Weekly Policy Blog: CBSA Co-Hosts Facility Tours for State Legislators and Local Leaders 

This month CBSA partnered with both Terumo Blood and Cell Technologies (Terumo BCT) and AGC Biologics to host facility tours at their respective facilities in Lakewood and Longmont for legislators, local leaders, and other special guests. These tours were an amazing opportunity to highlight the critical innovative work being done in Colorado that is saving and changing patients’ lives. The tours also showcased the economic growth and community impact driven by the life sciences ecosystem in Colorado. These tours are an important part of CBSA’s Policy + Advocacy work because they help to give policymakers an understanding of what the life sciences ecosystem looks like in Colorado, how it works on the ground, why it brings so much value to Colorado and to patients, and how life sciences companies are impacted by policy decisions.   

Terumo Blood and Cell Technologies Tour

On October 5^th, CBSA co-hosted a tour at Terumo BCT’s global headquarters and manufacturing facilities in Lakewood, Colorado. The tour was attended by State Representatives Shannon Bird, Lisa Frizell, Anthony Hartsook, and Rep. Sheila Lieder (as well as State Representative Steven Woodrow’s legislative aide) and State Senators Paul Lundeen (Senate Minority Leader) and Rachel Zenzinger. 

Terumo BCT traces its Colorado roots back to 1964 and currently employs approximately 1,500 people in Colorado. Today, it is a leading medical technology company that designs and manufactures products that collect, separate, and process blood and cells. Blood centers, hospitals, therapeutic apheresis clinics, researchers, and cell collection and processing organizations around the world use a variety of Terumo BCT products, from medical devices to blood bags. Among other things, tour attendees saw and learned about the widely-used Trima Accel® Automated Blood Collection System and the recently FDA-cleared Reveos® Automated Whole Blood Processing System, the first whole blood automation device available in the U.S. that processes whole blood into platelets and other components in a single centrifugation cycle, which will be critical to meeting the increased demand for platelets used to treat patients with many conditions such as trauma and cancer. 

Terumo BCT’s local involvement in Colorado reaches beyond its core work. It touches many critical local organizations, such as Lakewood’s The Action Center, which serves nearly 4,000 Jefferson County families experiencing hardship. Terumo BCT helps with events for back-to-school, Thanksgiving food drives, and more. Since 2007, Terumo BCT has raised more than $1.9 million in support of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS), and each year its donations represent 20% of the Rocky Mountain Chapter’s revenue. 

AGC Biologics Tour

On October 12^th, CBSA co-hosted a tour with the Longmont Area Chamber of Commerce and the Longmont Economic Development Partnership at AGC Biologics’ Longmont, Colorado facility. AGC Biologics is a global CDMO (contract development and manufacturing organization) providing development and manufacturing services for protein-based biologics and advanced therapies. The tour was attended by State Representative Jennifer Parenti, Longmont Mayor Joan Peck, members of the Longmont City Council, representatives from Front Range Community College and St. Vrain Valley School District, and others.  

The tour showcased the Longmont campus that AGC Biologics acquired in August of 2021 as well as the new cell therapy suites for which AGC hosted a ribbon cutting event on August 2, 2023 (see the press release about the expansion). The cell therapy suites are multigrade, multifunctional suites that give customers options to perform cell therapy functions from scale-up to fill finish and will be used for the production of cell and tissue-based therapies for human application. The Longmont facility where these new cell therapy suites are housed is the North American hub for cell and gene therapy services for AGC Biologics.  The facility is 622,000 square feet on 229 acres with $30M in completed improvements. 

The tour also highlighted AGC Biologics’ local impact as a large economic driver and through its community engagement, including its involvement in the Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) program along with the St. Vrain Valley School District.