Five universities yesterday said they would establish a biotech business incubator at the Shilin-Beitou Technology Park in New Taipei City.
The incubator would the biggest of its kind in northern Taiwan and provide the park, which is still under development, with skilled workers, they said.
The universities are National Yang Ming University, Tatung University, Mackay Medical College, National Taipei University of Nursing and Health Science, and Ming Chuan University’s Innovation and Incubation Center.
Photo courtesy of National Yang Ming University
The park is to be the third major science park in northern Taiwan after the Neihu Science Park and Nangang Software Park, and it is expected to have the largest assemblage of biotech industries, achieving economies of scale, the universities said.
The universities would be able to greatly contribute to research and development efforts at the incubator, as they are located close to the park, they added.
The proximity would help consolidate research and development resources at the park and potentially accelerate the rate of investment by businesses, the schools added.
Yang Ming University vice president Yang Muh-hwa (楊慕華) said the university’s incubator center has more than 10 years of experience, and has helped foster more than 100 start-ups.
The center focuses on the biomedical industry, and specifically on collaborations between academia and industry, Yang said, adding that the center has helped foster such firms as Chinan Biomedical Technology (錫安生技) and Bened Biomedical (益福生醫), and has seen a 50 percent increase in patent applications.
Biomedicine is knowledge-intensive and investments tend to have high risks and overhead, but high returns, Yang said.
Collaboration and integration of resources are needed to maximize profits, he added.
“We hope the research and development provided by the schools and translated into commercial value by the industries, will benefit society,” Yang said.
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