"Wall Smashing" Ceremony Initiates Construction Of Bayer Funded Geospatial Innovation And Resource Center at T-REX Business Incubator

ST. LOUIS, Feb. 21, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Sledgehammers breaking through a mock wall signaled the construction start of the new "Geosaurus, Powered by Bayer" Innovation Resource Center at T-REX, a St. Louis based advanced technology incubator.  Geosaurus will serve as the latest pillar in St. Louis' efforts to become the global leader in geospatial intelligence, excellence and expertise.

Last year, T-REX was awarded a $500,000 grant from Bayer to support the creation of a new geospatial innovation space that would be located inside the nonprofit's downtown St. Louis building. To accommodate "Geosaurus, Powered by Bayer", crews are renovating T-REX's entire 14,760-square-foot fourth floor.

With an emphasis on entrepreneurship, innovation, workforce development, partnerships with area universities and training programs, Geosaurus will provide collaborative content and programming for advancing the geospatial industry. It will also become a talent pipeline for companies like Bayer and the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency, which is relocating its Washington, D.C. headquarters to a site that is less than two miles away from T-REX. By 2026, it's estimated that companies operating within the "Geosaurus, Powered by Bayer" Innovation Resource Center will create more than five thousand new geospatial industry jobs and generate more than $500 million in economic growth for the St. Louis region.

"St. Louis has so many incredible geospatial resources across the region, and Geosaurus will be the thread that connects them," said Patricia Hagen, President and Executive Director of T-REX. "This is where innovations will be fostered; talent will be cultivated and partnerships will be formed."

T-REX is home to more than 200 companies, including those focused on geospatial intelligence such as Geodata IT, SAIC, Optimal Geo, UNCOMN and Boundless, which Bayer began a collaborative relationship with in 2017 to coordinate open source geospatial code to the Free and Open Source Software for Geospatial (FOSS₄G) community.

"Geospatial intelligence is becoming a high priority for agriculture as well as other industries that rely on highly technical and precise mapping data," said Al Mitchell, Vice President of Corporate Engagement for Bayer. "Bayer is excited to partner with T-REX in the development of Geosaurus, which will help to further define St. Louis as an innovation and technology hub."

One of the first companies moving into Geosaurus will be the Combatting Wildlife Trafficking Geo-Analytic Hub, which is working to harness geospatial analytics and predictive modeling for efforts to stop global poaching.

Joining Mitchell and Hagen at today's "wall smashing" ceremony were St. Louis Mayor Lyda Krewson, Downtown STL, Inc. CEO Missy Kelley and St. Louis Development Corp. Executive Director Otis Williams. St. Louis architectural firm Remiger is designing the "Geosaurus, Powered by Bayer" space. Construction of the new center is expected to be completed in August 2019.

Bayer: Science For A Better Life
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the Life Science fields of health care and agriculture. Its products and services are designed to benefit people and improve their quality of life. At the same time, the Group aims to create value through innovation, growth and high earning power. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development and to its social and ethical responsibilities as a corporate citizen. In fiscal 2017, the Group employed around 99,800 people and had sales of EUR 35.0 billion. Capital expenditures amounted to EUR 2.4 billion, R&D expenses to EUR 4.5 billion. For more information, go to www.bayer.us.

About T-REX
T-REX is a 501(c)3 non-profit technology incubator located in downtown St. Louis. With an emphasis on facilitating groundbreaking ideas from early-stage entrepreneurs, T-REX houses more than 215 companies within its 160,000-square-foot facility on Washington Avenue. Founded in 2011, T-REX has graduated more than 100 companies from incubation that remain in the St. Louis region. T-REXers have created 4,358 St. Louis jobs since its inception and are responsible for more than $607 million in annual economic output. For more information, visit www.downtowntrex.org.

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