Cutting-edge category benefits from educated workforce
By: Development Research Partners, Inc.
Colorado has a critical mass of bioscience companies and organizations fostering growth and leading innovations for the industry. Companies in the bioscience industry include pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, medical devices and diagnostics, agricultural-bioscience, medical laboratories, research institutions and those businesses that provide critical services and products to bioscience companies.
The bioscience industry contributes to the growth and advancements of other Colorado industries as well, including health and wellness, energy and natural resources, technology and information, and food and agriculture.
With about 29,300 bioscience workers in nearly 1,700 companies, Colorado’s foundation in bioscience research and production continues to grow. While the majority of the state’s bioscience firms are concentrated along the Front Range, a number of companies have established their presence across the state in Grand Junction, Pueblo, Steamboat Springs and Durango, among others.
The state is home to renowned research institutions and universities, including the health sciences programs at the University of Colorado Denver, Children’s Hospital Colorado and the Eleanor Roosevelt Institute at the University of Denver.
Important bioscience assets are also concentrated in northern Colorado, particularly at Colorado
State University (CSU) in Fort Collins. The campus is home to the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne and Enteric Diseases.
Colorado is the life science center for the Rocky Mountain region. The state’s entrepreneurial infrastructure fosters innovation to create new bioscience technologies, from the laboratory through commercialization to the marketplace.
Further, Colorado is home to numerous bioscience research assets that have demonstrated a strong commitment to building research excellence. One of the largest bioscience developments in the nation, the Fitzsimons Life Science District and the adjacent Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, are the center of Colorado’s bioscience community. When complete, the $5.2 billion project, encompassing 578 total acres, will be a world-class scientific community offering cutting-edge space, services and support to more than 43,000 bioscience professionals.
The campus also includes the BioBusiness Incubator and Accelerator, offering life science companies the opportunity to locate in pre-built laboratories and furnished office space or build-to-suit space.
Colorado’s bioscience industry receives significant financial resources to fund research, development and commercialization. Since 2009, more than 2,500 patents in bioscience-related technologies have been issued. Grant programs such as the Clean Technology Discovery Evaluation Grant Program and the Bioscience Discovery Evaluation Grant Program support new product development and innovation.
Colorado offers several public/private sources of business funding, including the Colorado Venture Capital Authority and Colorado Capital Access. Venture firms such as Lightstone Ventures and Tango/HCV invest in bioscience. The state ranked among the top tier in bioscience-related venture capital investments since 2009, totaling $1.1 billion.
Colorado’s organizations and programs help bioscience companies excel. The Colorado BioScience Association supports the state’s bioscience community through advocacy, resources and collaboration. Further, the Advanced Industries Accelerator Programs provide grants to bioscience companies to drive innovation, increase access to early-stage capital and expand global competitiveness. The Innovation Center of the Rockies and CSU’s Research Innovation Center accelerate the creation of new bioscience businesses.
