Budding Bioengineer Shares Impressions Of 2015 BIO Exhibit Floor

By Rob Wright, Chief Editor, Life Science Leader
Follow Me On Twitter @RfwrightLSL

In my role as chief editor for Life Science Leader magazine, I distinctly remember being blown away when attending my first industry tradeshow — the American Association of Pharmaceuticals Scientists (AAPS) annual meeting and exposition in New Orleans (2010). Coming from the sponsor and commercial side of the biopharmaceutical business, I admittedly was naïve to the massive machine behind the machine — those companies with offerings to support the Pfizers and Mercks of the world. At the 2015 BIO International Conference in Philadelphia, I met a young bioengineering student walking in wide-eyed wonder on the exhibit show floor. Turns out this was their first time at BIO and witnessing an event that brings together more people than most college campuses (15,000+). With around 1,800 exhibitors covering approximately 160,000 square feet, despite BIO providing a map and segmenting its exhibit floor by zones, it can still be an overwhelming experience of where to start as a first-time attendee. After showing them around a bit, I asked if they would be willing to write a short account of their experience. So, what follows is the 2015 BIO International Conference as viewed through the eyes of a student and first time attendee — a fresh perspective of the tradeshow floor at BIO that we industry veterans might often take for granted.

BIO Turns Budding Bioengineer’s Perspective Upside Down

Being a student is difficult, and yet it is so simple. Semesters roll by as you spend most of your time doing problem sets and studying for exams, and the toughest decision to make in your spare time is to decide which party to go to. The summers are a much-needed recess from the monotony of classrooms, although the theme doesn’t really shift dramatically from that of the school year – whether in a research lab or an internship, you still focus on learning skills and doing what your superiors tell you in hopes of getting good recommendation letters and making yourself more enticing to recruiters in the future. Basically, your entire life revolves around preparing for your first real job after graduation. But very little time is spent actually learning about the job itself, the role you will serve, and how you will fit into the grand scheme of things. This summer I was able to spend a day at the BIO International Convention. I thought I would know what to expect — how foolish.

Prior to attending BIO, my view of the life sciences industry was very linear and orderly; it was too “textbook.” I thought the industry was divided into pharmaceuticals and cell therapies, medical devices and instruments, and everything else. I was totally unprepared for the onslaught of terminology and exceptions that were about to be thrown my way: CROs, CMOs, vendors (a term which seemingly included players as big as J&J, and as small as regional economic initiatives), and much more. I was amazed by how intricate the ecosystem was: large pharmaceutical behemoths, medium-sized pharmaceutical organizations, contractors, academic researchers and investigators, corporate research groups, lawyers and patent attorneys, governments and economic development agencies, media and press, and much more. I can confidently say that of the dozens of organizations I spoke to that day, no two offered the exact same breadth of services. And it was confusing as hell.

For The Unprepared, BIO’s Size Can Make Getting Started Difficult

Walking into the exhibition floor of the convention center, it was so unexpectedly massive I felt almost childlike staring up at some of the 30-foot high pavilions spanning the area of a small lecture hall. Coming to BIO on a student budget was tough, and now that I was here I realized I had no idea how to proceed. My initial approach was methodical. I pulled out a list of all the exhibition floor booths and started circling names that sounded interesting. This plan soon proved futile after I realized I had spent nearly 20 minutes on the exercise and had only made it through roughly 100 of the 400+ organizations listed. Worse, I had been about as discriminatory with my selection process as a shotgun, and had circled nearly every other company in the pocket guide. I would’ve gone on wasting my time had it not been for someone deciding to take on the role of mentor, offering the time to walk the floor and describe the different types of organizations at BIO while also giving a general structure of the industry. But the best advice was simply encouraging me to go up to a booth and start asking questions.

Aragen, a CRO, was the first company booth I visited. To my pleasant surprise, the representative walked me through the biotechnology ecosystem and the role of key players. Though this might be fairly common knowledge to an industry veteran, the nuances are an enigma to a newcomer. This representative, like most others I would talk to while at BIO, was very friendly and open to educating me about her company and its role in the life sciences industry. Despite introducing myself as an undergrad student, most people, especially those focused on the scientific end of the spectrum (i.e., entrepreneurs and researchers directly involved in R&D) were eager to engage. The scientists (academics and entrepreneurs alike) were brimming with contagious energy, and it was difficult not to be inspired by their visions. Often, just one or two questions about their technology led to lengthy explanations of their work. Admittedly, this is very different from my experience at an academic research institution where, as a consequence of all your peers participating in scientific research, the process seems almost commonplace and numb to the excitement of science.

The Best Thing About BIO — Carpe Diem  

Upon reflection, perhaps the most valuable takeaway from attending BIO was perspective. There are so many job titles beyond researcher and manager. My eyes were opened to how difficult it is to make a splash in such a competitive space. No longer am I naïve about the difficulties involved in starting a biotech and turning it into the next Gilead. While my dreams haven’t changed, speaking with some of the entrepreneurs at BIO has enlightened me as to the intricate nature of scientific innovation and business savvy required to get there. The best thing, though, about being at BIO was that it provided me with clarity and focus, and I now have a better understanding of what I am aiming for after graduation, and some sense of how to get there. If you are a student and have the opportunity to attend an industry trade show like BIO, I encourage you to do so. Not only will the experience be memorable and inspiring, but you will discover much that attending classes alone fails to teach. But unlike me, take the time to plan and prepare before you get there, and if possible, find a mentor to show you the ropes.