WARF chief venture officer calling for greater state investment in shared lab spaces for emerging biotech startups

WARF chief venture officer calling for greater state investment in shared lab spaces for emerging biotech startups

Mike Partsch, chief venture officer for WARF, is calling for greater state investment in shared lab spaces to help emerging biotech startups.

As a former founder and CEO of a startup in this space, called Cervel Neurotech, Partsch says competition has only grown more fierce in the decade since he guided the company through two rounds of venture capital financing.

“We had to raise millions of dollars of venture capital, and then it took about a year to outfit a building. We had to start engaging suppliers and vendors… It took so long before we could actually get functional,” he said.

If a biotech startup were to start from scratch like that today, Partsch estimates it would face a two-year handicap and would be down about $5 million.

“The world is so competitive, you don’t want to be at such a disadvantage,” he said.

In a recent interview, Partsch noted Massachusetts has invested $5 million into a shared lab space that’s now known as LabCentral. It’s a shared-use facility with laboratories, cold rooms, valuable equipment and established vendor relationships.

He says entrepreneurs can show up to visit the facility, sign a lease and start running experiments on the same day.

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