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Area Development - Site Selection, Facility Planning and Workforce Development

Three Biotech Firms Plan Expansion in New Orleans, Louisiana

11/07/2019
Three biotech firms, AxoSim, Cadex Genomics and Obatala Sciences, will create 135 new jobs in New Orleans, Louisiana. All three firms have launched local startup operations at the University of New Orleans and New Orleans BioInnovation Center, a biotech incubator.

AxoSim’s innovative neuroscience drug discovery platforms are based upon technology licensed from Tulane University. The company will expand its existing facilities at the BioInnovation Center, and AxoSim projects adding 75 jobs at an average annual salary of $60,000, plus benefits.

At the Advanced Materials Research Institute on the UNO campus, Cadex Genomics opened a molecular diagnostic laboratory focused on improving cancer treatment. The company will create 50 new direct jobs with an average annual salary of $70,000, plus benefits. Obatala Sciences will expand at the same UNO institute and create 10 new jobs with an average annual salary of $80,000, plus benefits. Obatala produces biotech tools for improving the speed and effectiveness of pharmaceutical development.

“Louisiana continues to elevate its profile and accomplishments in the bioscience sector,” Governor John Bel Edwards said. “We recently announced the attraction of a globally renowned bariatric surgery and research program to Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge. Here in New Orleans, AxoSim, Cadex Genomics and Obatala Sciences are expanding the boundary of what’s possible in bioscience, so that patients and their physicians can gain faster access to better treatment in the future. We’re grateful that these innovative companies see the benefits of expanding in Louisiana.”

Louisiana Economic Development reported collectively, the companies will create 135 new direct jobs over the next five years with a combined $9.1 million in annual payroll.

“We are continuing to create high-quality jobs and making it possible for emerging high-technology businesses to prosper in New Orleans,” Mayor Cantrell said. “These companies will help incentivize local graduates to stay in our city, while also creating advanced job training opportunities for those currently enrolled in programs involving medical technology and clinical laboratory sciences. We are empowering our local workforce and meeting people where they are.”

“We are thrilled to welcome the growth of these companies in New Orleans,” said Quentin L. Messer, Jr., President & CEO of the New Orleans Business Alliance. “Creating expanded opportunities for high-quality jobs in biotechnology is a key objective of the New Orleans Business Alliance, Louisiana Economic Development and the City of New Orleans. Beyond the jobs and investment, these companies are changing lives, which is why economic development matters.”

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