Emerging US Bioclusters

According to an article from Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News, due to several factors that include a weak economy over the past four years and industry cutbacks, a handful of emerging biotech clusters in the US have risen to prominence.  One is left to ponder if the growth of these areas may prove sufficient enough to eventually come close to, or perhaps even overtake, more established life science clusters across the country.

The article recaps interesting analysis points from a recently released report on the state of the global life science from consulting firm Jones Lang LaSalle.  JLL’s report covers an assortment of information, including established and emerging life clusters across the globe, trends, and factors which have impacted the industry as of late.

Based on the report, the Americas – and the US in particular – are shown to have the largest life science market in the world, holding both the largest number of successful established clusters globally as well as the largest number successful emerging clusters globally. In total, 10 emerging clusters are spotlighted in the report for the Americas.  Of those 10, 7 sites are located in the US, while the remaining 3 locations cover Brazil, Canada, and Puerto Rico. The major US cities noted on the list of emerging clusters are: Atlanta, Chicago, Denver, Florida, Houston, Indianapolis, and Minneapolis.  The article from GEN correctly points out, however, that some of these clusters have flourished well past the point of being considered “emerging” any longer.

Despite the increased interest in these areas, their growth is still being actively challenged by the largest biotech clusters.  In particular, there has been a greater amount of consolidation within the two largest regions of the US biotech industry, California and Massachusetts.  In part, this consolidation between the California and Massachusetts seems to be taking place due to a slight hesitancy of trying out emerging clusters.  They seem to view these emerging locations as risker propositions for their business, especially in light of the fact that they already have established “homes” in the aforementioned major US regions.

For access to the PDF report from Jones Lang Lasalle, click here.  To read the article from GEN, click here.