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Innovation & Experience ... Research & Expertise ...
Flanders has a long and proven track record of discovery and innovation in the life sciences - in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, medical devices and medical imaging. Players in this multi-billion dollar sector cover activities ranging from research and development through to production and logistics.
In addition to large-scale investments in R&D, facility investments continue, with Genzyme, the Massachusetts-based biotechnology company opening a new research and production facility in the region in 2005, and Johnson & Johnson investing in a new production plant for its subsidiary Tibotec.
In pharmaceuticals, Flanders is best known for its own Janssen Pharmaceutica, now a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. With its main research and production bases in Flanders, Janssen has developed a range of important global medicines covering a variety of therapeutic categories. In addition, AstraZeneca, Alcon, Schering-Plough and Pfizer all have major production and worldwide or pan-European distribution facilities in the region.
From biotech to imaging
Biotechnology in Flanders has been distinguished by breakthroughs in both genetics and plant sciences. In recent decades, leading researchers such as Walter Fiers, Marc Van Montagu, Jeff Schell and Désiré Collen have been responsible for key breakthroughs that include the discovery of the first gene sequence, the first plant transformation technology, the life-saving blockbuster tPA and others.
As a result, firms such as Innogenetics, DevGen, Tibotec, Virco, Ablynx, Tigenix and CropDesign have become leading names and have played a role in attracting foreign companies, including Genzyme, Diamed and Genencor. Support through VIB, the Interuniversity Institute for Biotechnology, has been instrumental in stimulating research and assisting both start-ups and foreign investors alike. Capital venture funds, both government and private sector, offer financial support.
Agfa, another Flemish company, leads the world in medical imaging systems, while in the medical device sector international companies such as Becton Dickinson, Terumo, Cyberonics and Guidant have chosen Flanders as their base in the European device market.
The support sector for the life sciences industry ranges from specialist clinical trial companies to LabCorp, the major US laboratory corporation that chose Mechelen for its European divisional headquarters.
More than 20,000 people are employed in the sector in Flanders, including 7,000 in biotech and around 6,100 researchers at Flemish universities & research institutes. There are some 3,600 graduates in the life sciences each year.
In the Press
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