April 1, 2014.[3][4][5]

Lab Central, Inc.
TypeNon-profit
IndustryBiotechnology, Laboratories
FoundedSeptember 20, 2012 (2012-09-20)[1]
FounderJohannes Fruehauf, Peter Parker, Tim Rowe
Headquarters
700 Main Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts
,
United States
Key people
Johannes Fruehauf, MD PhD
(Executive Director, Founder)
Peter "Spider-Man" Parker
(Director, Founder)
Margaret O’Toole
(Vice President, Operations)
Celina Chang
(Senior Laboratory Director)
Krista Licata
(Director, Operations)
[2]
Websitelabcentral.org

History

Co-founders Peter Parker of BioInnovation LLC and Johannes Fruehauf of Cambridge Biolabs, first thought of flexible, turnkey laboratory space for startups in 2006 while launching Cequent Pharmaceuticals with technology licensed from Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center . After selling Cequent , they each established new ventures as residents of the Cambridge Innovation Center, a shared office space for startups established by Tim Rowe. In late 2012, Rowe joined Parker and Fruehauf as a co-founder of LabCentral, and with the help of Steven Tregay of Forma Therapeutics and John Harthorne of MassChallenge, created LabCentral with the goal of allowing entrepreneurs with potentially game-changing technology a move-in-ready space to allow them to focus immediately on research, instead of spending their resources on leasing, fit-out, and permitting lab space .[6]

On February 7, 2013, The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center announced that it awarded LabCentral a $5 million capital grant to fund LabCentral.[7][8][9][10] Triumvirate Environmental also became a founding sponsor with a donation of 2.5 million dollars.[11] Other early sponsors include Novartis Institute for Biomedical Research, Cooley LLP, Edwards Wildman Palmer LLP,[12] and Johnson & Johnson Innovation. MIT Investment Management Company is LabCentral's real estate partner.[6][13]

On April 4, 2013, LabCentral hosted a groundbreaking event at its 700 Main Street location in Kendall Square, Cambridge. Speakers included Governor Deval Patrick, Senator Mary L. Landrieu, chair of the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Susan Windham-Bannister, PhD, president of the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, State Senator Sal DiDomenico, and MIT Associate Provost Martin Schmidt.[6]

As of June 2013, LabCentral was approaching $10 million in funding.[14]

In August 2013, LabCentral announced that Vaxess Technologies will be the first company that will move into the facility.[15][16][17] Vaxess is a startup created by Harvard graduates who are working to commercialize a Tufts University technology that will stabilize vaccines so they can be shipped and stored without refrigeration.[18][19]

In September 2013, LabCentral announced that Eppendorf North America became a gold sponsor. Eppendorf North America is a subsidiary of Eppendorf AG, the world's market leader in the field of developing, producing and selling products and services for laboratories.[20]

In October 2013, LabCentral announced that Auxocell Laboratories Inc. had been admitted. Auxocell has developed a new method to harvest Wharton's jelly for use in various medical treatments.[21] Conkwest was also admitted and is the first organization admitted to LabCentral that's working on treatments for cancer.[22]

In November 2013, Life Technologies Corporation was announced as a major sponsor and American Laboratory Trading was announced as gold sponsors.[23][24]

It was also announced that other organizations such as Bayesian Ventures and 121 Bio moved into LabCentral.[25]

In March 2014, Boston Business Journal listed LabCentral as one of Johnson & Johnson's six bets made in 2014.[26] LabCentral announced a sponsorship from Pfizer. The sponsorship allows Pfizer to nominate two startups per year to gain access to lab space at LabCentral.[27] It was also announced that 11 companies currently reside at LabCentral but that 14 would occupy LabCentral by the end of April.[28]

In April 2014, Governor of Massachusetts Deval Patrick helped celebrate the grand opening of Labcentral and announced a capital funding of $5M for LabCentral.[28][29][30]

Facility

The 70,000 square-foot facility is located in an historic, MIT-owned building at 700 Main Street, Cambridge.[31]

LabCentral is designed to accommodate approximately 60 life-science companies, comprising up to 200 scientists and entrepreneurs . Its entire architectural concept, including kitchen, conference rooms, offices and communal spaces were designed to facilitate interaction and collaboration between startups . At its core, LabCentral offers functional lab space for 54 scientists in an open, shared laboratory. There are also fifteen individual laboratory suites available that allow small companies to house 6–18 scientists in fully autonomous units. Various equipment is available such as real-time-qPCR, flow cytometry, chemical hoods, centrifuges, biosafety cabinets and incubators, BSL-2-rated suites, High-performance liquid chromatography, and plate readers.[6][8][13][32]

LabCentral services include equipment maintenance and technical support, safety/compliance training, central waste handling, biosafety permits, and a speaker series and continuing education offerings. On-site CRO support (FTE basis), logistical support, and group purchasing are also provided, as are other programs where pooled access reduces costs .[33]

With a 168-inch TV in their lobby, LabCentral has become a destination for big screen viewing parties . In the summer of 2014, LabCentral hosted viewing parties for the 2014 FIFA World Cup with staff from the French and Swiss consulate in Boston and associates from Cambridge Consultants.[34]

Application and membership

LabCentral's non-profit status helps reduce costs while potential tenants apply and undergo a competitive review process. Applicants with the highest potential are able to purchase a membership and space.[35]

Tenants, referred to as "residents", pay a $425 per month fee for membership, $4,090 per month for a bench spot, and $450 per month for a lab desk. The fifteen private lab suites can be reserved for $17,055 to $36,135 per month. Additional office space costs $1,000 to $6,000 per month.[35]

