Weaver looks to enhance Worcester’s biotech cluster

Photo | Courtesy Jon Weaver

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By Zachary Comeau

Jon Weaver took over as president and CEO of Worcester biotech incubator Massachusetts Biomedical Initiatives after Kevin O’Sullivan retired at the end of 2018 after two decades leading the agency. In an interview with WBJ, Weaver spoke about the growing biotech cluster in Greater Worcester and how it complements the world-renowned biotech hub of Boston.

How was the transition to president and CEO?

It’s been a very healthy transition. I worked under Kevin about three years before we started talking about a transition. Over the course of the last year, Kevin and I, along with the board of trustees, worked on a strategic planning document setting out goals and strategies for the next three years at MBI. That was really an opportunity for Kevin and I to work with the board and set out our marching orders for the next three-year period.

How do you build on Kevin O’Sullivan’s work?

Kevin, in many ways, has been involved since the beginning of the biotech cluster of Central Mass., with projects like Gateway Park and the Redstone Center. He’s really been at the center of it all. I’m at a bioconference in Philadelphia right now, and Worcester is very much in the conversation with everyone. People are aware of it because of all the infrastructure Kevin built.

Now, the question is how do we advance new projects, like the Biomanufacturing Park that Kevin started?

So what is the status of the biotech industry in Central Massachusetts?

It’s bursting. The biotech cluster in Massachusetts is one of the greatest in the world, and we consider Worcester to be an important part of that cluster. Our goal is to try and promote it, using all the tools we have available. Worcester as a lot of those tools, like academic institutions, hospitals and building infrastructure.

Gateway Park, The UMass Medicine Science Park and Redstone Center are all near capacity. That’s a good problem for Worcester to have, and we have to pay some attention to it.

What are some recent success stories of MBI startups?

One great group, HSRL, started with MBI with one part-time employee two years ago. Now, the company has about five full-time employees. They closed a private equity round in December, are expanding into 10,000 square feet of space in Marlborough and will be up to 15 employees at the end of this year.

How can MBI expand on that success?

For one, MBI needs to add more space. We’re actively working on, and we’ll have some exciting announcements coming up.

A new building at the Biomanufacturing Park, right behind Abbvie, would be a major opportunity for Worcester to capture additional manufacturing companies that can’t locate near Cambridge because of costs. Worcester offers the same great access to the workforce and educational institutions.

WuXi Biologics is coming to the park to be the anchor tenant. Is a large company like that enough to attract other similar firms?

WuXi is a big deal. The company may not be the kind of household name of other folks in the area, but ask companies at MBI about WuXi coming to town. It’s a big deal for them. For an international company, the fact it chose Worcester is really a testament to the potential of this park.

WuXi is hopefully the first tenant to get this project going. There’s an opportunity for many more behind them.

The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center just announced funding for underserved regions like Worcester. Is funding a big issue in Worcester?

One of the exciting things happening in the city is we’re getting a lot more drug discovery companies. Those companies, unlike others, may not have their first sale of a product for 10 years after spending millions. If we can find the resources to help good ideas translate to the commercial sector, that’s huige.

What will it take for Worcester to be mentioned in the same sentence as Boston or Cambridge?

We don’t necessarily have to compete with that area. The Massachusetts cluster is what Worcester is part of, and it’s one of the greatest in the world. How do we best complement that success instead of trying to compete with it?

Service companies, startups and biomanufacturing companies are three examples of where Worcester can add a lot of value. Those are areas in which groups might struggle closer to Boston due to higher costs and some other challenges in that part of the Massachusetts cluster.

This interview was conducted and edited for length and clarity by WBJ Staff Writer Zachary Comeau.