CHROMOCELL BUCKS ECONOMIC TRENDS; GROWTH SPURS MOVE UP
North Brunswick, N.J. (March 25, 2009) – Bucking national and state economic trends, Chromocell Corporation, a drug discovery company that accelerates the R&D process by applying its technology to the discovery of novel therapeutics against the most complex and challenging drug targets, marked a significant expansion today by officially opening a new 15,000 square-foot research facility employing 80 full and part-time researchers and support staff.
“We are delighted to have grown from a start-up bioscience company to a robust R&D organization tackling some of the most challenging drug targets. Our technology is cutting edge, and so is our hard working, intelligent and motivated staff,” said Chromocell CEO Kopfli. “This new state-of-the-art lab facility provided through the New Jersey Economic Development Authority further enhances our ability to address serious illnesses through our research efforts.”
In support of the state’s Edison Innovation Fund, the EDA’s Biotechnology Development Center was created to attract emerging technology companies of all sizes to New Jersey and make “tweener” incubator space more readily available as growing tenants graduate from the CCIT and other incubators throughout the state. The Center includes 26,000 square feet of generic wet laboratory space that is completely fit out and ready for use. This allows growing companies to focus their capital on operations, rather than having to invest in tenant fit out. The new space provides Chromocell with its own conference rooms, reception area and visitor lobby and also features laboratories customized to the company’s workflow.
Under the Edison Innovation Fund, Chromocell also received assistance through the New Jersey Technology Fellowship Program. Administered by the New Jersey Commission on Science and Technology, the program provides salary funding for post doctoral graduates from state research universities to work in early-stage New Jersey technology companies. The Edison Innovation Fund, a key element of Governor Jon S. Corzine’s Economic Growth Strategy, was created in October 2006 to spur innovation, create new, high-paying jobs and cultivate an entrepreneurial environment for technology and life sciences companies in New Jersey.
“Chromocell’s graduation from CCIT into the Biotechnology Development Center demonstrates exactly how the concept of the generic wet labs was designed to work: a startup company thrives in the incubator, then moves on to graduate or ‘tweener’ space, and, hopefully in future years, to much larger space at the Technology Centre,” said Caren Franzini, chief executive officer of the EDA. “Chromocell represents an ongoing success story for New Jersey and exemplifies the kind of companies we are encouraging through initiatives like the Edison Innovation Fund.”
With more than 240 companies operating in New Jersey, the bioscience industry has been recognized for both its current contributions to the state’s economy and the potential of the industry to expand and make more contributions in the future.
“In a little over a decade the number of bioscience companies operating in New Jersey has tripled from 80 to more than 240,” said Debbie Hart, president of the New Jersey biosciences industry trade association, BioNJ. “The history of Chromocell provides a glimpse as to why bioscience companies can thrive in New Jersey. Chromocell began as a small operation, but it has been able to grow due to the combination of the value of its intellectual property, a well designed and executed business strategy and the support that is available to young companies through the State of New Jersey.”
Chromocell was founded to commercialize a groundbreaking technology invented by Dr. Kambiz Shekdar and Nobel laureate Dr. Gunter Blobel that revolutionizes cell-based drug discovery. Privately held, Chromocell is focused on drug discovery programs in pain relief, anxiety and respiratory disorders and can enable previously inaccessible, high-value drug targets through the use of its technology. Chromocell is also engaged in research and development applications in flavors, stem cells and other therapeutic biologic fields. For more information, go to www.chromocell.com.