1. Solano County’s
Life Science Cluster
Presentation to
Vacaville Chamber of Commerce
Major Employers Group
May 13, 2009
Prepared by Collaborative Economics
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

2. LIFE SCIENCES CLUSTER FINDINGS
 Science Innovation is taking place in Solano
 Life Science has grown fast & continues to grow
faster than the Bay Area
 Earnings in Life Science are growing & higher than
other employers due to high skills & education
requirements
 Residents make up bulk of jobs holders in Life
Sciences Solano companies
 Science education & training options are developing
but need focus & emphasis
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

3. SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA IS GLOBAL
LEADER IN BIOTECHNOLOGY PATENTS
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

4. BAY AREA PERSPECTIVE
 The Bay Area is a knowledge economy, yet investment in
education is significantly lagging the nation
 Mobility is key for our economy and a recession is the perfect
opportunity to make infrastructure investments
 The cost of doing business and the anti-business climate in the
Bay Area are causing many businesses to reconsider investing
here
 The Bay Area is too fragmented, and better regional
coordination could be a significant differentiator
 Clean technology (IS) could be the next big wave of innovation
www.bayareaeconomy.org © 2008 Collaborative Economics

5. Demand For Knowledge Workers
 A California Council on Science and Technology report,
produced in 2002, called for statewide school reform based
on changing labor market conditions.
 According to the report, high-tech is the second largest
economic sector in the state and currently has a shortfall of
14,000 workers with bachelor’s degrees in science and
engineering.
 California schools do not produce enough science and
education graduates to meet industry’s growing demand,
and to do so they would need to generate 70 percent more
graduates at the bachelor’s degree level.
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

6. LIFE SCIENCE IS GROWING
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

7. LIFE SCIENCES IN SOLANO COUNTY
IS GROWING RAPIDLY
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

8. VACAVILLE LIFE SCIENCE CLUSTER
 ALZA Corp.
 DesigneRx
Pharmaceuticals
 Genentech/Roche
 Novartis
 Predictive Diagnostics
 Synder Filtration
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

9. INNOVATION IN SOLANO
SOLANO’S INNOVATION ASSETS INCLUDE:
 Three research universities in close proximity:
U.C. Davis, U.C. Berkeley and Touro University
 Rising number of NIH grants:
6 grants 1995-2001
13 grants 2002-2008
U.C. Davis ranks 12th
in nation among public
universities for total
research funding.
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

10. EARNINGS ARE GROWING FASTER IN
SOLANO THAN OTHER PLACES
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

11. …AND FASTER THAN IN OTHER
INDUSTRIES
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

12. RESIDENTS FILL BULK OF JOBS
78% of Life
Science Jobs
are filled by
Solano
County
residents.
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

13. …AND AT BOTH ENDS OF THE SKILLS
SPECTRUM
87% of
employment is in
manufacturing
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

14. TRAINING OPTIONS ARE DEVELOPING
No academic discipline is more important to the
continued success of the Life Science industry than
science education.
Training Programs in Solano:
 Biotech Academy
 Solano Community College
 University of California at Davis
 University of California at Berkeley
 Touro University
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

15. SUPPORTING SCIENCE CLUSTERS
WHAT HAVE THE COMMUNITIES DONE:
 Creation of SolanoSTEM Foundation for support & development
of training opportunities (i.e. biotech academy, other science
and math programs for K-16)
 Continue to improve & provide R&D and manufacturing
infrastructure (water/sewer supply)
 Continue to improve business relationships with research
universities to spur business start-ups, transfer of innovation &
attraction of science companies.
 Continue to improve federal, state and local tax & business
climate policies to support the continued growth science
companies
© 2008 Collaborative Economics

16. YOUR COMMENTS & IDEAS PLEASE
 What can Solano County communities do to
further support the continued growth of Life
Science & technology companies in the county?
© 2008 Collaborative Economics