A new Biosciences Technology Commercialisation and Incubation Centre (BIOCentre) is currently being built on the campus of Zagreb University. Once operational, it will provide R&D and business facilities, expertise, and the services necessary to help set up and support new businesses in biotechnology.
Supporting biotechnology and life science business start-ups in Croatia
- 07 January 2014
Setting up the BIOCentre indicates the beginning of creating the necessary infrastructural prerequisites for developing entrepreneurship in the biosciences field. The planned infrastructure comprises business and laboratory premises for the needs of small high-technology enterprises and a central laboratory designed for developing production processes involving bio-products in compliance with good manufacturing practices (GMP), which includes: a cell banking unit, cell culture laboratory, microbial culture laboratory, product recovery unit, purification laboratory, bioanalytical laboratory, and a buffers and media preparation unit.
The Centre, which will have a floor area of 4 500m2, will include business and laboratory premises for small high-technology enterprises. A central laboratory designed for developing production processes involving bio-products in compliance with good manufacturing practices (GMP) will also be installed.
The state-of-the-art facilities are targeted at start-up businesses in the field of bioscience and will help to meet companies' needs in terms of infrastructure, incubation support, technology transfer, education, training and networking.
Helping knowledge-based SMEs to grow
The four-year project is encouraging technology transfer and helping to build up capacities of higher education institutions and public research organisations to commercialise their research. Stronger links between researchers and business will in turn promote regional development and boost industrial competitiveness of the country.
Once operational, the Centre's role as an incubator of research and technology will support the further development of biosciences in Croatia, encouraging excellence and innovation, increasing competitiveness, and generating new jobs.
As start-up companies will also be recruited from south east Europe, and even central and eastern Europe, the Centre has the potential to bring benefits to the region as a whole.
Total investment and EU funding
Total investment for the project “Biosciences Technology Commercialisation and Incubation Centre” amounts to EUR 18 823 995, with the European Regional Development Fund contributing EUR 13 919 949. The project is funded through the priority “Enhancing the competitiveness of the Croatian economy” of the Regional Competitiveness Operational Programme for the 2007-2013 programming period.