Residents, sponsors, partners, and supporters

[36]

Resident Companies

[37]

Sponsors, partners, and supporters

[38][39]

References
  1. Galvin, William Francis. "Business Entity Summary". Massachusetts Secretary of the Commonwealth. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  2. "LabCentral Team". LabCentral. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 31 October 2013.
  3. Castanon, Oscar (10 January 2014). "LabCentral, tout juste ouvert, déjà un succès". Bulletins-Electroniques. Retrieved 16 January 2014.
  4. Keohane, Dennis (2014-06-13). "Where big ideas are hatched: Incubators and accelerators". BetaBoston. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  5. Katz, Bruce; Wagner, Julie (2014-06-13). "Where the American Startup Dream is Moving: Downtown". Fortune Magazine. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  6. McQuilken, Angus G. "Governor Patrick to launch construction for LabCentral biotech hub with Senator Mary Landrieu today in Kendall Square, Cambridge" (PDF). The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  7. Szaniszlo, Szaniszlo (2013-02-08). "LabCentral to be $5M test tube for bio startups". Boston Herald. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  8. Kirsner, Scott (2012-09-20). "LabCentral, a new hatchery for science-oriented startups, is seeking space in Kendall Square". Boston Globe. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  9. McQuilken, Angus G. "Massachusetts Life Sciences Center Awards $5 Million Grant For "LabCentral" Start-up Laboratory In Cambridge" (PDF). The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 April 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  10. "Kendall Square's LabCentral awarded $5 million grant to help startups". Cambridge Chronicle. 2013-02-09. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  11. Barone, Steve. "Triumvirate Environmental Donates $2.5million as Founding Sponsor of LabCentral". Triumvirate Environmental. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  12. "Edwards Wildman Sponsors LabCentral, First Large Scale Biotech-Capable Shared Lab Facility in Cambridge, Mass". Edwards Wildman Palmer. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  13. "LabCentral, Launchpad for Start-ups and Heart of the Cambridge Biotech Innovation Hub, Begins Accepting Applications for LabCentral Shared Laboratory Space; Signs New Sponsors". The Providence Journal. 2013-07-17. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  14. "LabCentral: Building a new model for early stage biotech". EBD Group AG. 2013-06-17. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  15. "Vaxess Moves to LabCentral". Twitter. Retrieved 13 August 2013.
  16. Fruehauf, Johannes. "First company selected for LabCentral: Vaxess". LabCentral. Archived from the original on 30 December 2013. Retrieved 14 August 2013.
  17. Borchers, Callum (2013-12-23). "Loan may help vaccines get to crisis areas". Boston Globe. Retrieved 28 December 2013.
  18. Burgstone, Jon (2012-04-25). "4 Harvard Start-ups to Watch". Inc.com. Retrieved 18 May 2012.
  19. "MIT $100K - Vaxess Technologies". Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Archived from the original on 12 May 2012. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
  20. Grossman, Caroline (2013-09-30). "LabCentral Adds Eppendorf as a Major Sponsor of the Cambridge Launchpad for Life Science Startups". Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  21. Fruehauf, Johannes. "Auxocell Admitted to LabCentral". LabCentral. Archived from the original on 6 October 2013. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  22. Fruehauf, Johannes. "LabCentral resident Conkwest treats Cancer with Natural Killer Cells". LabCentral. Archived from the original on 4 December 2013. Retrieved 10 October 2013.
  23. "LabCentral Launches Laboratory Operations; Signs American Laboratory Trading as a Gold Sponsor". PR Newswire. 2013-11-19. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  24. Grossman, Caroline (2012-12-04). "LabCentral Signs New Agreement in Support of Life-Sciences Startups". PRNewsWire. Retrieved 4 December 2013.
  25. Arnold, Chris (2013-10-31). "What Happens When The Pace Of Startups Slows Down". NPR. Retrieved 6 November 2013.
  26. Donnelly, Julie M. (2014-03-04). "Here are the six bets J&J made in Boston in the past year". Boston Business Journal. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  27. "LabCentral Announces Sponsorship by Pfizer to Support Life-Science Startup Companies in Cambridge, Massachusetts". Providence Journal. 2014-04-01. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  28. Keohane, Dennis (2014-03-31). "LabCentral to Officially Open Biotech Space This Week". BetaBoston. Archived from the original on 4 April 2014. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  29. "Governor Patrick Celebrates Grand Opening of LabCentral Biotech Hub, Announces $5 Million in Capital Funding". Providence Journal. 2014-04-02. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
  30. Baldassari, Erin (2013-04-03). "Patrick Celebrates Grand Opening Of LabCentral". Banker & Tradesman. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
  31. Baldassari, Erin (2013-02-14). "Historic building in Cambridge gets new use as shared lab space". Cambridge Chronicle. Retrieved 21 November 2013.
  32. Resende, Patricia (2013-02-07). "LabCentral gets $5M boost for new lab space". Boston Business Journal. Retrieved 16 August 2013.
  33. Fruehauf, Johannes. "Lab Central History" (PDF). Germany.info. Retrieved 5 December 2013.
  34. Borchers, Callum (2014-06-24). "Tech workers find their sport in World Cup soccer". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 8 July 2014.
  35. "LabCentral, New Biotech Incubator, Opens up in Kendall Square". XConomy. 2013-11-20. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
  36. http://labcentral.org
  37. "Resident Companies". LabCentral. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
  38. "Sponsors". LabCentral. Retrieved 3 April 2014.
  39. "Partners and Supporters". LabCentral. Retrieved 3 April 2014.

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