NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Molecular diagnostics firm Thermal Gradient today announced it will relocate to the Richmond, Virginia area.
Thermal Gradient has signed a lease on a 10,000-square-foot space in the Virginia Biotechnology Research Park. All scientific operations are moving from Rochester, New York, where the firm is currently based, to the new location immediately, the firm said in a statement, with the remaining operations moving over the next year. It added that it expects to expand to 45 employees in the next two years.
Thermal Gradient is developing its first commercial product, a portable instrument for detecting HIV in less than 10 minues, and in a statement CEO Robert Juncosa said, "The greater Richmond area better suited our expansion needs because it offers a more favorable tax structure, a larger scientific and engineering labor pool, as well as available facilities that don't require significant build-out expenses."
Thermal Gradient, formerly a biodefense firm receiving funding from the US Department of Homeland Security, is developing diagnostics based on its continuous flow PCR chemistry. In 2013, it inked a technology integration deal with Axela.