Advion to establish new laboratory at Purdue Research Park near Indianapolis

Advion BioServices Inc., a provider of contract bioanalytical research services, announced that it will establish a laboratory here, creating 49 immediate jobs and up to 66 jobs by 2015.

The company, which provides a range of laboratory testing services and laboratory equipment to pharmaceutical developers and university researchers, will invest more than $6.1 million to lease and equip 22,000 square feet of space at the Purdue Research Park at Ameriplex near the Indianapolis International Airport.

"The new jobs that Advion is bringing to Indiana are just the sort we work so hard to attract," said Gov. Mitch Daniels. "We know there are many Hoosiers coming out of our universities that are qualified to fill these positions and reaffirm that Advion's decision to grow in Indiana was a smart one."

As part of an agreement with Eli Lilly and Co., Advion will absorb Lilly's drug discovery bioanalytical capabilities into the new laboratory. Those operations include data generation and analysis of how new drugs interact with experimental models in preparation for clinical testing. All Lilly employees affected by the transition will be eligible to join Advion.

Advion BioServices is a subsidiary of Advion BioSciences, which currently employs nearly 200 associates at facilities in New York and Virginia and plans to begin hiring research associates for the Indianapolis facility during the second quarter of 2011 with an anticipated operational date scheduled for May 23.

"To meet numerous requests from clients, Advion's strategy is to expand its service offering with drug discovery and drug metabolism services in this Indiana facility," said Tom Kurz, president of Advion BioServices. "Advion considers top scientific talent as the most critical success factor for this business. Indianapolis is an attractive location because we can draw upon the existing talent pool of scientists in central Indiana to staff this new laboratory."

Headquartered in Ithaca, N.Y., Advion BioSciences operates in two divisions, Advion BioServices, which operates testing laboratories for pharmaceutical research, and Advion BioSystems, which provides laboratory equipment for life science researchers. Founded in 1993, the company has sales and support offices in the United States, Europe and Japan.

"The decision of Advion BioServices to locate its new lab in Indianapolis is the latest example of our success in attracting quality jobs and new investment to our city," said Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard. "There is quite a buzz about the great business climate in Indianapolis, and this announcement continues our winning streak."

The Indiana Economic Development Corporation offered Advion BioServices Inc. up to $650,000 in performance-based tax credits and up to $30,000 in training grants based on the company's job creation plans. Develop Indy will provide additional training funding and support property tax abatement from the city of Indianapolis.

"The Indiana Economic Development Corporation's and Indianapolis' successful recruitment of Advion to Indiana is another example of how they are working hard to diversify Indiana's economy," said Joe Hornett, senior vice president, treasurer and chief operating officer of the Purdue Research Foundation. "Because of Advion's strength in life sciences research, the company is a good fit for the Purdue Research Park, and their move into the technology park will bring the park's 55,000-square-foot facility to near capacity."

There are 14 new and expanding companies in the Purdue Research Park of Indianapolis, where employees earn an average annual wage of $54,000.

Source: Advion BioServices Inc