University City Science Center

University City Science Center

Established	1963
President and CEO	Stephen S. Tang, PhD
Address	3711 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Location	University City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Website	The Science Center

The University City Science Center (UCSC) is the first and largest urban research park in the United States. It was established in 1963 with its headquarters in the University City neighborhood of Philadelphia. It provides technology commercialization resources to entrepreneurs, including incubator space with fully-equipped laboratories and “plug ‘n play” offices, and programs that nurture and sustain new technology businesses. Graduate organizations and current residents of the University City Science Center’s business incubators have created more than 15,000 jobs that remain in the Greater Philadelphia region today and contribute more than $9 billion to the regional economy annually. According to University City Science Center: An Engine of Economic Growth for Greater Philadelphia, which was prepared by the Economic League of Greater Philadelphia, graduate firms that remain in the Philadelphia area produce $4.2 million in state income taxes and $22 million in Philadelphia city wage taxes every year.

Location

The Science Center occupies approximately 2 million square feet of real estate along Market Street in West Philadelphia and is located near several major universities and research institutions including The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Drexel University, the University of Pennsylvania, University of the Sciences in Philadelphia and The Wistar Institute. Its location facilitates academic collaboration and fosters participation in the region’s largest community of researchers. The Science Center’s newest building is LEED certified at the silver level and features one of the largest green roofs in Philadelphia.

Programs

The Port

The Port business incubators offer more than 50,000 square feet of laboratory and office space. The facilities are equipped with a plug ‘n play, state-of-the-art infrastructure, broadband connectivity and significant tax advantages. The Port is designed to accommodate the changing needs of emerging, fast-growth companies with fully-equipped wet and dry laboratories, managed office space and office amenities, and access to an influential network.

Global Soft-Landing

The Global Soft-Landing ® Program facilitates international business in the U.S. by helping global companies establish themselves in local life sciences and information technology markets. Philadelphia offers a favorable location between the nation's regulatory/legislative center in Washington and its financial core in New York. Global Soft Landing ® provides international companies with the same amentities as offered by the Port.

QED Proof of Concept

The QED Proof of Concept Program is a funding and business development program for researchers at the Greater Philadelphia region’s academic institutions. The QED Program supports proof-of-concept R&D in early-stage life science technologies with perceived commercial potential. The QED Program integrates grant funding, business advice, market drivers and guidance to exit.

Quorum

When it is fully built, Quorum will create a center for entrepreneurs and innovators throughout the region to convene, interact, network and exchange ideas. A modular, “greet, meet, and eat” space will facilitate their ability to build knowledge and explore opportunities. The Satellite Quorum offers Science Center-supported programming at various events across the region. The iQuorum integrates online networking tools.

Companies

As of September 2009, the Science Center business incubator has "hatched" 351 companies. Of these, 155 are still in business and directly employ 15,686 people in the Greater Philadelphia region. They include Centocor, Neose Technologies, SEI, Bentley Systems, 3-D Pharmaceuticals, BioRexis, Acuity, Morphotek, and many others.

The work of the approximately 100 incubator and resident companies that currently call the Science Center home ranges from diagnostics, therapeutics, medical devices, healthcare systems, bioinformatics, and cognitive science to information technology infrastructure, interactive media, nano-scale imaging, novel materials and clean energy technology.

Ownership

UCSC is a nonprofit 501C3 organization with 32 regional shareholders.

External links

• University City Science Center home page
• "Come to Where the Knowledge Is": A History of the University City Science Center