Research Pegs Indiana Life Sciences Impact at $63B

The state’s life sciences initiative says the industry’s impact continues to get bigger. BioCrossroads says research from the Indiana Business Research Center at the Indiana University Kelley School of Business shows the industry’s economic impact in 2015 rose to $63 billion. In all, more than 56,000 employees are tied to nearly 1,700 Indiana life sciences companies.

BioCrossroads Project Director Brian Stemme tells Inside INdiana Business challenges remain as Indiana works to grow its life sciences profile. "I think that we’ve got to keep working on work force. We’ve got to continue to invest in our employees and that means – not only at the bachelor’s level, but at the associate degree level and certificate levels – people that can work in these facilities and make sure that we have FDA-compliant products," he said. Average salaries paid to life sciences employees increased to nearly $99,000 per year in 2015, with wages totaling $5.6 billion statewide.

Chief Executive Officer David Johnson says players from the pharmaceutical, medical device manufacturing and agbiosciences sectors to medical laboratories and biologistics companies have an "outsized" effect on the state. He says "for the biotech sector, national and even global forces drive constant change for business models, product approvals and investments, and ultimately, innovation, but Indiana’s life sciences industry maintained its strong leadership position over the past year." Indeed, nearly $10 billion in life sciences products are exported by Indiana companies, placing it second in the U.S. behind California.

Startup capital was also on the rise says BioCrossroads, with 27 early-stage businesses receiving nearly $90 million in funding last year.

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