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For Immediate Release
Alan Fogg, Director of Communications
afogg@fceda.org, 703-790-0600 (o) or 571-213-5065 (m)
Fairfax County BioAccelerator hatches another company
ISTN moves to wet lab space in Chantilly
Fairfax County , Virginia , October 28, 2004 — ISTN (Industrial Science & Technology Network) graduated from the Fairfax County BioAccelerator business incubator this month. ISTN joined the BioAccelerator as one of the first tenants in 2003 and is the third company to graduate from the center.
ISTN, co-located in Fairfax County and York, Pa., has grown to 18 employees and needed additional space to continue its research work. ISTN leased 2,500 square feet of space, including wet lab space, from Capital Genomix in the Chantilly area of Fairfax County.
ISTN (www.istninc.com) develops new uses for nanotechnology, which is the melding of research and technology at the atomic, molecular or macromolecular levels. The company is working on drug delivery and enzyme mobilization systems as well as optoelectronics and industrial products.
“When we first envisioned the Fairfax County BioAccelerator this scenario was exactly what we were hoping for: Create an environment to nurture young bioscience companies and then ‘graduate’ them to the larger Fairfax County business community,” said Gerald L. Gordon, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA), which created the BioAccelerator.
“Although we outgrew our space at the BioAccelerator, we wanted to stay in Fairfax County because of the advantages of the location here and the support we have gotten from the Fairfax County EDA,” said Arthur J. Yang, Ph.D., president of ISTN.
The FCEDA created the BioAccelerator to be a catalyst for the bioscience industry in northern Virginia, create a new employment base for the Springfield community in which it is located, and further diversify the Fairfax County economic base.
The BioAccelerator is designed to house 10 early-stage companies based in the U.S. or overseas. It is being managed by ANGLE Technology Group. ANGLE Technology also works with “virtual” clients companies that participate in the business development program but do not take space in the BioAccelerator.
The Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (www.FairfaxCountyEDA.org) promotes Fairfax County as a business and technology center. The FCEDA assists businesses by identifying possible sites and facilities, and is a source for up-to-date demographic and economic information. The FCEDA’s Capital Attraction Program links technology entrepreneurs with potential investors. Another program supports the growth of minority and woman-owned businesses. The FCEDA maintains overseas marketing offices in Bangalore, Frankfurt, London, Tel Aviv and Tokyo.
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