Trade association expands membership to broader range of companies

A MilliporeSigma employee in Jaffrey records passing test values of the company’s filtration devices. The company recently joined NH Life Sciences as a founding member. (File photo by John Connell)

MilliporeSigma has joined NH Life Sciences as the nonprofit trade association builds momentum and prepares for its debut industry event this fall.

The Jaffrey company becomes the group’s fourth founding member, alongside Novocure (Portsmouth), Novo Nordisk (Lebanon) and Timberline Construction (Merrimack).

“When you look at our founders and our membership, it’s a true testament to the innovation happening throughout our entire state,” said Andrea Hechavarria, NH Life Sciences president and CEO.

Keyspin Manufacturing (Merrimack), Sequence Biotech (Amherst), Foxx Life Sciences (Salem/Londonderry), and the Community College System of New Hampshire also recently joined the association.

“So many parts of the state are represented, and it showcases the breadth of life sciences innovation happening across the state and the diversity of our industry,” Hechavarria said.

MilliporeSigma is the U.S. and Canada life science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, which has more than 28,000 employees and more than 55 manufacturing and testing sites worldwide, the association noted in a news release. The company’s portfolio of more than 300,000 products focuses on scientific discovery, biomanufacturing and testing services.

Now that NH Life Sciences has found backing from major players, the Bedford-based group has expanded membership to a broader mix of companies.

“We started off with a couple of core companies like Novocure and Novo Nordisk and then Timberline Construction,” Hechavarria said in an interview with NH Business Review. “With MilliporeSigma coming in, we’re forming a group of companies that really care about the advancement of the life sciences industry. A couple months ago, we opened it up to broad membership. We’re really starting to see interest from companies of all sizes.”

A report about the New Hampshire life sciences industry produced by the state last year noted the growth of the sector both within the state and as an extension of Massachusetts.

“While the state’s proximity to the world’s largest Life Sciences cluster in Boston amplifies opportunities, New Hampshire’s Life Sciences assets represent sub-industries that are well suited to leverage industry dynamics and continue growth trajectories in the state,” the report said.

With that in mind, NH Life Sciences chose a border community for the setting of the inaugural Live Free Life Science Event & Celebration, set for 2 to 7 p.m., Oct. 9. at the Artisan Hotel at Tuscan Village in Salem, NH.

“We know that corridor is expanding outside of Cambridge within the life sciences,” Hechavarria said. “Being able to host it in Salem, right across the border, we can make it really easy and accessible for a company that is in Massachusetts and is thinking about expanding to New Hampshire, so that they know the industry is unified here and there’s growing interest.”