BioTrain will bring more workers into the regional economy, prepare talent for priority positions, connect historically excluded residents with high-quality jobs, and catalyze innovation by diversifying workplaces. Developed through years of ongoing collaboration with industry leaders like BioCrossroads, Purdue University, Ivy Tech, and others, BioTrain addresses the specific skills and qualifications needed to tackle workforce shortages. BioTrain will be a combination of classroom and hands-on training on state-of-the art equipment, located in a physical building in the 16 Tech Innovation District. Flexible, stackable credentials of value, coupled with training on actual production equipment and with real-world industry experiences, will prepare participants for entry-level biomanufacturing roles and feed into existing higher credentials for technician, engineer, or scientist roles. BioTrain, through EmployIndy, will also build awareness among targeted populations, recruit from community-based organizations, offer wrap-around services for trainees, and facilitate warm hand-offs between training and employment in high-quality jobs.
Employers will also be able to upskill or reskill their current workforce. Importantly, BioTrain will include industry-recognized curriculum (e.g., NIBRT, already used by Lilly and many others) with a regionally-exclusive contract, creating a biomanufacturing workforce development hub that attracts and connects talent from around the country with regional employment.
Construction on the training facility, which will also serve as the Heartland BioWorks Headquarters, is set to commence later this year and will take roughly two years to complete. However, trainings will be built out and take place at other locations during its construction, including in the Ivy Tech and Eli Lilly Manufacturing Innovation Training Center at the Emerging Manufacturing Collaboration Center in 16 Tech.