Indiana Life Sciences

When the US and Indiana economy was going through the 2008 financial crisis, the Life Science industry in the state continued to grow, registering a 22% job growth since 2001, accounting for 1 in every 10 jobs. From 2010 to 2014, the number of scientist and engineers has grown by 53% and 34% respectively, setting the foundation for innovation.
When the US and Indiana economy was going through the 2008 financial crisis, the Life Science industry in the state continued to grow, registering a 22% job growth since 2001, accounting for 1 in every 10 jobs. From 2010 to 2014, the number of scientist and engineers has grown by 53% and 34% respectively, setting the foundation for innovation. The presence of titans – Eli Lilly, Cook Medical and Dow Agrosciences and 1700+ companies in Life Science industry have maintained the demand for scientists and engineers, in addition to employing over 56000+ professionals in the state.

The industry generated, one third of the state’s exports, contributing $65 billion in economic output, earning the state the title of the second largest exporter of life science products in the US. The $582 million R&D investments into research universities and companies have translated to 1211 patents and 83 commercial products.


 
Among the many innovators from Indiana, Bill Eason’s story is particularly interesting. As a chemical engineer, he was frustrated to learn that it takes 7 to 10 days to get blood test back. To develop a faster device, Eason left Ford Motor Company and tinkered around with a blood diagnostic device in his Indianapolis garage. The breakthrough came with the invention of Unimeter, the first point-of-care blood diagnostic device in the world that was a precursor to the now ubiquitous Accu-Chek brand. The invention changed the world of diabetes care forever. In the 1960s, Bill founded Bio-Dynamics to commercialize the product that later was acquired by Boehringer Mannheim, and finally the Roche Diagnostics’ North American division.

To spearhead innovation in Life Science, the Indiana Biosciences Research Institute (IBRI) was founded in 2013. A public-private partnership, initiated by BioCrossroads with the support of the State of Indiana and research universities, the institute now led by a team of top scientists from  Lilly, Roche Diagnostics, Cook Medical, and Dow AgroSciences. The IBRI’s research facilities work on diabetes research, public health reach, bio market identification, big data integration, and toxigenomics platform.

Reference
Denise Pierce on Growth in Indiana’s Life Sciences Industry