News

New incentives make investment even more attractive

Incentives for jobs, capital investment, leasing and R&D

The GCHKP Project Office can coordinate a program of attractive incentives for qualified companies, with a new program endorsed by the City of Gold Coast boosting the assistance available, including to eligible companies seeking tenancies in the Precinct.

In February 2019, the Council of the City of Gold Coast endorsed a range of modifications to the GCHKP Investment Attraction Program, adding to the financial and in-kind support available to companies seeking to invest.

For the first time companies seeking tenancies are eligible to receive a rebate on overall lease costs (first two years).

Increases in financial incentives have been approved relating to capital investment within greenfield development (1.5% within the first two years), and job creation ($1,000 incentive per FTE between $50k-$80k and $7,000 incentive per FTE for a salary over $80k).

Incentives are also available to support R&D projects, workforce assistance and specifically to attract a companies’ Australian head office to the GCHKP.

The GCHKP Project Office now manages the Investment Attraction Program from start to finish, providing a more streamlined experience for companies.

The Project Office can also assist with information and access to assistance by the Australian and Queensland Governments, including the Federal R&D Tax Incentive and potential opportunities through the Advance Queensland Industry Attraction fund.

Companies locating to Queensland can also benefit from Australia’s lowest rate of payroll tax.

Download our Investment Attraction Guide for further information.

Investment-Attraction-2019-web

Filed Under: Uncategorised

Legacy builds in GCHKP one year on from GC2018 Commonwealth Games

Investment, Innovation, Research, Residents and Retail

One year on from the start of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games, the GCHKP has welcomed its first residents to the new Smith Collective renter’s community, the first of the retailers have opened their doors, an exciting new co-working and innovation space COHORT will support the next generation of innovators, and Griffith University’s Advanced Design and Prototyping Technologies Institute (ADaPT) is ready to break ground later this year.

Gold Coast Private Hospital has opened its $50 million second stage expansion, while the $25 million Southport Sharks Mantra at Sharks boutique hotel is about to celebrate its first birthday. And more than 5,000 babies have been born at the Gold Coast University Hospital!

Investment opportunities for the 9.5 hectares of health and knowledge commercial land are also progressing – in addition to the flagship $80 million ADaPT development, two other sites are earmarked for development and investor interest is strong in China and Singapore. The ADaPT opportunity has also lured the Australian headquarters of global 3D printing pioneer Materialise to call the GCHKP home. We welcomed China’s Sinobioway representatives to the Precinct early this year to sign MOU’s to work with the GCHKP and Griffith University – we’re excited to see how this great opportunity for research collaboration and investment develops.

Griffith University has welcomed new Vice Chancellor, Professor Carolyn Evans, with the retirement of long-standing VC Professor Ian O’Connor. Student numbers on campus have now risen to more than 20,000, including almost 800 research students.

Griffith has risen in the global rankings to firmly cement its place in the top 2% of universities worldwide. In the 2018 Excellence in Research Australia (ERA) rankings the university doubled to 20 the number of specific fields in which researchers perform at the highest level ‘well above world standard‘, with a total of 59 fields of research in which Griffith research is now ranked at world standard or above.

New Griffith Vice Chancellor Professor Carolyn Evans

Glycomics research goes from strength to strength

Professor Mark von Itzstein had the deserving honour of carrying the Queen’s Baton for the GC2018 relay last year – his Institute for Glycomics continues to go from strength to strength, including receiving $500,000 from the Australian Government for the Malaria Vaccine project; reporting promising research on using an existing Alzheimer’s drug to combat antibiotic resistance, and work on a potential blood test for early diagnosis of ovarian cancer.

Principal Research Leader Professor Michael Good continues to be busy with his work on vaccines for Malaria and the Strep A bacteria. He’s also received $2.5 million in funding from the Heart Foundation to work on preventing strokes caused by Strep A.

