As the R&D heart of China's International Biotechnology and Medicine Innovation Park, the 70,000-square-meter Phase-I of Tianjin International Joint Academy of Biotechnology and Medicine (TJAB) was delivered on June 25th. The grand plaque-unveiling ceremony was witnessed by senior state and local officials such as Ms. Liu Yandong, Member of the Politburo of the CPC Central Committee and State Councilor, Mr. Zhang Gaoli, Secretary of Tianjin Municipal CPC Committee, and Mr. Huang Xingguo, Vice Secretary of Tianjin Municipal CPC Committee and Mayor of Tianjin.

Located at the juncture of Huanghai Road and the Thirteenth Avenue, TJAB is planned to cover 300 mu (or 200,000 square meters) of land with floor area totaling 130,000 square meters. Among its 11 platforms, 4 core platforms are designed for new drug discovery, biomedicine GMP pilot trial, information processing, and analysis & testing respectively, and the other 7 are supporting platforms. Its research facility can accommodate 100 project leaders simultaneously. To qualify as a project leader at TJAB, academic capacity, project, research team, and self-raised fund (could be 50% domestic and 50% overseas so as to strike a balance between international, local and industry efforts)will be indispensable. To support these biomedicine pioneers, the TBNA will provide venture capital for the commercialization of their projects, as well as discount loans, and subsidies for the procurement of production equipments. Here project leaders can enjoy one-stop service and the optimal environment for biotechnology research and innovation.

The TJAB broke earth in March, 2008. Today its affiliated Sino-Italian TCM Joint Laboratory has been recognized as one of the country's first state-level international joint research centers. It is also home to several public technology platforms, start-up companies, and new bio-medicine projects.

Exploring innovative management and operation model is another assignment for the TJAB. Backed up by government investment, five systems (for international-standard original drug innovation, pre-clinical drug evaluation, clinical drug evaluation, pilot trial, and supporting services respectively) and 11 technology platforms will be set up to attract talents, projects and capital from home and abroad. At the same time, professional management teams will be set up to operate these platforms in corporate manner. Presumably by 2012, the TJAB will have over 100 senior research teams, over 100 R&D projects, over 50 R&D-oriented enterprises, and over 100 patent applications for invention. Its carrier, the International Innovation Park is expected to become China's largest and most renowned base for biomedicine innovation and commercialization and serve as a driving force for the industry in the Circum-Bohai Region and the country as a whole to yield an output value of 10 billion yuan.

On June 26th, 2006, the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) and Tianjin signed an agreement for the joint construction of the International Biotechnology and Medicine Innovation Park, which will comprise three functional zones for R&D, start-up incubation, and drug production & trade respectively. TJAB, which is located within the R&D section of the Park, is designated to be a base for the technological and industrial innovation for biotechnology and medicine, a center for the gathering and training of senior talents, and a bridge for international cooperation. The agreement was followed by an opinion paper between Tianjin and related state authorities and a series of policy measures. The recent opening of TJAB will definitely facilitate the construction of the entire Innovation Park and beef up the local biotechnology and medicine industry.