CAMBRIDGE BIOSTART is an initiative of the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce High Tech and Science Committee. As the preeminent business organization in Cambridge, the Chamber's objective is to support the business community. The focus of this committee is to enable both high tech and life sciences organizations to build, grow and maintain their businesses in Cambridge. CAMBRIDGE BIOSTART specifically addresses the business needs of the growing number of life sciences' start-ups in Cambridge.

The City of Cambridge is an international center of life sciences research and de­velopment, with the presence of both large biotechnology and pharma companies and smaller “start-up” entities. Several prominent universities, Harvard and MIT, as well several major research hospitals, are also located within the city limits. The city welcomes biotechnology based research and development and has a well-developed permitting and oversight mechanism that works with companies to ensure safe and responsible research.

The regulatory and permitting process, however, can be daunting for some organiza­tions. As a start-up, they may be lacking a designated “business person,” knowledge and the organizational resources to easily acquire, assimilate and submit all of the necessary documentation in a timely manner. CAMBRIDGE BIOSTART will help jump­start this process.

The guidebook is organized by permitting issue and offers an easy place to aggregate, organize and store all forms and resources. It can easily be supplemented with new and updated materials as need be. The Web site is filled with resources and links that help guide organizations through the process and connects them with the agencies and individuals that can respond to their inquiries.

The regulatory landscape is an ever-changing environment, by no means is this list an exhaustive or permanent list of the permits, certificates and contacts needed for the process. We suggest that it be used as a starting point and that organizations verify all regulations and forms with the appropriate agencies to ensure the latest regulatory needs have been met.

Our thanks go to the sponsors of the CAMBRIDGE BIOSTART initiative — Burns and Levinson LLP, Cusp Development, Gwathmey, Inc. and The Staubach Company, for their generous support. Additional thanks to the members of the Chamber's High Tech and Science Committee for their vision and dedication to this project. Special thanks to Aram Salzman of Novobiotic Pharmaceuticals for his help and inspiration.

The Cambridge Chamber of Commerce hopes to continue to work with start-up entities from birth to help them grow and thrive in Cambridge. Let us know how we can help your organization by emailing info@cambridgebiostart.org or calling the Cambridge Chamber of Commerce at (617) 876-4100.