MilliporeSigma announced today that the company will sponsor the Startup Program at LabCentral, a biotechnology incubator, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. LabCentral is a private, non-profit organization that provides entrepreneurs and innovative life-sciences startups with lab space and resources to nurture the next generation of biotech companies. It comprises approximately 125 scientists and entrepreneurs.

MilliporeSigma’s collaboration with LabCentral, like its ongoing Emerging Biotech grant program, gives biotech startups access to process development tools, education programs and training to support their success and strengthen the biotech community.

“Innovation is at the heart of the life science industry and startups play an important role in developing new and often life-changing, scientific discoveries,” said Udit Batra, member of the Executive Board, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt Germany and CEO, MilliporeSigma. “We are collaborating with LabCentral to be a resource for these emerging companies and to help them get the best start possible.”

As a sponsor of the LabCentral Startup Program, MilliporeSigma will “adopt” a startup company which entitles the selected company to a priority spot and one-year prepaid lab bench in LabCentral’s shared laboratory workspace. Program rules and submissions. Submission close is July 2, 2017.

“This is an exciting time at LabCentral as we begin construction on our facility expansion, which will make room for an additional 30 startups,” said LabCentral Co-Founder and President Johannes Fruehauf, MD, PhD. “Today, LabCentral has become the de facto standard in co-working facilities for biotech startups. From the breadth and quality of our infrastructure and equipment, to our supportive services and programming, to the LabCentral Startup Program—our sponsors are critical partners. We are thrilled to welcome MilliporeSigma as a Gold sponsor, and look forward to a fruitful collaboration with the technical team.”