LabCentral Announces Sponsorship by Pfizer to Support Life-Science Startup Companies in Cambridge, Massachusetts

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 1, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- LabCentral, an innovative, shared laboratory space designed as a launchpad for life-sciences startups, announced that Pfizer Inc. has become a LabCentral platinum-level sponsor. As part of the sponsorship arrangement, Pfizer can nominate up to two promising life-science startup companies per year during the sponsorship to take up residence at LabCentral's Kendall Square facilities.

"LabCentral is committed to facilitating potential breakthroughs in science and health," said LabCentral President and Executive Director Johannes Fruehauf. "Promising life-sciences startups require state-of-the-art lab equipment as well as a supportive environment that fosters thought-sharing and creative exchange. We look forward to working with Pfizer in Kendall Square's vibrant biotech hub to provide startups with the resources needed to advance their research."

Admission to LabCentral is conducted through a competitive review process, where LabCentral selects only the highest-potential startups. The application process starts with a short form available on the LabCentral website. LabCentral's existing footprint comprises 28,000 square feet of space in a MIT-owned building in Kendall Square. Our original projection was to be fully occupied within three years. However, the interest in LabCentral has been extraordinary, with more than 100 companies making inquiries to date. Approximately two-dozen applicants have already met the acceptance criteria, 12 companies have moved in, and several more are scheduled for residency. Tours are held Tuesdays at 11 am ET and Thursdays at 3 pm ET, with sign-up available at www.labcentral.org.

"Early collaboration between scientists and the biopharmaceutical industry can accelerate the discovery and translation of science into potential therapies for patients," said Jose Carlos Gutierrez-Ramos, Ph.D., group senior vice president and head of Biotherapeutics R&D at Pfizer. "Our sponsorship of LabCentral demonstrates our commitment to early-stage research and underscores how our unified Cambridge presence will provide the opportunity to better engage the strengths and expertise of one of the world's richest biomedical communities."

About LabCentral (www.labcentral.org; twitter @labcentral)
A 28,000 square-foot facility in the heart of the Kendall Square, Cambridge, biotech innovation hub, LabCentral is a first-of-its-kind shared laboratory space designed as a launchpad for high-potential life-sciences and biotech startups. It offers fully permitted laboratory and office space for as many as 25 startups comprising approximately 100 scientists and entrepreneurs. LabCentral provides first-class facility and administrative support, skilled laboratory personnel, a domain-relevant expert speaker series − as well as the other critical services and support that early-stage companies need to begin laboratory operations on day one. A private, nonprofit institution, LabCentral was funded in part by a $5 million grant from the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, with support from its real-estate partner, MIT. Founding sponsors include Triumvirate Environmental and Johnson & Johnson Innovation.

MEDIA CONTACT:
LabCentral: Caroline A. Grossman -Ÿ +1.781.771.5579 - [email protected]

Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140401/NE94903LOGO

SOURCE LabCentral