Top honours for academics

Professor Huijun Zhao, Director of the#GriffithUniversity Centre for Clean Environment and Energy received major global recognition as a ‘Highly Cited’ researcher – well done on this significant honour.

Griffith Deputy Vice Chancellor (Academic) Professor Debra Henly was appointed as a board member of the National Science and Technology Advisory Council. Well done Professor Henly.

Retail is open at Smith Collective

Australia's first renters community - residents and retail move in

The first 200 residents have moved into the first two buildings at Smith Collective
Woolworths and BWS opened the retail precinct, with boutique retailers to come
Smith Homebase, events and community gardens up and running

The future looks bright here in the Precinct

Filed Under: HEALTH, INVEST

Clinical trial capacity grows through collaboration and cost advantage

Austrade's A/g Manager International Health Abdul Ekram (centre), with representatives from the GCHKP, Grififth University Clinical Trials Unit and Gold Coast Health

The Gold Coast Health and Knowledge Precinct is drawing national and international attention as a clinical trial hot spot, with a senior Austrade representative outlining the growing opportunities for the Precinct in the global clinical trial landscape.

Griffith University’s Clinical Trial Unit (CTU), together with the Gold Coast Health and Hospital Service, are fast building the GCHKP’s clinical trial capacity through a collaborative approach that brings researchers and clinicians together with industry partners to build business opportunities and best practice, supported by Australia’s cost-advantage and reputation.

Collaboration was formalised through an MOU, signed in November 2017, and continues to build with more than 100 registered trials either underway or completed.

Speaking at the inaugural ‘lunch and learn’ event, Austrade’s A/g Manager International Health, Mr Abdul Ekram, outlined the cost advantage of clinical trials in Australia, with early-phase trials 60% cheaper than they are in the United States, after tax incentives.

1,300 clinical trails are conducted in Australia each year, 63% involving industry, with the US sponsoring around 6,000 trials a year, 260 of which are conducted in Australia – there is a real growth opportunity

Professor Michael Good (left) participating in his own first-in-human clinical trial for a whole parasite Malaria vaccine with GCUH Director of Infectious Diseases Dr John Gerard

Trials range from Phase I to IV, including a second stage (1b) trial of the novel malaria vaccine PlasProtecT®, developed by the Institute for Glycomics’s Professor Michael Good AO and Senior Research Fellow Danielle Stanisic through extensive research since 2010; to a trauma study investigating whether early cooling of patients with severe traumatic brain injury produces better outcomes, led by the GCUH’s Director of Trauma and Griffith University Professor of Traumotology, Dr Martin Wullschleger.

Many trials are national and international multi-centre studies, including as part of Clinical Trials Networks such as the Australasian Kidney Trials Network, Australasian Stroke Trials Network and the National Trauma Research Institute, and conducted with leading global pharmaceutical and medtech companies, including Stryker, Medtronic, Paradigm Biopharmaceuticals and more.

Trials range across pharmaceutical studies for new and existing drugs, medical devices and surgical procedures to cancer treatment and a full range of medical specialty areas including haemotology, oncology, cardiology, endocrinology, interventional neuroradiology (led by global expert and GCUH specialist Dr Hal Rice), neurology, emergency medicine, surgery, trauma, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics, allied health and complimentary medicine.

A full-list of Gold Coast Health registered trials is available here.

Dr Martin Wullschleger, GCUH Medical Director of Trauma, GU Professor of Traumology

Griffith University’s Clinical Trial Unit (CTU), located in the Griffith Health Centre on the Gold Coast campus adjacent to Gold Coast University Hospital, offers purpose-built, GCP aligned facilities for Phase I–IV clinical trials.

As a Core Research Facility of the University, the unit supports staff and collaborators to conduct a wide range of investigator initiated trials. It also provides professional trial coordination services to external clients such as the pharmaceutical, biotech, nutraceutical and complementary medicine industries, as well as Clinical Research Organisations.

The CTU has successfully conducted trials in: