Worcester Business Journal

wbjournal.com | August 7, 2017 | Worcester Business Journal 13 The bank of more time for your business. Smart Pay Express – Online Payments and Donations Made Simple! hometowncoop.com | Toll-Free 888.307.5887 The bank of you. Save time and money! Fast and reliable way to accept payments through a secure link located on your existing website. Ideal for: • Property Management Companies • Homeowners Associations • Not-for-Profit and Charitable Organizations • Day Care Centers • Faith-Based Organizations • Utility Companies • Municipalities Contact: Sue Collins at 508.499.1881 and start saving time and money. Member FDIC | Member SIF Your Deposits Are Insured In Full. B I O T E C H N O L O G Y F O C U S W Building a biomanufacturing base O'Sullivan and his economic devel- opment colleagues have made a suc- cessful case for Worcester's role in lead- ing widespread biomanufac- turing development in Central Massachusetts and beyond. Learning their vision, Gov. Charlie Baker and local lawmakers gave full support to naming the Worcester Business Development Corp. the developer of a 44-acre bio- manufacturing campus on the site of the former Worcester State Hospital on Plantation Street, adjacent to the UMass Medicine Science Park on the University of Massachusetts Medical School campus. The announcement of WBDC's bio- manufacturing campus was made in September, and the organization is planning a marketing campaign this fall to attract tenants. Timothy Murray, president and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, credited O'Sullivan with the success of the UMass Medicine Science Park, which O'Sullivan worked on in the 1980s while with the chamber. "Kevin brings a real understanding and perspective and appreciation of biotechnoloy and biomanufacturing MBI graduates Since its founding in 1985, the Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives incubator has graduated 90 companies, including 60 since 2001. Some notable ones still operating: Company Location Product JuvoBio Pharmaceuticals Weston Developmental disability drugs Microbac Laboratories Westborough Food testing Macrogen USA Rockville, Md. DNA sequencing Yurogen Biosystems LLC Worcester Monoclonal antibodies Indigo AG Charlestown Plant microbes Histologistics Dudley Contract research laboratory and how its has helped Worcester's economy," said Murray, who counts O'Sullivan as one of his mentors. But whatever success Worcester has in developing a biomanufac- turing hub, O'Sullivan hopes it serves as a catalyst for the sec- tor in other parts of the state. The Lowell area, and the North Shore are two other via- ble regions for biomanufactur- ing, O'Sullivan said, and devel- opment across all regions will only serve to strengthen what he has longed considered a biotechnology corridor, anchored by Worcester and Greater Boston. Helping the startups Meanwhile, at MBI, O'Sullivan is an unwavering source of support to the clinical-stage companies renting labo- ratory and office space at MBI loca- tions, including two Prescott Street locations within Worcester Polytechnic Institute's Gateway Park complex, and a smaller, Barber Avenue location near the former Higgins Armory Museum. O'Sullivan explained MBI's role is to provide the space and equipment early- stage companies need, so they can focus on commercialization efforts. "I love hanging out with people who are smarter than I am. It's fascinating, and I really respect what they're doing. I may not understand it completely, but what we try to do is to provide them easy access to the science. Let us worry about everything else," Sullivan said. MBI has graduated 90 companies since its founding and 68 have become successful businesses outside the incu- bator, according to MBI data. Nearly 90 percent of MBI graduate companies have located in Massachusetts, while just over a quarter have located in Worcester. Today, MBI houses 27 tenant compa- nies, including 125 employees. One of them is Michael Matin, CEO of HDL Therapeutics, a Florida startup testing equipment in one of MBI's Gateway Park labs. He said MBI is dramatically different from other incubators because of its customer service, and O'Sullivan is the driving force, with a relentless positive attitude and willingness to help. For example, O'Sullivan was able to get a solution from Reliant Medical Group, the Worcester physician group of which he is a trustee, which HDL needed to conduct important testing of its product last month, after a mishap with the company's supplier. "That energy and enthusiasm is con- tagious," Matin said. Source: MBI Michael Matin, CEO, HDL Therapeutics

• Cover