Project to strengthen biotechnology statewide gains momentum

BT Catalyst,  Nov-Dec, 2003  

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PLANS TO STRENGTHEN biotechnology in areas of the state beyond the technology-rich Research Triangle continue to take shape with the North Carolina Biotechnology Center's hiring of two representatives to lead its efforts in the Piedmont Triad and the West.

The activity is part of the Center's "Project to Strengthen Biotechnology Across North Carolina" and entails working with local leaders to open satellite offices of the Center in four areas of the state: eastern North Carolina, greater Charlotte, the Piedmont Triad and western North Carolina. The Center dedicated the first of these offices to serve the Piedmont Triad in Winston-Salem in June and hired Gwyn Riddick as director.

In western North Carolina, the Center has continued to help leaders around the Asheville area to harness the region's natural and business resources for biotechnology development. Dr. Charles Moreland, vice chairman of the Center's board of directors, was named as the western North Carolina liaison for the Center in September.

Moreland, retired vice chancellor for research at North Carolina State University, will serve as the point person and help direct the region's leaders to the Center's resources. His charge will be to take 11 imperatives outlined in a strategic plan developed for the region in 2001, and strengthen partnerships with development entities such as Advantage West, Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College, the University of North Carolina at Asheville and Western Carolina University. Among the first items on the agenda is the development of a BioWork course at the community college for training entry-level biomanufacturing technicians.

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"In order to accomplish certain things, you need a strong partnership to have a sustained effort," said Moreland.

This partnership has led the college to increase its course offerings to train workers in biotechnology. The college has opened its Biotechnology Company Incubation and Training Center on its Enka campus, and by the beginning of 2004, it will unveil a classroom and a 16-person capacity wet lab, said C. Max Queen, vice president of continuing education at the community college.

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"We would like to be a player, especially in the western end of our state," said Queen. "And that's our goal."

The Center has also turned its attention about 100 miles south to the greater Charlotte area to help the industry there gain traction. A satellite office should open by fall 2004 and will be staffed with a director and assistant.

The office, much like the one that opened at the Piedmont Triad Research Park in Winston-Salem in June, will serve as a catalyst for biotechnology in the area, said W. Steven Burke, senior vice president of corporate affairs at the Center.

The Center's office will be another available resource to help the Charlotte area develop its biotechnology industry--a process that could take up to 20 years. The industry can take advantage of research at Carolinas Healthcare Systems and at UNC-Charlotte, said Richard Giercso, chief operating officer at the Research Triangle Park-based Zen-Bio Inc.

"That's the kind of catalyst the region needs to facilitate growth," said Giercso.

Potential for growth was evident at the September conference, Charlotte's Emerging Role in Biotechnology. The second annual event drew 210 people this year compared to 125 in 2002. It brought economic development representatives, venture capitalists and life science companies to the UNC-Charlotte campus to learn about the area's research and investment capabilities.

Nearly everyone at the daylong event applauded Center President Leslie Alexandre when she announced news of the office opening. An effort will begin in January to choose a suitable location for the office.

"The (Biotechnology Center) has done a fantastic job in being a focal point for biotechnology in the state, but there is only so much you can do from one location," said Mark S. Wdowik, the executive director of UNC-Charlotte's Office of Technology Transfer, whose office has spun out 17 technology companies since 2000.

COPYRIGHT 2003 North Carolina Biotechnology Center
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