Representatives from Bloomington-based Cook Pharmica and BioConvergence and Indianapolis-based AIT Laboratories and Safis Solutions are attending Bio 2008.

Press Release

Indiana Secretary of Commerce Nathan Feltman and BioCrossroads Chief Executive David Johnson will join Indiana’s top life sciences executives and academics Tuesday in San Diego to recruit new high-tech companies to Indiana and showcase the state’s strengths in biotech discovery, development and delivery.

The trip is part of the state’s business recruiting efforts at the world’s largest biotechnology trade show, BIO International Convention 2008, a show that is expected to host more than 18,000 exhibitors and 22,000 biotechnology leaders from around the globe.

"For more than a century, Indiana has been a center of innovations in the life sciences, pharmaceutical and medical device industries, and we're always eager to let more people know what we have to offer," said Feltman.

In addition to showcasing the state's life sciences industry with the theme of "Discover, Develop, Deliver" and top-rated economic competitiveness in a 1,500-square-foot pavilion at the convention, Feltman and Johnson will meet one-on-one with company executives to encourage them to locate high-tech businesses here.

"San Diego is the birthplace of biotech, and we've established a great collaboration with the region so it's opportune that BIO is there this year," said Johnson. "Indiana's scientific and entrepreneurial spirit encourages life sciences companies to thrive here, and we have a lot of strengths to tout to San Diego and the rest of the companies and regions that attend the convention."

Representatives from Bloomington-based Cook Pharmica and BioConvergence and Indianapolis-based AIT Laboratories and Safis Solutions, among others will join Feltman and Johnson at the Southern California trade show. Top researchers from Purdue University, Indiana University and the University of Notre Dameare also expected to join the Indiana delegation at the show.

Fueled by announcements by companies such as Medco, Cook, Siemens and Hill-Rom, more than a dozen life sciences companies announced plans to expand or locate in Indiana in 2007. Collectively these companies committed to create more than 2,800 new jobs and invest more than $381 million in their Indiana operations in 2007. Since Governor Mitch Daniels created a focused effort to attract and expand the life sciences sector in Indiana in 2005, the state has welcomed nearly 32,000 new education and health services jobs, according to May 2008 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Indiana is home to a $13.6B global life sciences industry that includes such life science leaders as Eli Lilly and Company, Cook, Inc., Roche Diagnostics and Dow AgroSciences. Battelle Memorial Institute noted that Indiana has the second-highest concentration of biopharmaceutical jobs in the nation and the fifth largest pharmaceutical industry in the country, in terms of sales, shipments, receipts and revenues.

About Bio International Convention
Hosted by BIO, the world's largest biotechnology organization, the convention is the industry's signature annual event, attracting more than 20,000 biotechnology executives, scientists, policymakers and journalists from around the world. For more information on the convention, visit www.Bio2008.org.

About IEDC
Created by Governor Mitch Daniels in 2005 to replace the former Department of Commerce, the Indiana Economic Development Corporation is governed by a 12-member board chaired by Governor Daniels. Indiana Secretary of Commerce Nathan Feltman serves as the chief executive officer of the IEDC. Since Daniels created the IEDC, the state has posted three consecutive years of record-breaking job creation. For more information about IEDC, visit www.iedc.in.gov.

About BioCrossroads
BioCrossroads (www.biocrossroads.com) is Indiana’s initiative to grow the life sciences, a public-private collaboration that supports the region’s research and corporate strengths while encouraging new business development. BioCrossroads provides money and support to life sciences businesses, launches new life sciences businesses (Indiana Health Information Exchange, Monarch LifeSciences, Fairbanks Institute for Healthy Communities, BioCrossroadsLINX, and Datalys Center) expands collaboration and partnerships among Indiana's life science institutions, promotes science education and markets Indiana's life sciences industry.

Source: Indiana Economic Development Corporation