54.3 F
San Diego
Thursday, Mar 28, 2024
-Advertisement-

San Diego Biotech’s Influence Is Growing

San Diego Biotech’s Influence Is Growing

BY MARION WEBB

Staff Writer

San Diego’s biotechnology industry is a significant force in the region’s economy, but it’s not without obstacles, according to a recent industry status report by the California Healthcare Institute and PricewaterhouseCoopers.

The CHI and PricewaterhouseCoopers 2002 report, “Biomedicine: The Next Wave for Southern California’s Economy,” lists San Diego as home to 499 biomedical companies and 29,491 people working in biomedical careers.

Nearly half of the workforce mentioned in the report works at biopharmaceutical firms dedicated to discovering and developing drugs.

Some 7,372 employees are split between working at medical device firms and biotechs selling services, the survey stated.

Another 6,488 people work in academic research institutions, such as UCSD, the Salk Institute and the Scripps Research Institute.

The remainder, 2,064 people, are involved in wholesale trade and laboratory services.

“San Diego is expanding at a geometric rate,” said David Gollaher, president of the La Jolla-based California Healthcare Institute.

The region has become one of the most advanced centers for biomedicine fueled by the intellectual prowess sitting in the world-class academic research centers and investments made by major drug companies, many of which established research centers here.

“(San Diego) has developed a critical mass of companies and the intellectual property and the presence of (pharmaceutical giants) Novartis, Merck and Pfizer creates a tremendous magnet of research talent from around the world to come to San Diego,” Gollaher said.

San Diego’s biotech industry has matured within the last two decades and now has nearly 200 new products in development, with more than half in clinical trials, the survey showed.

But this stage of adulthood brings different problems. Among the biggest hurdles remaining in San Diego are regulatory and costs in building manufacturing plants here.

“Hundreds of companies will face the decision whether they can expand in San Diego and build manufacturing plants,” Gollaher said.

He said San Diego’s political leaders should provide better incentives to promote local real estate growth for biotech firms, citing Idec Pharmaceutical’s manufacturing expansion in Oceanside as an example.

He said the county has ample undeveloped land, from the Otay Mesa area in the south to Oceanside in the north, to build drug-manufacturing plants.

He said biotechnology-based manufacturing is an attractive proposition for communities, because it is relatively environmentally safe and creates a well-paid work force.

San Diego’s biotech sector already has some heavyweight pharmaceutical backers, but it has also become a magnet for government funding, the report said.

In 2000, the region received more than $449 million in grants from the National Institutes of Health and is home to the top NIH grant recipients in California , UCSD and the Scripps Research Institute.

In 2000, San Diego biomedical firms reported $1.75 billion in worldwide revenue, according to the survey. Gollaher said biotech investments in San Diego remain strong.

“Southern California is home to a large and flourishing academic research community,” said Larry Couture, senior vice president and founding director of the Center for Applied Technology Development and Center for Biomedicine and Genetics at the City of Hope.

“Collaboration between academic institutions and biomedical companies is increasing and this will fuel the development of new products to benefit partners,” he said.

-Advertisement-

Featured Articles

-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-

Related Articles

-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-
-Advertisement-