GATC Biotech To Double Floor Space At Constance site

GATC Biotech has announced that the mayor Claus Boldt, architect Hans-Peter Engelmann and CEO Peter Pohl, officially initiated the first sod, marking the beginning of the expansion of the Constance site for GATC Biotech.

The company will invest more than E5m in its Constance headquarters until 2012 to create offices and laboratories for an additional 100 employees.

The company stated, an extra 960 square meters will be added to double the existing laboratory and office space. The three-storey annex will be directly attached to the original building. A glass atrium will connect the old and the new buildings.

Peter Pohl, CEO of GATC, said: “Because of our company’s strong growth over the last few years, we are in dire need of a new building. We are literally bursting at the seams as we have more than doubled the number of our employees since 2006. Furthermore, we urgently need further laboratory space in order to expand our sequencing capacity to 30 terabases until 2013. This increase in capacity is required to enable us to advance our international expansion plans. We are very proud that we are able to create and secure jobs even in economically difficult times and to strengthen and further expand the dynamic life science hub at Lake Constance.”

The inauguration of the annex is expected in spring 2010.