This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
01/28/2015 11:00 PMBioscience leader Mount Sinai has picked Branford as home for its latest expansion site. On Jan. 28, state and local leaders and bioscience community represenatives helped welcome the group to its new location.
Mount Sinai's newly renovated laboratories are located at 1 Commercial Street, Branford. The operation has already recruited nearly 20 new staff and has plans to hire many more in the coming months, according to information supplied by CURE (Connecticut United for Research Excellence). Mount Sinai plans to create 142 new full time full time jobs at the Branford site over the next five years.
Branford First Selectman James B. Cosgrove said Mount Sinai "is an imporant new employer in our town." Read his full statement, and more information on the new addition to town, in the following press release from Economic Development Corporation of New Haven (EDC) and Regional Economic Xcelleration (REX) of New Haven:
Branford/CT - January 28, 2015 - Economic Development Corporation of New Haven (EDC) and REX Executive Director Ginny Kozlowski, along with Branford First Selectman James Cosgrove and Andrew Kasarskis, Ph.D., Vice Chair, Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences and Co-Director, Icahn Institute For Genomics and Multi-scale Biology at Mount Sinai and Todd E. Arnold, Ph.D., Managing Director, Mount Sinai Genetic Testing Laboratory—Connecticut teamed up today with representatives of the Branford bioscience community to welcome Mount Sinai, celebrate their decision to expand in Connecticut and to tout the success of a strong regional collaboration that has established the New Haven region as a strong and thriving bio tech sector.
Mount Sinai, a leader in biomedical research, medical and scientific training and patient care, has recently expanded to Connecticut and opened a 16,500 square-foot facility and anticipates creating 142 new full time jobs over the next five years. The laboratory is located in a building formerly occupied by 454 Life Sciences, a subsidiary of the Swiss Pharmaceutical Company, Roche that was vacated in early 2014.
Genomic research is transforming the field of medicine from an approach that applies broad definitions based on collections of observed symptoms and clinical findings to one that harnesses sophisticated predictive models of disease built with specific genetic and molecular information measured in individual patients. DNA sequencing is the key to advancing personalized medicine and to delivering future cures for many devastating diseases.
“The continued development of New Haven’s biomedical community is gaining notice throughout the world,” said Ginny Kozlowski, Executive Director of REX/EDC. “The biomed industry has a stable core in the greater New Haven region, and Mount Sinai’s selection of the Branford facility further reflects our commitment to attract, nurture and encourage additional businesses, especially those that support further advances in healthcare and diagnostics technologies.”
“Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai is an important new employer in our Town,” said First Selectman James B. Cosgrove. “The funding commitment by the state and the collaborative efforts of REX and Branford’s EDC, and Town Hall fast-tracking its permitting and approval process, to attract Mount Sinai to the region is a significant step in building the biosciences industry and creating quality jobs for our residents.”
“This region offers an incredible talent pool of biomedical expertise and leading institutions such as Yale, UCONN Health, and Jackson Labs. It is our hope that we form significant collaborations with these institutions,” said Todd E. Arnold, Ph.D., Managing Director, Mount Sinai Genetic Testing Laboratory-Connecticut. “We thank REX and the Town of Branford for their efforts and partnership in helping us to find our current location and in accelerating our future growth.”
“Our new state-of-the-art genomics facility in Branford enables us to sequence large volumes of patient samples, and will leverage the multimillion dollar investment made by Mount Sinai to advance the new era of genomic medicine,” said Andrew Kasarskis, Ph.D., Vice Chair, Department of Genetics and Genomic Sciences, and Co-Director, Icahn Institute for Genomics and Multi-scale Biology at Mount Sinai.