UCB officially opened this week its UCB Solution Accelerator – a unique environment designed to drive collaboration between UCB and the Georgia Tech community to develop solutions that will positively impact the lives of those living with severe diseases. The 2,500-square foot innovation center will be located in the Centergy Building at Technology Square, part of Georgia Tech’s innovation neighborhood.

With its North America Headquarters in Smyrna, GA, UCB is a global biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of innovative medicines and solutions to treat severe diseases of the immune and central nervous system. As the first pharmaceutical company with an innovation center in Technology Square, UCB will be able to tap into Georgia Tech’s state of the art machine learning and advanced analytics resources to improve patient care as well as the patient experience.

“Establishing a presence in Technology Square is a natural extension of our existing relationship with Georgia Tech,” said Jeff Wren, head of UCB’s Neurology Patient Value Unit. “We are thrilled to join this vibrant innovation community to learn and grow our own capabilities. We are confident that co- location and proximity to the Georgia Tech community will enable us to quickly develop quality solutions that will create real value for the patients we serve.”

For the past year, UCB has collaborated with Georgia Tech’s Interoperability & Integration Innovation Lab (I3L) in using predictive analytics to answer the question: how can we better fit medications to patients and positively impact patient care?

“We are delighted to welcome UCB as the first pharmaceutical company to join the growing innovation ecosystem in Tech Square,” said Georgia Tech President G. P. “Bud” Peterson. “We have already begun several collaborations with the company, and look forward to future opportunities for Georgia Tech students, faculty, and staff to help develop solutions to positively impact patient care for those living with chronic, severe diseases.”

UCB expects the space to be used by multiple collaborators from Georgia Tech researchers, faculty and students, to UCB interns and staff from its North America headquarters as well as from its global headquarters in Brussels Belgium.