With this decision, the German-based pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim strengthens the research location Vienna and renews its strong commitment to support basic research in the Austrian capital.
“Since its opening in 1988, the Research Institute of Molecular Pathology has gained a strong reputation as a leading place in the field of molecular biology research worldwide. Boehringer Ingelheim recognizes this performance through its decision to invest in a new IMP research building. By doing so, we strengthen the research location Vienna within the Boehringer Ingelheim group of companies and we look forward to continuing the excellent collaboration between basic research carried out by the IMP and cancer research conducted at the Regional Center Vienna”, comments Philipp von Lattorff, Country Managing Director, Boehringer Ingelheim RCV, on this investment decision.
“The new research building will bring about a significant improvement for our infrastructure, flexibility and new communication opportunities, which will put us in a position to achieve scientific results, built on the IMP’s reputation as a leading research institute in molecular biology on a global scale. We are enthusiastic, grateful, and very happy to receive this encouraging signal in support of basic research. We also view this wide-ranging decision as an obligation to pursue our aim in delivering world-class research”, says Jan-Michael Peters, Scientific Director of the IMP.
For Boehringer Ingelheim which operates on a worldwide scale the IMP represents a long-term investment in pure basic research which fulfils the company’s fundamental principle of “Value through Innovation”. The IMP ought to concentrate on freely chosen research topics, directed at understanding fundamental biological processes in a better way. The IMP consistently embarks on the unknown, and sheds light on research areas that are beyond questions of direct practical use. For more than two decades the IMP has successfully used this approach of fundamental research open to application which is driven by the curiosity and enthusiasm of the scientists at the IMP who conduct cutting-edge research. This new state-of-the-art research building which is designed to meet future infrastructure needs will further elevate this IMP spirit.
The integral planning of the new IMP building has been carried out by ‘ATP architects engineers’. It will comprise approx. 15,000 square meters gross floor space and will accommodate approx. 250 researchers. Apart from well-equipped and flexible lab space, the new IMP building will house a spacious lecture hall, as well as a new cafeteria all of which will fit harmoniously into the existing VBC environment.
For the Regional Center Vienna, where all Boehringer Ingelheim’s cancer research is concentrated, the strengthening of the IMP represents the continuation of a successful partnership, which has been opening doors to academia in a highly productive way.
“The impressive development of the Vienna Biocenter entering the top league of molecular biology research with four scientific institutes – IMP, IMBA, GMI, and MFPL – would have been impossible without the establishment of the IMP by Boehringer Ingelheim in 1988”, adds Harald Isemann, Administrative Director of the IMP. In a sense, the decision to construct new IMP premises is also an ex-post appraisal of the accomplishments of the founding director Max L. Birnstiel, who passed away in November 2014 at the age of 81.
The construction of the new IMP building also opens up new possibilities to further develop the location Vienna Biocenter, as the existing IMP building will be available for new purposes in 2017. In this sense, Boehringer Ingelheim once again provides a stimulus to open up new perspectives for the VBC.
The Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP) in Vienna is a basic biomedical research institute largely sponsored by Boehringer Ingelheim. With over 200 scientists from 35 nations, the IMP is committed to scientific discovery of fundamental molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying complex biological phenomena. Research areas include cell and molecular biology, neurobiology, disease mechanisms and computational biology. The IMP is located at the Vienna Biocenter.
The Boehringer Ingelheim Regional Center Vienna (RCV) is responsible for the human pharmaceuticals and animal health business of Boehringer Ingelheim in more than 30 countries in Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and Israel. Moreover Vienna coordinates the clinical research activities in the whole region. The site is also the group’s cancer research center and a site devoted to biopharmaceutical research, development and production. In 2013 the Boehringer Ingelheim Regional Center Vienna had about 3300 employees, thereof 1400 in Vienna.