Battelle Wins $250M Contract To Operate National Biodefense Analysis & Countermeasures Center; 120 New Jobs

COLUMBUS, Ohio, Dec. 20 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Department of Homeland Security announced today that Battelle National Biodefense Institute (BNBI) has been selected to manage the new National Biodefense Analysis & Countermeasures Center (NBACC), a Federally Funded Research and Development Center.

The $250 million contract award includes a five-year period of performance, with the potential for five subsequent one-year extensions, bringing the projected award value to $500 million. The NBACC, scheduled to open in 2008, will be the nation's premier research facility for biological threat characterization and bioforensic research. BNBI is the limited liability company formed by Battelle to manage the lab. During the two years prior to completion of the new facility, BNBI will manage ongoing NBACC work from an office in Frederick, MD.

The lab, which will employ approximately 120 people, is under construction in Frederick, Maryland at Fort Detrick. The 160,000-square-foot facility will become part of the biodefense campus that includes the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID).

Battelle, a research and technology development organization, has a long history of innovations across a wide array of scientific disciplines including research in countermeasures to chemical and biological weapons. Battelle also manages or co-manages five national laboratories for the U.S. Department of Energy.

The NBACC's mission is to protect human health and agriculture against biological terrorism by improving understanding of potential bioterrorism threats.

"We're proud to have been selected to operate this lab. The NBACC mission is a critical part of our nation's security," said Battelle President and CEO Carl Kohrt. "The NBACC lab represents a new approach to integrating national resources for homeland security in support of public health, law enforcement, and national security."

The BNBI management team is led by Laboratory Director Patrick Fitch, Battelle VP for Biodefense Programs, who has more than 20 years of experience leading national defense and other scientific research programs at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.

Battelle is the world's largest non-profit independent research and development organization, with 20,000 employees in more than 120 locations worldwide, including five national laboratories Battelle manages or co-manages for the U.S. Department of Energy. Headquartered in Columbus, Ohio, Battelle conducts $3.7 billion in R&D annually through contract research, laboratory management, and technology commercialization. Battelle provides innovative solutions to some of the world's most important problems including global climate change, sustainable energy technologies, high performance materials, next generation healthcare diagnostics and therapeutics, and advanced security solutions for people, infrastructure, and the nation. Battelle has a long history of developing successful commercial products in collaboration with its clients, ranging from products to fight diabetes, cancer, and heart disease to the development of the office copier machine (Xerox). As a non-profit charitable trust with an eye toward the future, Battelle actively supports and promotes science and math education.

For more information, visit http://www.battelle.org/ or contact media relations managers Katy Delaney at (410) 306-8638 or delaneyk@battelle.org or Mark Berry at (614) 424-5544 or berrym@battelle.org

Website: http://www.battelle.org/

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