Business Innovation Center (BIC)

Your Value

Here at the BIC, we open our doors to all types of startups across a wide range of industries. When considering new tenants we look for exciting innovation, a hardworking team, and most importantly, a desire to engage with the BU community. BIC tenants hire student interns, collaborate with the esteemed BU faculty, host student capstone projects, participate in workshops and panels, and more.

BIC Members

The BIC Member program allows corporations to partake of the benefits of the Business Innovation Center without a physical presence. Here are the benefits:

• A designated meeting table to hold meetings one day per week
• Invitation to sponsor senior engineering capstone projects – students spend senior year working on a topic relevant to your business
• Ability to sponsor events at the BIC
• Concierge service facilitating introductions to BU professors in fields of interest, if desired
• Opportunity to service as an advisor to BIC tenants, BU researchers commercializing ideas, and BU spinout teams
• Ability to purchase a BU parking permit as a “BU Affiliate”
• Access to BU Core Facilities

Core Facilities

BU has many facilities on the Charles River Campus that provide services, expertise, and instruments for high-quality research. Some labs are specific to their supporting groups; most are available on a fee-for-service basis to researchers both inside and outside the University. BIC tenants have access to the following Core Facilities, which can also be viewed on our Core Facilities poster:

• Center for Molecular Discovery Analytical Core (BU-CMD)
• Chemical Instrumentation Center
• The Design, Automation, Manufacturing, and Processes (DAMP) Lab (contact Courtney Tretheway for rates)
• Fraunhofer Center for Manufacturing Innovation
• Micro-CT Imaging Facility
• Neurophotonics Center
• Photonics Center Shared Facilities
• Optoelectronic Processing Facility
• Precision Measurement Laboratory
• FIB/TEM Facility (FTF)
• Materials Science (MSE) Core Facilities
• Proteomics & Imaging Core Facility (contact Todd Blute)
• Software & Application Innovation Lab (SAIL)
• Scientific Instrument Facility

View the BIC tenant’s Core Facilities poster or visit the Core Facilities page to learn more.

More Resources

• Handshake
• Modern office and laboratory space, fully furnished with telephone and high-speed internet connections
• Fully permitted laboratories
• Options for Bio-Safety Level 2(BSL-2) space. (See Guidelines)
• A wide range of technical equipment and engineering resources to aid in rapid product development
• Conference rooms, kitchen, security, and custodial services
• Shared access to photonics laboratories and capital equipment with the Photonics Center
• Boston University Engineering library
• Conference and Catering Services
• Office of Environmental Health and Safety (handling and disposal of hazardous waste)
• Photonics Center conferences, symposia, guest lectures, and social and networking events
• Safe recycling location for battery, lightbulb, and electronics on the 1^st floor (see BU Sustainability for more information)

Engagement

Engagement with the BU community is an essential part of the BIC’s mission. As such, outreach to BU students is among our foremost priorities. Students may engage with the BIC by applying for jobs and internships with BIC tenants.

Student Organizations

The BIC has engaged in conversations with a number of student organizations at BU. We hope to build strong and lasting relationships with student organizations so that we may provide support and opportunities to the students in them.

Pursuing Research Funding

Innovation at BU could not exist without the researchers driving progress within our community. BIC tenants provide a new method of pursuing research funding here at BU. Through sponsored research, co-SPIR and STTR grants, and licensing of technology, the collaboration between BIC tenants and BU researchers is a part of the BIC’s core directive.

Read articles about our BIC tenants in action.

• A BU Spinoff’s Success Story: The Abridged Version
  • This article summarizes the success story of NanoView Biosciences.
• Matregenix Case Study
  • This article is about Matregenix, a former BIC tenant (2019 – 2020), a company formed by a BU MBA with a PhD in Material Science. Read how Sherif took the company from technology to cash flow positive using several BU and his own resources.
• ADI Lab to Fab
  • This article is about Analog Devices (2020 – 2023). ADI is using the BIC for what they call their Lab to Fab model. Read the attached to understand how Azize went about this.

Here are several of the links you’ll need to do business:

• BIC Tenant Contact Information
• Shared Lab Usage Agreement (as part of the prospective BIC tenants documents to fill out, or for the renewal or start of a BIC tenant’s Premise License Agreement process)
• Affiliate Form (as part of the prospective BIC tenants documents to fill out, or for tenants whose lab access is expiring)
• Bio-Safety Level 2(BSL-2)
• Laboratory Design Checklist
• Hazardous Material Survey and Equipment Inventory