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Official opening for PCB-Santander Bioincubator

By 30 de January de 2008November 18th, 2020No Comments
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 30.01.2008

Official opening for PCB-Santander Bioincubator

The President of the Catalan government, José Montilla, the Director General for Research from the Ministry of Innovation, Universities and Enterprise, Ramón Moreno, the Mayor of Barcelona, Jordi Hereu, the President of the Santander Bank, Emilio Botín, and the Rector of the University of Barcelona Màrius Rubiralta, have officially opened the Helix Building of the Barcelona Science Park (PCB). This new building offers more than 6,500 m2 of laboratory space and provides a home for over thirty research groups and centres from both the public and business sectors. The building also houses the new PCB-Santander Bioincubator, which comprises over ten technology-based spin-off companies (mostly from the University of Barcelona) whose activity is centred on emerging areas in the field of life sciences (biomedicine, biotechnology, chemistry, nanotechnology and pharmacology). The official opening, presided over by José Montilla, was also attended by the General Manager of the Barcelona Science Park, Fernando Albericio, as well as other key figures from the scientific, financial and academic worlds.


The creation of this new company bioincubator is an initiative backed by the University of Barcelona via the Barcelona Science Park and the Bosch i Gimpera Foundation, while the Santander Bank has sponsored the project through its global division Santander Universities. The aim is to promote the development of new technology-based companies emerging out of the public research sector, providing them not only with scientific and technical infrastructure but also advice on business management, financial backing and help with developing links with research institutes, the over 45 companies located within the PCB and international networks.

The objective behind the extension of PCB laboratories and the setting up of the PCB-Santander Bioincubator is to provide a long-term boost to technology-based companies within the biotech sector in Catalonia, the overall aim being to ensure that wealth becomes knowledge based.

The financial backing given by the Santander Bank to the PCB-Santander Bioincubator forms part of the collaboration agreement it drew up with the University of Barcelona in 1997 with the aim of promoting initiatives that would foster the entrepreneurial spirit and the transfer of research results to society in general. This agreement also includes a funding programme that aims specifically to back innovative research and projects of direct market interest conducted by researchers from the UB Group, although other researchers and institutions may also submit funding applications. Within this framework the Santander Bank has made a contribution to the Fund for Assessing Research Results, a programme coordinated by the Agency for Assessing and Marketing Research Results (AVCRI) of the UB; this agency, managed by José María Palacios, will provide funding for a total of six projects chosen from among 46 applications.

The companies that form part of the PCB-Santander Bioincubators are: Aromics, BarnaGen, Neuroscience Technologies, Biocontrol Technologies, Genmedica Therapeutics, Omnia Molecular, Uban Research, Agrassys, Intelligent Pharma, Infinitec Activos and Bioingenium.

The consolidated companies that have already established themselves within the Helix Building include Oryzon Genomics, Biolab (which belongs to the international laboratory group Eurofins), ERA Biotech, Enantia, the Ordesa Group and Combino Pharm.