Biotech device maker Hardin Scientific Inc. will locate its new $11.6 million manufacturing and development operation in Greensburg, Kentucky. The company is expected to create 50 jobs in Green County.

The company will locate in a 40,000-square-foot spec building in Greensburg, 74 miles northeast of Bowling Green, where it will manufacture T3-i7 Cell-Culture incubators, the first modular and internet-enabled device on the company’s platform. The device enables accurate reproduction of human-like body conditions for tissue culture, stem-cell research, protein expressions and genetics in the research, diagnostic and forensic industries.

Founder & CEO Aaron Hardin, a Berea, Kentucky native, noted the Greensburg community’s hospitality and the logistical advantages of locating in Kentucky as major factors in the company decision.

“There is a technological void in the life sciences; the people creating life-saving treatments and pharmaceuticals rely on outdated equipment,” Hardin said. “What they do with the tools they have is truly amazing, and I look forward to what they can accomplish with 21st Century solutions. Bringing this project to Kentucky makes good business sense and the ability to stimulate economic growth in my home state feels right. We received two dozen state and city proposals and searched the globe, but I can’t think of a more dedicated, harder working and humble labor force available.”

To encourage the investment and job growth in the community, the Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority (KEDFA) in January preliminarily approved the company for tax incentives up to $1 million through the Kentucky Business Investment program. The performance-based incentive allows a company to keep a portion of its investment over the agreement term through corporate income tax credits and wage assessments by meeting job and investment targets. In addition, Hardin Scientific can receive resources from the Kentucky Skills Network.

Hardin founded the company in 2016 with the mission to reduce human suffering through the elimination of disease, removal of barriers and an increase in the rate of discovery. He said the impetus for creating Hardin Scientific was a realization that “innovators weren’t being innovated,” noting the primary reason for high-cost prescription drugs is that equipment used in developing medications has become obsolete.

Hardin Scientific’s T3-i7 technology helps to reduce the gap between equipment and treatment technology. Its patented health-monitoring system helps to safeguard samples and ensure a higher level of safety and security.

“Hardin Scientific combines cutting-edge science with the kind of business initiative we want to encourage more of in Kentucky,” said Governor Matt Bevin. “Companies like this are fueling our state’s rise to national distinction in research and advanced manufacturing. It is the entrepreneurs with big ideas, like those guiding Hardin Scientific, that are making this happen. It is great to see a homegrown product of one of Kentucky’s universities leading the way as we move into the future.”