The Discovery Labs is establishing THE COLONY which will provide custom built discovery labs, breakthrough funding, sponsored research agreements, housing and relocation for the world’s leading iconic experts in cell and gene therapy.
THE COLONY will seek to work hand in hand with scientists from both academic and pharmaceutical institutions to unlock and expedite groundbreaking therapies.
The ability for the industry’s greatest scientists to cohabitate, collaborate, cooperate, and communicate via technology and in person will create an exponential therapeutic “X FACTOR.” THE COLONY seeks to unlock institutional barriers prohibiting the world’s greatest scientists from moving at a pace necessary in today’s ever-changing therapeutic revolution. THE COLONY will partner with the institutions where the scientists currently work by providing equity, license fees, and revenue sharing.
Located in the heart of the Cellicon Valley, where cell and gene therapy was invented. 1.6 million square feet of CDMO, research and development, administrative offices, dining, daycare, and fitness amenities. Our 640,000 Square foot Phase 1 campus, The Innovation Renaissance, provides build-out and collaboration opportunities and is currently occupied by the finest life science organizations in the world. Our Phase 2 facility, Innovation 411, is connected by internal floor to ceiling glass corridors and separated by indoor and outdoor atriums providing world-class, employee-centric, inspirational, collaborative space needed to recruit and retain the finest talent. Innovation 411 is capable of adding up to 4 million square feet of expansion space to accommodate every growing need of our clients ON LOCATION. Our entire facility is supported by an extensive array of infrastructure, which provides 100% backed-up systems and is IN PLACE TODAY ready to be customized for your specific needs.
411 Swedeland Road, King of Prussia, PA
Audrey Greenberg, co-founder of The Discovery Labs, a sprawling life sciences complex in King of Prussia, is one of the Philadelphia region’s Power Women 2020, writes Lisa Dukart for the Main Line Today.
The Discovery Labs complex totals more than 1.6 million square feet and provides biotech startups with more than enough space to effectively conceive, develop, and produce cutting-edge cell and gene therapies.
Greenberg discovered some of the region’s medical innovations during her time as an MBA student at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
“I became increasingly drawn to starting a business that contributed to the greater social good,” she said.
The Discovery Labs has appointed Joerg Ahlgrimm to the senior leadership position of president and chief operating officer.
Ahlgrimm will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of The Discovery Labs. Central to his responsibilities will be oversight of all operations for the Center for Breakthrough Medicines (CBM) and Testing Centers of America (TCA) – two core Discovery Labs platform companies. This mission includes staffing more than 1,700 people for CBM and TCA – ranging from manufacturing specialists to PhD scientists.
All revenue-generating functions at CBM and TCA, including program management, supply chain, engineering, manufacturing, process development and testing will report to Ahlgrimm. He will also ensure the successful execution of the rollout of TCA’s national COVID testing program. Ahlgrimm will lead both companies’ operations to efficiently meet the needs of a growing list of global biopharma customers.
“Setting the bar for the CDMO model”
Dr. Chacón is the Founder and former Chairman of Paragon Bioservices, Inc., a CDMO that specialized in process development and GMP manufacturing of viral vectors for gene therapy. In April of 2019 Paragon Bioservices, Inc. entered into a definitive agreement of sale for $1.2 billion with Catalent. Chacón is the Founder & President of IRAZÚ Bio-Holdings LLC., a company dedicated developing indications that promote survival, prevent disease and improve quality of life for the elderly. The company is also developing technology in the fields of immuno-oncology and gene therapy. Formerly, Chacón served as Assistant Vice President of Industry Alliances at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. His educational background includes a Bachelor of Science degree from Youngstown State University and a Ph.D. in Nutritional Sciences from the University of Maryland. He currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the University of Maryland Foundation and was appointed in 2016 to the Life Sciences Advisory Board by Governor Lawrence J. Hogan, Jr. Additionally, Dr. Chacón is the founding chair of The Board of Visitors of the University of Maryland Graduate School.
“Investing with a higher purpose”
Mr. O’Neill is the Founder, Chairman and CEO of MLP Ventures, a leading venture capital and real estate investment firm. MLP Ventures creates companies that utilize real estate as an integral part of their business, as well as internet-based marketplaces. Under his leadership, MLP Ventures has developed millions of square feet of laboratory, office, industrial, retail and residential real estate throughout the Northeast. All of MLP companies and real estate recycle existing buildings, which often require environmental remediation. Mr. O’Neill has a track record of starting, scaling and operating healthcare organizations.
“Healthcare initiatives for underserved communities”
Alexander Karnal is Partner and Managing Director at Deerfield and joined the Firm in 2005. He is responsible for portfolio decisions and allocations across the Deerfield Funds. Prior to Deerfield, Mr. Karnal worked as a member of Merrill Lynch’s Global Equity Linked Products Group and as a member of its Capital Markets team. He serves on the Boards of the New York Academy of Medicine, Biotechnology Innovation Organization, Recovery Centers of America and the Children’s Health Fund. He is a member of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s corporate development committee, focusing on student life initiatives. Mr. Karnal holds a B.S. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and M.S. from Johns Hopkins University.
“Make primary care easier to access, insurance benefits simpler to understand and use and prescription drugs more affordable”
Mr. Stoddard most recently served as COO of Haven the healthcare collaboration from J.P. Morgan, Amazon and Berkshire Hathaway. Prior to this he served as an executive general manager for digital health at Comcast. Previously, he was on the founding team of Accolade, a Comcast Ventures-backed start-up that helps workers manage their health benefits. He was also part of the executive team that created claims processing engine Optum, which was later acquired by United Health. He is a senior operating leader with over two decades of experience applying technology, data, science, people, and design thinking to improve the healthcare consumer experience, elevate clinical quality and lower the total cost of care. He has proven leadership experience in understanding the market, setting growth strategy, and scaling transformational healthcare companies, including: Haven, Accolade, Optum, Health Dialog, and The Advisory Board. Jack holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and earned his bachelor’s degree at Denison University with highest honors. He serves on the boards of directors of Carrot, backed by Khosla Ventures and Eden Health, backed by Greycroft. He has also served on the Board of Trustees of the Philadelphia Outward Bound School.
