Leaving the Incubator

What to consider before you go

What was once just an idea has become a fully realized business with employees, partners, and investors. As you’ve grown, your comfy nest at the incubator has started to feel a bit cramped.  You’ve begun to envision a space to call your own, and the many questions pop up one after another:

How do I lease the right lab space and figure out how much space I need?  Do I renovate existing lab space or design my own from the ground up? What steps do I need to take to transition successfully?  Where do I start with moving and relocation costs?  How do I set up equipment and vendor accounts?

Here is a rough timeline and some of the things you need to consider before you leave the safety and security of the incubator:

Before You Start:

Ensuring this is the right move at the right time for your business is essential. Take the time now to assess your goals and reach out to people who can help you with the decisions you will have to make. The sooner you talk to a project manager, the better. Someone like Venture Forward, with years of experience helping young companies transition to their new space, can help guide you and make sure the process goes smoothly and stays on time and on budget.

Assess Your Readiness

• Evaluate whether your business or research project is financially stable enough to afford its own lab space.
• Ensure you have a viable business model and/or sufficient research funding.
• Make sure you understand the project timeframe (whether it is 6 months, a year, or several years projection) and that it aligns with your goals, needs, and space requirements. Make sure to factor in when your current lease expires.
• Complete a Needs Assessment (for more information see our blog on the importance of the Needs Assessment click here).

• Consider all associated costs such as rent, utilities, equipment, insurance, permits, wages and fees, etc.
• Enlist the help of someone experienced with lab project budgeting. We have a robust budget template that will help you understand what you need for your project budget, including things like Capital Equipment, Operating expenses, estimates of vendor costs and utility costs.
• Always have a contingency budget for unexpected expenses.

Create a Financial Projection

• Ensure that the costs associated with your new lab space won’t put you at risk of running out of funds.
• Be realistic about future projected income and expenses.
• Factoring in the ongoing expenses once you are in your new space, such as utility costs, vendor contracts, consumables, amenities that may be an additional lease cost, maintenance requirements, etc. is one of the most important things you can do as they can be eye-opening once you leave the incubator.

Choosing The Right Space

Once you have your plan, you need to find the best location for your lab and budget. VFP knows the market and what makes a building suitable for lab space. We can help you connect with a broker and  ensure your best interests are kept in the forefront.

Select a Location

Choose a location that best suits your needs and budget, taking into consideration the following

• Consider proximity for employee commute and local partners.
• Understand what amenities and utilities are provided by the landlord. Including which floor, loading dock, access to the space and security features.
• Tour at least 3 or 4 different sites to get a feel for what’s out there.
• Understand the difference between “move-in ready”, shell space or spec suites and the requirements needed for you to operate within each. We can do walk-throughs with you to explain the different sites’ feasibility and pros and cons.
• Negotiate lease terms and weigh factors like lease duration, rent, maintenance issues and tenant improvement allowances.
• Thoroughly read and understand any new lease before you sign.

Design Your Lab

• Review the needs assessment you completed in step one. For information about why the Needs Assessment is so important, click here.
• Make sure your equipment matrix is up to date. This is the most important item you will use in the design of your lab. For information about the Equipment Matrix, click here
• Work with professionals with lab design experience to plan the layout of your lab space, considering the space configuration, the type of research, your equipment and what works for an efficient workflow.
• Ensure all your utilities and equipment placements have been confirmed to minimize downtime during the relocation and reduce the impact on future growth.
• Understand long lead time items for any requirements to operate within the facility, such as furniture and equipment.

Final Stretch

This is the most exciting start of the process – when you see your vision become reality and finally get to move into your new facility. But before it’s over, you still have work to do:

Relocation (moving everything in) and Implementation (setting everything up) still have to happen. Make sure you have the right team to help you. Venture Forward specializes in full-service relocations and implementations and can help with decontamination, testing and certifying all your equipment.

Plan the Move

• Plan and implement your move, paying special attention to logistics, timelines and responsibilities.
• Engage professionals who specialize in moving laboratories. VFP has years of experience successfully moving labs.
• Create a move manual so everyone is aware of the process. Communication is key to a smooth move!
• Understand the effects downtime might have on your research. At VFP, we strive to minimize downtime, often scheduling relocations on weekends so you can be up and running quickly and efficiently.
• Confirm all utilities are in the proper places for your equipment.
• Engage soft services like coffee & internet (most important), along with pest control, janitorial, lab coats, copy and print etc.
• If you haven’t already, consider joining MassBio for savings on many of these services and vendors. Through our Preferred Partners Program we have negotiated significant savings for our clients with many vendors and equipment suppliers.

Establish Your Last Day of Science

This is a line in the sand date for when experiments must stop and can resume once the relocation is completed. VFP can help to minimize the down time between these two events.

• Safely transfer data, equipment and materials from the incubator to your new space.
• Know and communicate to all lab personnel when the experiments will end.
• Make sure incubators are empty and decontaminated.
• Last runs, cells, and chemicals are all safely packed up for the move.
• Outsource your relocation to minimize disruption to ongoing projects during the move.

Move-In

Test, Decontaminate and Certify

• Make sure all bio-hazard equipment is properly decontaminated before the move.
• BSCs and fume hoods must be decontaminated before moving.
• BSCs and fume hoods must be certified when purchased or after moving.
• Test to ensure all equipment is working properly.
• Get all bio-hazard equipment tested and certified once in the new space. This includes new equipment.

Equipment Installation and Safety Check

• Make sure equipment is properly placed, and all necessary connections are made and operational.
• Decrease downtime by hiring an Implementation team like VFP. For more information on implementation, click here
• Set up SOPs and safety protocols to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements.

Ongoing Operations

After you have moved in and your lab is up and running, don’t lose your momentum – there are still things you should do.

If you don’t have a permanent lab manager, now is the time to hire or outsource this important position. Venture Forward partners can help you by providing any services your lab needs to stay running safely and efficiently. We can come in for a day, a week or longer term, providing you with top-notch laboratory support.

And don’t forget to:

Market and Promote

• Promote your new lab space to your target audience and stakeholders.
• Update your business website, social media profiles and contact information to reflect your new location.
• Highlight any advantages or innovations associated with your move.

Evaluate and Improve

• Adapt to new challenges and opportunities as they arise.
• Continuously evaluate your lab’s performance and adjust as needed.

Enjoy Your New Lab!

Take the time to appreciate the rewards of your effort and reflect on how far your business has come.

Transitioning from an incubator to your own lab space is a significant milestone. Proper planning and execution are essential to ensure a smooth and successful project while maintaining your business’s or research’s important work. Be sure you have the right people guiding you in this critical endeavor.

Venture Forward Lab Partners can help you navigate as you step away from the incubator and into your own lab. Call us today to find out how we can help you, from choosing the right location, managing your build-out or refit, and getting you moved into the lab you envision.

Venture Forward Partners is a full-service Laboratory Planning, Project Management and Lab Services company for life science and biotech laboratories in Greater Boston. From site selection and lab relocations to setting up and maintaining your lab, we provide a broad range of services and solutions to support your lab operations.  Our team possesses unparalleled energy and enthusiasm towards the work we do, and we have the expertise, training, hands-on lab experience and industry connections to ensure your lab’s success.  Whatever your lab needs – we make it happen.