CAMBRIDGE– Thursday, September 19, 2013 – Governor Deval Patrick and the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center (MLSC) today joined Sanofi and Genzyme leadership, industry stakeholders and state and local officials to celebrate the grand opening of new 112,000-square-foot Global Research and Development facility for Sanofi in Cambridge. During today’s event, Sanofi also announced a new partnership and $1-million gift to support student success at the University of Massachusetts-Boston’s College of Science and Mathematics (CSM). This gift builds on the Patrick Administration’s efforts to promote public-private partnerships to create workforce training programs that will prepare the Commonwealth’s students for success in high-demand fields.
“I thank Sanofi and Genzyme for their continued partnership in growing jobs and economic development in the Commonwealth and for the generous contribution to our UMass Boston students and efforts to ensure that our state’s STEM workforce pipeline remains strong,” said Governor Patrick. “The new facility builds on our global leadership in the life sciences and will keep us at the forefront of the innovation economy for generations to come.”
Headquartered in Paris, Sanofi is an integrated healthcare leader focused on patients’ needs. Sanofi and Genzyme, its Cambridge-based biotechnology company, employ more than 1,700 researchers from several disciplines and therapeutic areas in Greater Boston. The new Cambridge facility will house 250 of these employees, who will focus on oncology and other R&D areas.
“Our presence at 640 Memorial Drive underscores our belief that together with physicians, scientists and academics from the Boston area, we can make a real difference in the lives of patients through developing innovative solutions,” said Sanofi’s CEO Christopher A. Viehbacher. “It also reinforces our presence in one of the world’s most vibrant life science ecosystems. We are delighted to further demonstrate our commitment through our gift to the University of Massachusetts-Boston’s College of Science and Mathematics. Great science starts with great people and we need to invest in education for the future.”
Through the MLSC, Massachusetts is investing $1 billion over 10 years in the growth of the state’s life sciences supercluster. These investments are being made under the Massachusetts Life Sciences Initiative, passed by the state Legislature and signed into law by Governor Patrick in 2008. The MLSC awarded Sanofi $2.45 million in tax incentives in 2010 to support the creation of 100 jobs in Cambridge. Sanofi also joined the MLSC’s Corporate Consortium to support life sciences innovation in Massachusetts, contributing a total of $500,000. In 2012, Sanofi acquired Pluromed, an early-stage life sciences company to which the MLSC awarded a $500,000 Accelerator Loan in 2009. The acquisition triggered repayment of the MLSC’s loan with interest.
“We are excited to celebrate the official opening of Sanofi’s new cancer research facilities and their new STEM-focused collaboration with UMass Boston,” said Dr. Susan Windham-Bannister, Ph.D., President & CEO of the MLSC. “This new office and lab space will enable Sanofi to continue its groundbreaking R&D efforts in the fight against cancer, right here in Massachusetts. Sanofi and Genzyme have both played a significant role in making Massachusetts the global leader in life sciences, and now they are further enabling our state to strengthen and retain this position by supporting the industry’s workforce pipeline through the new UMass Boston partnership.”
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