PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
INCOGEN, Inc.
263 McLaws Circle, Suite 200
Williamsburg, VA 23185
Tel: 800-286-6599
Fax: 864-654-0887
http://www.incogen.com
email: info@incogen.com
INCOGEN announces the relocation of its corporate headquarters to Williamsburg, VA.
Williamsburg, VA. November 29, 2001 – The Institute for Computational Genomics (INCOGEN) today announced the completion of the relocation of its corporate headquarters to Williamsburg, VA. The company will continue to operate out of its existing satellite offices in South Carolina, the previous location of the company’s headquarters, and Ohio.
The State of Virginia and Williamsburg successfully competed against other locations in the country to attract the company to the state. The relocation will facilitate INCOGEN’s bioinformatics collaboration with the Commonwealth of Virginia, The College of William and Mary, located in Williamsburg, and the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute, located in Blacksburg, VA. The collaboration represents a $6.6 million effort funded in part through a $3.2 million grant from the Commonwealth Technology Research Fund to the College of William and Mary, and includes a $1.5 million subcontract to INCOGEN. In announcing the research grant to William and Mary, VBI, and INCOGEN, Governor Jim Gilmore of Virginia said, “It is more important than ever for the Commonwealth to continue enhancing our intellectual capital. Research partnerships between our colleges and universities and private sector businesses will help Virginia lead in the field of bioinformatics.”
“Biotechnology is a key driver of the new technology-based economy that is bringing high wages and strong growth to Virginia. William and Mary is pleased to partner with INCOGEN, the Bioinformatics Institute and the research fund to attract the benefits of an acknowledged leader in bioinformatics to the area,” said William and Mary President Timothy J. Sullivan. “In addition to bolstering the local economy at a critical time, the arrival of this firm will offer a range of opportunities for scientific collaboration to our outstanding faculty and students in the life sciences."
After relocating to Virginia, INCOGEN plans to expand its workforce from its current 20 employees to 30 in 2002, and as many as 60 in the following two years. “Williamsburg provides an ideal location for our company,” said Dr. Maciek Sasinowski, INCOGEN’s Founder and CEO. “The area offers a wonderful quality of life and provides an environment which allows companies such as INCOGEN to succeed. In addition, the collaboration between INCOGEN, William and Mary and VBI, made possible by the CTRF funding, provides a tremendous opportunity for everybody involved. We had collaborated with VBI previously, so the decision to come to Virginia was also significantly impacted by the opportunity to be close to the researchers at VBI. I am very impressed and delighted with the level of commitment from the faculty and administration at William & Mary and the efficiency of the entire process. It was the team effort put forth by VEDP, CIT, the Peninsula Alliance, James City County offices, and the College of William and Mary that differentiated this location from any other location in the country.”
“INCOGEN’s decision to locate in James City County demonstrates its confidence in the quality of life and education available in the region,” said Secretary of Commerce and Trade Barry E. DuVal. “The collaborative efforts of INCOGEN, William and Mary and the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech will not only benefit the company, but the Commonwealth as a whole.”
The $3.2 million state grant will be matched by direct INCOGEN expenditures of $2.4 million, $1 million by William and Mary and $197,000 from the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech. The grant will fund bioinformatics equipment and software for William and Mary, internships for undergraduate and graduate students and joint research with VBI.
INCOGEN currently occupies an existing office building in the Busch Corporate Center, but will eventually become one of the first tenants in New Town’s Discovery Center. “When it is in full operation, the Discovery Center will integrate workforce training, entrepreneurial development, technology transfer and related activities in one building. Thus it would be an ideal place for INCOGEN to grow its exciting business,” explained James R. Golden, William and Mary’s director of economic development.
New Town is a 380-acre mixed-use community under development in James City County by the William and Mary Endowment Association, C. C. Casey Inc., and the Staubach Company of Dallas. The community will combine retail operations, research and development firms and residential areas. Plans for New Town have been approved by the James City County Design Review Board, and an application for rezoning the first two sections of the development is currently pending before the county’s Board of Supervisors.
About INCOGEN, Inc.
INCOGEN focuses on computational solutions to the complex challenges faced by researchers in genomics. Through joint research efforts involving scientists from both public and private institutions, INCOGEN continues to be one of the innovators in the field of bioinformatics. INCOGEN provides the research community with avenues to accelerate genomic discovery through the development of innovative data visualization tools, image recognition software and new data analysis and data mining approaches. INCOGEN headquarters are located at 263 McLaws Circle, Suite 200, Williamsburg, VA 23185. For further information, see www.incogen.com. Email to info@incogen.com or telephone 800-286-6599. Fax 864-654-0887.
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