Page 21 - Synapse Life Sciences Consortium

CCRm: Investing
2035. its diverse economy is capitalizing on
access to its international airport along with
its designation as a federal foreign trade zone,
which aids in the tariff- and tax-free importing and
exporting of goods.
the city is also bidding to host the 2030
Commonwealth Games, has a massive
entertainment consortium project in the heart
of downtown on the horizon, and will soon
see shovels in the ground on the biggest
infrastructure project in its history – a $3.4 billion
light rail transit line.
its close proximity to toronto makes it part of a
massive regional economic engine, yet Hamilton
remains a distinct entity from its towering
neighbour to the east.
an engrained “can-do” attitude in Hamilton led to
it being coined the ambitious City 100 years ago.
today, that attitude is leading the transformation
and renaissance that is shaping the city’s future.
“the city has found a way to reinvent itself by
bootstrapping innovation, collaboration and
building on the culture of the ambitious City that
has carried it throughout its history,” said Keanin
loomis, President and CEo of the Hamilton
Chamber of Commerce.
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$580m to Build a
Biomanufacturing
Future
The Centre for Commercialization of
Regenerative Medicine (CCRM) and
McMaster Innovation Park are partners
in building a $580M biomanufacturing
campus at MIP focused on regenerative
medicine-based technologies and cell and
gene therapies.
The facility will be run by a new subsidiary,
OmniaBio Inc., which will operate the
largest contract development and
manufacturing facility for these therapies
in Canada. Up to 2,000 people will be
employed at the 400,000-square-foot
facility by 2026
“Today, entrepreneurs, leading global
companies and investors in the life
sciences industry increasingly see the
Toronto-Hamilton-Buffalo region as a
global-calibre life sciences corridor,”
said Ty Shattuck, CEO at MIP.
“MIP is at the epicentre of that region and
of Hamilton. Our prolific global leadership
role in life sciences innovation is part of
what drives life changing partnerships with
exciting organizations like CCRM.”
Regenerative medicine, including cell
and gene therapy, is a booming biotech
field. It harnesses the power of stem cells,
biomaterials, small molecules, and genetic
modifications to repair, regenerate, or
replace diseased cells, tissues, and organs
and combat devastating diseases such as
heart disease, diabetes, and cancer.
“There’s an enormous global demand
for biomanufacturing,” said Michael May,
President and CEO of CCRM. “Canada
can be a leader in manufacturing cell and
gene therapies for patients worldwide, but
especially here at home. We want Canadian
citizens first in line to receive therapies as
they become approved by Health Canada.”
The future is in biomanufacturing because if
you can’t produce products, then innovation
has to go elsewhere, says Darren Lawless,
Assistant Vice-President, Research and
Partnerships at McMaster.
“Hamilton’s expertise in manufacturing
sets it apart. It’s literally in the city’s DNA.
We know how to build here. The fact we
have the blend of fundamental research,
technical knowledge, support for innovation
and advanced manufacturing expertise is
the sweet sauce of Hamilton.”
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