“Unwavering faith, always maintaining a positive attitude, how to be a leader, humility, and so much more.”
Mr. Mita is Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Icona Resorts, which owns and manages hotel properties in Avalon, Diamond Beach and Cape May, New Jersey. Mr. Mita is also Chairman of Mita Management, a company with interests in automotive and real estate, and is the Chief Executive Officer of Achristavest, LLC, a developer of waterfront properties in New Jersey, Nantucket, Maryland, Utah and Pennsylvania. Prior to forming Mita Management and Achristavest, Mr. Mita was the President and Chief Executive Officer of HAC Group, one of the world’s largest auto dealer training and consulting groups, with operations in nineteen countries, including Europe and Asia. In 2000, under Mr. Mita’s leadership, HAC merged with Reynolds & Reynolds, which has approximately 5,000 employees and a network of 10,000 dealer customers worldwide.
“As one of BioMed’s founders, Matt has been at the centre of our success in building a world-class tenant roster within every one of our seven core markets.”
Mr. McDevitt specializes in the leasing and sale of life-sciences real estate for tenants and landlords. Matthew founded and served as Executive Vice President of Real Estate for BioMed Realty Trust, Inc. where he played an instrumental role in all acquisitions and major lease transactions for the company. During his 10-year span, he maximized the shareholder value, growing its market capitalization from $475 million to $8 billion. Prior to BioMed, Matthew served as president of McDevitt Real Estate Services, Inc., a full-service real estate provider focusing on the life science industry. Before founding MRES, he spent 10 years as a commercial real estate broker in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area.
“We raise awareness of many life-threatening diseases, but also bring our team and our client’s team closer to the actual patients that will be impacted by our work.”
Tony is a 15 year veteran and leader in the biotech and pharmaceutical industry. As a member of the Project Farma leadership committee, Tony has spearheaded Project Farma’s growth in the gene and cell therapy space including building gene therapy facilities for Avexis. Tony has extensive experience with small and large molecules including biologics, biosimilars, and gene and cell therapies. He has worked with small and large biotech companies including gene and cell therapy startups and CMOs/CROs. He has led global programs greater than $350+ million in the following disciplines: project management, turnkey facility builds, automation, validation, engineering and serialization track and trace.
“There is a scarcity of manufacturing, which is complex, expensive, and highly regulated. With this additional manufacturing capacity, The Discovery Labs Center for Breakthrough Medicine will fulfill the promise of gene and cell therapies.”
Audrey Greenberg is the Co-founder and Executive Managing Director of The Discovery Labs, a global platform company streamlining the path to commercialization for ground-breaking pharmaceutical discoveries. Audrey is a member of the senior management team and board of directors where her efforts are focused on capital procurement, business formation, acquisitions, strategic planning and tactical execution. Audrey’s deep industry experience includes biotechnology, real estate, pharma services, and financial services.
Audrey started her career in public accounting at Deloitte. Both before and after business school she was a Wall Street investment banker at Merrill Lynch and Morgan Stanley. After a successful career in investment banking, she co-founded a real estate private equity firm with three partners after which she oversaw a $7 billion open end core fund at ING Clarion ($50 billion AUM) and a $10 billion closed end fund series at CBRE Global Investors ($100+ billion AUM).
Audrey is passionate about supporting her community and serves on several non-profit boards including the King of Prussia Business District and Har Zion Temple. She is an active volunteer and has spent time as a Junior Achievement Coach, Mercy Home for Boys and Girls Friends First Mentor, United Way Crusade of Mercy Loaned Executive, and is currently an Emissary for Select Greater Philadelphia, a division of the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce responsible for attracting business to Greater Philadelphia.
Audrey has her MBA from the Wharton School and is a registered CPA in Illinois.
The Discovery Labs has scaled up to form Testing Centers of America (TCA). The affiliate is located at The Innovation 411 site in King of Prussia, PA. TCA will serve as a center of excellence providing high throughput analysis supporting research and epidemiological studies critical to industry, academic and government clients. Offering a broad array of molecular, genetic and immunological test methods, TCA is able to rapidly process samples and develop data sets to establish an understanding of the human immune response to disease, potential biomarkers, and diagnostic tools which may be applied to foster health care and public health policy.
In fulfilling its mission to further research and public health, TCA employs cutting edge automation and molecular testing platforms to enable the efficient processing and analysis of samples on a monthly basis. Rigid protocols and processes ensure that chain of identity is maintained for all samples analyzed and results are collected and transferred in electronic format immediately following quality control verification to the client or agency sponsor.
TCA is providing large-scale sequential testing for massive population management at our mega site capable of processing 870,000 COVID-19 tests per day. We have one of the largest stand-by fully operational BSL2 labs/manufacturing facilities in the world. We are currently the only company that combines digital monitoring, contact tracing, GPS location, COVID-19 status, and testing in the world with consumer notifications driving testing and compliance on a sequential and frequent basis. Our location administration provides for efficient sample collection and logistics coordination. TCA’s technology platform offers management dashboards and user reporting tools with test results delivered within 24-48 hours after sample receipt via email, text, and application interface.
The World's Largest and Most Advanced Single Solution Cell and Gene Therapy Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization.
