Applied Biosystems Completes $80 Million Phase I of New Biotech Campus in California

---

Researched by Industrialinfo.com (Industrial Information Resources, Incorporated; Houston, Texas). Applied Biosystems (NYSE: ABI) (Foster City, California) has completed the first phase of their new biotech campus in Pleasanton, California (PEC 06003330). The company purchased the 80-acre site located on Sunol Boulevard near I-680 in mid-2000, with plans calling for eventual construction, on an "as-needed" basis, of a total of seven buildings encompassing 960,000 square feet.

Devcon Construction (Milpitas, California) was the contractor for the project, which included a 96,000-square-foot, two-story facility and a second, 143,000-square-foot, three-story building, housing cleanrooms, research laboratories and office space. Both buildings are LEED Certified, a process that distinguishes building projects that have demonstrated a commitment to sustainability by meeting the highest performance standards. A project is a viable candidate for LEED certification if it can meet all prerequisites and achieve a minimum of 26 points.

Over 90 percent of what was demolished on the site was recycled and used in construction. Applied Biosystems worked closely with the city of Pleasanton to meet their "green building" goals. Recycled tires were used as flooring in the employees' break rooms and old blue jeans help insulate the buildings. Nearly 100 percent of the trees that were removed were chopped up and recycled, and 2,000 new trees were planted.

Initially, the new site will house the company's genomics assays research business, a fairly new flagship business, which concentrates on validating specialized DNA sequences that scientists and researchers can use to hasten drug development. Over 200 employees have already moved to the site, a number that could eventually rise to 2,600. Applied Biosystems employs more than 4,000 people and is closely associated with its sister company, Celera Genomics Group, which mapped the human genome.

Click the following link to view Industrialinfo.com's 2003 North American Pharmaceutical-Biotech Forecast