Industry Blog

UK Bioscience Centre Planned for Stevenage

Source: Builder and Engineer Online

Plans for a £37m Bioscience Campus in Stevenage, Hertfordshire were announced today by Business, Innovation and Skills Secretary, Lord Mandelson.
The project aims to create a world-leading hub for early-stage biotech companies, operating under a model of open-innovation and collaboration.

The Campus will offer each company access to specialist skills, equipment and expertise, to help stimulate innovation in drug development. By sharing knowledge each company will also increase its chance of success, while retaining its independence so entrepreneurship can flourish.

Speaking ahead of the announcement at the Technology Strategy Board’s Innovate09 Conference, Lord Mandelson said: “The Stevenage Campus represents a huge investment in the future of Britain’s bioscience industry and is a strong new platform for the work of our Office for Life Sciences.”

It’s estimated that development of the campus could create up to 1,500 new jobs, most of which will be high-skilled. It will initially be home to around 25 companies, co-located with GlaxoSmithKline on its existing research site, with plans to increase capacity at the park fivefold over the next 10 years.

Location: http://www.builderandengineer.co.uk/news/environment/bioscience-centre-planned-for-stevenage-4532.html
Date: 13/10/2009

Pharmaceutical giants in Stevenage gives antivirals to all staff.

PHARMACEUTICAL giants GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which has a base in Stevenage, has issued all its UK employees and their families with the antiviral drug to swine flu “in case of need”.

Tamiflu has been given to workers as a precautionary measure to fight the H1N1 virus.

A spokesman for the company said: “GSK has invoked its own internal pandemic preparedness plan, to ensure continuity of supply of all its critical medicines and vaccines.”

At the end of May, GSK started production of a swine flu vaccine and has so far received orders for 195 million doses.

First supplies will be available from September.

It also expects to increase annual production of Relenza - which can both treat and help prevent flu - from 60 million to 190 million by the end of the year.

www.thecomet.net

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