The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) and the Corporation for Enterprise Development (CFED) recently released reports that reveal Wisconsin as a leader in biotech and other tech-related areas.
- “Growing The Nation’s Biotech Sector: A Regional Perspective,” a report produced by Battelle for BIO, identified local areas advancing in bioscience. It highlighted Madison’s grow in broad bioscience subsectors.
- The CFED’s 2006 “Development Report Card for the States” identified several Wisconsin programs as being examples of innovation in tech-based development, including the Wisconsin Technology Council, the Wisconsin Innovation Network and the Wisconsin Angel Network.
Referring to cities and their surrounding counties as metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs), the BIO/Batelle report states that more than half of the nation’s MSAs are specialized in at least one of four sectors.
Madison and Lincoln, Neb., were the only metropolitan areas to meet the criteria for specialization (an employment concentration that is 20 percent greater than the national average) in all four sectors: Drugs and pharmaceuticals; medical devices and equipment; research, testing and medical laboratories; and agricultural feedstock and chemicals.
Many other areas MSAs met the criteria for specialization in three bioscience subsectors such as, Chicago, Boston, Los Angeles and St. Louis.
The report also profiles seven metropolitan areas with significant niches in one or many bioscience subsectors: Boulder, Colo.; Durham, N.C.; Flagstaff, Ariz.; Kansas City, Kan.; Madison; Philadelphia, Pa.; and St. Louis, Mo. These regions are distinguished for investing to create the research base, talent pool, capital markets, and commercialization capabilities to build a critical mass of bioscience firms.
Madison’s employment distribution is greatest in “medical devices and equipment” at 47 percent. “Drugs and pharmaceuticals” and “research, testing and biomedical laboratories” are nearly even at 20 and 25 percent. And “agricultural feedstock and chemicals” makes up the remaining 8 percent.
“Growing The Nation’s Biotech Sector: A Regional Perspective” can be viewed at: http://www.bio.org/local/battelle2007/BIO2007RegionalPerspective.pdf
The CFED report singled out 33 programs nationally, including these from Wisconsin:
“WiSys Technology Foundation identifies innovative technologies developed throughout the University of Wisconsin System and brings them to the marketplace for the benefit of the inventors, their colleges, Wisconsin’s economy and society as a whole.
“The Wisconsin Technology Council serves an advisory role to the governor and legislature of Wisconsin. It is an independent, non-profit and non-partisan board with members from tech companies, venture capital firms, all levels of education, research institutions, government and law. It provides policy guidance to lawmakers in the state.
“Through the Tech Council’s Wisconsin Innovation Network (WIN), innovation and entrepreneurship are fostered in a statewide network. WIN programs focus on the needs and challenges faced by new and growing technology-based businesses in Wisconsin.
“The Wisconsin Angel Network (WAN) is an online resource that serves and educates Wisconsin angel investors. WAN allows them to connect to entrepreneurs, create networks, and communicate. WAN builds angel network capital capacity throughout Wisconsin by increasing the number and amount of seed-stage equity investment dollars in Wisconsin companies.”
Click here to read more about the CFED report.
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