FrameWORX
Fueling the Future: Indiana’s Life Sciences Workforce
Indiana Biosciences Research Institute
A thriving life sciences industry requires a strong talent pipeline and highly-skilled workforce - strengths Indiana possesses. But evolving demands and new technologies require deeper collaboration to bridge the gaps between academia and industry. On September 18, we hosted an engaging discussion into the growing potential of our life sciences workforce, examining the strategic initiatives aimed at enhancing talent development and recruitment across Indiana.
FrameWORX
Fueling the Future: Indiana’s Life Sciences Workforce
Indiana Biosciences Research Institute
A thriving life sciences industry requires a strong talent pipeline and highly-skilled workforce - strengths Indiana possesses. But evolving demands and new technologies require deeper collaboration to bridge the gaps between academia and industry. On September 18, we hosted an engaging discussion into the growing potential of our life sciences workforce, examining the strategic initiatives aimed at enhancing talent development and recruitment across Indiana.
Our Life Sciences Workforce: Success Fuels Success
Over the last century – and especially over the last two decades – Indiana has become synonymous with life sciences. Today, our state is home to more than 3,100 life sciences establishments, employing 67,000+ Hoosiers working to advance treatments for Alzheimer’s and obesity, state-of-the-art orthopedics, nuclear medicine, and manufacturing.
As more establishments look to Indiana for business opportunities – they’re also discovering a highly-skilled, capable workforce. And the best is yet to come – as demonstrated at our recent FrameWORX at 16 Tech. Indiana’s life sciences ecosystem came together for an engaging conversation about current efforts to expand our training and workforce pathways and talent pipeline.
Our recent federal Tech Hub designation will provide Indiana with a $51 million grant for developing workforce and training initiatives, governance, and bringing products to market, helping position Indiana as a global leader in biotech.
“It’s an incredible opportunity for Central Indiana,” said Melina Kennedy, CEO of Central Indiana Corporate Partnership, during her discussion session. “We are focused on biomanufacturing as one of our four key pillars and will leverage our current strengths to grow this important sector in Indiana.”
The grant was made possible by the Regional Technology and Innovation Hubs program stemming from the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. Heartland BioWorks was selected as one of only 12 Tech Hubs nationwide to receive funding to help drive improvements and expansion into the environment.
Ivy Tech recently opened a new biopharmaceutical science and technology lab with more than 4,000 square feet of equipment and technology that simulates the working environment of biotechnology manufacturing facilities, demonstrating how this could work.
The facility is located roughly ten minutes from Eli Lilly and Company’s Indianapolis manufacturing facility, which has supported the project and has a vested interest in its success.
And at Purdue – which recently launched its new Indianapolis campus – leaders are continuing to focus on helping Indiana meet the manufacturing needs of the broader life sciences industry.
The approach is working. Wade Franchville, founder and managing director of Harba Solutions, Inc., said Indiana’s labor market is “booming” and that his team alone is recruiting about 170 open life sciences positions across the Hoosier state.
And with the endless competition for talent in mind, he reminded the FrameWORX audience: “Boston researches things; Indiana makes things.” The tech hub grant and designation will help build upon that legacy.
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