The scheme was fully let before completion of building works, well ahead of target, and with rents achieved of over £43 per square foot, as the life sciences sector continues to go from strength to strength. The final deal was 25,000 sq ft of space which has been let to Bit Bio, a world-leader synthetic biology company who will be the sixth company to take occupancy at the landmark new scheme, alongside PetMedix, Mission Therapeutics, Inivata, RxCelerate and Artios Thereaputics. The six separate laboratory and office spaces are split across two buildings and are regarded as some of the highest quality real estate to have recently hit the Cambridge market.
Michael Jones, Director, Cheffins says: “BioMed Realty is one of the biggest players in property solutions for the life sciences and technology sectors and this lease by Bit Bio is the last in a series of successful lettings at BioMed@Babraham on the world-renowned Research Campus. This space was specifically targeted at life sciences and technology companies which have outgrown incubator space and were looking to scale-up. The continued success and expansion of companies in this sector is driving the demand spike for laboratory and office space and this, coupled with a lack of Grade A stock has led to significant rental growth. Cambridge continues to be a world-leading location for the technology and life sciences sectors, and this has created an incomparable opportunity for developers such as BioMed Realty as the Cambridge cluster looks to compete with other locations on a global scale. Prices achieved at the BioMed@Babraham scheme have reached over £43 per square foot, making them some of the most valuable within the current market.”
BioMed@Babraham is one of a series of buildings in locations such as Granta Park and Chesterford Research Park which will offer fitted laboratory space for companies looking to scale-up operations but not yet large enough to lease buildings in their entirety. PetMedix and Mission Therapeutics have both already taken occupancy whilst Bit Bio and other tenants are due to be in place in the coming weeks.
BioMed Realty entered the UK market in 2012 and has been dedicated to developing Grade A lab and office space for the life sciences sector.
Cheffins continues to advise BioMed Realty across its 850,000 sq ft Cambridge portfolio.