Briefing: Life Sciences In Worcester
Can Worcester's competitive advantage in life sciences be measured? Four students from Worcester Polytechnic Institute recently set about finding out. Sponsored by Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives (MBI), headquartered in WPI's Gateway Park, the report is part of what WPI calls an Interactive Qualifying Project, a required 9-credit-hour course aimed at exploring the cultural and social contexts of STEM fields (science, technology, engineering and math).
What did the students assess?
The students — John Antonopoulous, Poonam Barot, Monolina Binny and Ehab Hamdan — analyzed the area life sciences economy largely through the lens of 25 economic indicators identified by the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative. They range from licensing and federal grants to available capital and talent.
What are Worcester’s strengths?
The Worcester area increased its number of graduates in STEM fields at a faster pace than the state — 17 percent versus 12 percent — between 2006 and 2010.
The city also has colleges and universities with research labs that produce a qualified workforce, as well as MBI, a life sciences incubator that has graduated 62 companies.
Rent for lab space is less than half of what it costs in the Boston area, the report said.
What about weaknesses?
Funding for life sciences start-ups is a challenge in Worcester, the report says. Though UMasss Medical School has done well to capture an increasing amount of funding from the National Institutes for Health ($154 million in 2011), federal funding from the Small Business Administration, known as SBIR and STTR grants, are falling in Worcester County after peaking at nearly $16 million in 2005. The 2011 total was less than $7 million. Meanwhile, the totals across Massachusetts rose slightly from 2010 to 2011.
What can be done?
The WPI report recommends setting up seminars, so small life sciences companies can learn more about the often-complex SBIR application process.
“SBIR, if you look at it traditionally, has been a great source for start-up companies,” said Kevin O'Sullivan, MBI's executive director. “But it also takes a lot of time and effort ... The success rate continues to drop.”
O'Sullivan likes the idea, and said the report has helped him see how the city can build on its successes.
“We need to keep that in mind: 'How do we in Central Mass. complement the entire biosciences corridor going east of us into Cambridge and Boston?” he said.
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