Purdue University, as a member of Heartland BioWorks, will share $51 million in federal funding to bolster workforce development and business startup efforts in Indiana’s burgeoning biotechnology ecosystem. Awarded by the United States Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration, the funding will catalyze Indiana’s biotechnology innovation and manufacturing efforts.
The Heartland BioWorks hub is one of 12 regional hubs across the U.S. selected to ensure the country is globally competitive in areas that are key to national security. The hubs will split $500 million in implementation funding that stems from the CHIPS and Science Act. The biotechnology hub will develop new programs, infrastructure and networks to accelerate workforce development and help dismantle barriers to success for entrepreneurs and small-business owners with developing new biotech products.
Purdue’s strategic involvement in the Heartland BioWorks hub is led by the William D. and Sherry L. Young Institute for Advanced Manufacturing of Pharmaceuticals, which focuses on revolutionizing pharmaceutical manufacturing and making medicines more accessible, more affordable and more widely available.
The Young Institute, launched in 2022, is a critical component within the university’s One Health initiative and will provide hands-on training in advanced manufacturing technologies as part of BioTrain, a workforce initiative within Heartland Bioworks. BioTrain’s graduate fellows will engage in pharmaceutical manufacturing and develop training programs for industry. BioTrain also includes curriculum development for a pharmaceutical manufacturing certificate and a collaboration with Ivy Tech Community College. Training programs will focus on continuous processing and emerging technologies for sterile injectable drug products and vaccines.
