BioLabs North Carolina Announces Cornerstone Partners

BioLabs North Carolina, part of a national network of coworking facilities designed to help science-based startups go further faster on limited capital investment, announced that GSK; Wexford Science & Technology LLC; and Wyrick Robbins are Cornerstone Partners. BioLabs recognized the three companies for the key role they played in helping to launch BioLabs NC. 
 
BioLabs NC offers flexible, fully equipped, and supported wet lab and office space that enables startups to test, develop, and grow transformative technologies. BioLabs NC began operations in 2016 and currently houses startups including StrideBio and Element Genomics. 
 
BioLabs NC will open this fall in its 42,000-square-foot permanent home at The Chesterfield Building, a Knowledge Community developed by Wexford Science & Technology, located in Durham. The North Carolina facility is part of the national BioLabs network, with locations in Cambridge, Mass.; San Francisco, Calif.; San Diego, Calif.; and a site opening in New York, N.Y., providing access to investors, top pharmaceutical partners, and advanced lab equipment. 
 
“Our Cornerstone Partners have helped create a tremendous opportunity to enhance North Carolina’s ability to launch companies, attract capital and talent, and solidify its reputation as a leading life-science hub,” said BioLabs NC founder Eric Linsley. “Our mission is to provide biotech entrepreneurs a fertile environment with the best infrastructure, equipment, services, and programs to enable their unfettered practice of science on day one of move-in.” 
 
Like all BioLabs facilities, BioLabs NC will feature a glass-filled, open floor plan and inspired design that fosters interaction and collaboration. The “open lab” comprises 100 individual lab benches for use by scientists in a shared lab. Coworking office facilities include conference rooms and state-of-the-art event spaces for meetings, social and networking events, and educational programs for startups. There are also 10 private lab suites to accommodate growing companies, along with approximately 30 private offices.
 
GSK’s Director of Worldwide Business Development Larry DeGraaf, commented, “GSK is excited to become a Cornerstone Partner of BioLabs NC. BioLabs is uniquely positioned to fill a gap in the North Carolina biotechnology ecosystem. We look forward to partnering with BioLabs to mentor emerging life science companies and support scientific innovation in central North Carolina.”
 
Wexford Science & Technology Senior Director, Development Justin Parker, added, “With BioLabs NC’s commitment to fostering collaboration and accelerating entrepreneurial activity, downtown Durham’s landmark Chesterfield building will serve as the center of a vibrant life science ecosystem that attracts talent, innovation, and economic growth.”

Larry Robbins, attorney at Wyrick Robbins, explained that his firm’s decision to become a Cornerstone Partner represents an investment in the region. “BioLabs NC and its connections to national investors and pharma partners is sure to become a key to success for many early-stage life science startups in North Carolina as they move groundbreaking technologies and therapies forward,” he said. 
 
Following a rigorous application process, up to 40 life science startups will be selected to join BioLabs NC’s community of bioinnovators in the fall. Interested scientists, entrepreneurs and life-sciences startups can start the process by visiting the BioLabs website. 
 
BioLabs is a membership-based network of shared lab facilities located in the nation’s key biotech innovation clusters, designed exclusively for high-potential, early-stage life science companies. It offers coworking environments that pair premium, fully equipped and supported lab and office space with unparalleled access to capital and industry partners. This fertile, supportive ecosystem allows nascent companies to shift their focus from startup operations to innovation so they can reach their scientific potential quickly and achieve business success. Companies can start with a single bench, and scale up as they grow. Partner sites include LabCentral in Massachusetts, and QB3@953 in San Francisco, Calif.
 
GSK, a research-based pharmaceutical and healthcare company, is committed to improving the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer.
 
Wexford Science & Technology LLC is a real estate company exclusively focused on partnering with universities, academic medical centers and research companies to develop vibrant, mixed-use communities. Wexford’s communities are built on a foundation of discovery, innovation and entrepreneurial activity that creates visible outcomes in the form of substantial economic growth, new and diverse jobs and community transformation. Wexford targets strategic opportunities with top-tier research universities that are directly on or contiguous to dense, urban campuses.
 
Wyrick Robbins, a Meritas member firm, is a law firm with a collaborative, entrepreneurial culture and focus on growth-oriented businesses. Over the past three decades, Wyrick Robbins has grown to become one of the largest law firms based in the Research Triangle (N.C.) area. Fundamental to the firm’s growth has been its commitment to providing transactional value through efficient, effective problem solving backed by high quality legal services.