LANSING – The Michigan Strategic Fund board last week approved a new budget for the Life Sciences Pipeline, another program through the 21st Century Jobs Fund, but only under some duress.
MichBio, an industry group that received the contract to run the program, had budgeted to bring in $300,000 during the first year, but actually realized no income from the program, instead spending $838,000.
MichBio officials said they had potential members ready to sign up for the program, but said they did not yet have a product to sell those members.
“We over-estimated what could be realized based on a membership proposition,” said Stephen Repundalo, MichBio executive director.
But he said a commercialization pathway was nearly ready for pharmaceutical companies, and pathways for other life sciences companies were coming shortly.
Board members raised concerns that the group had not generated any income in the year since the grant had been awarded, but Repundalo noted that MichBio had actually only been working on the program for about seven months. The business plan for the Pipeline was not completed until January 31.
And that business plan, a month late because of needed revisions, was the only item that has been late so far, he said.
Vince Nystrom with the Michigan Economic Development Corporation also noted that $617,000 of the funds spent so far had been directly funneled to consulting firm CJPS. He said that company, which provides assistance to companies trying to bring technology to market, is ahead of its goals.
CJPS was supposed to have five clients in its first year and has already signed on 10, Nystrom said.
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