Biological testing company plans Indianapolis expansion, potentially adding 160 workers

Biotech company announces Indianapolis expansion

INDIANAPOLIS — A biological testing company announced Thursday it plans to expand its operations in Indianapolis and add as many as 160 workers in the next four years.

The $74 million project by AIT Laboratories will set up a new headquarters on the city’s northwest side. It entails acquiring and equipping an existing 90,000-square-foot building and building a new toxicology lab.

The company analyzes blood, urine and tissue samples for coroners, police agencies and hospitals around the country. It plans to hire laboratory workers and administrative staff.

“To have a laboratory space, it’s expensive,” company President Michael Evans said. “You need room to put that equipment in. It’s very high-end equipment. It requires a lot of space to operate those pieces of equipment.”

AIT’s existing headquarters is near Indianapolis International Airport.

Gov. Mitch Daniels and Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard joined company officials in the announcement.

The new expansion plans follows AIT’s decision in 2008 to establish a new pharmaceutical testing division in Indianapolis with 130 jobs.

Company officials say it has surpassed that, adding nearly 280 employees in the past 18 months. It has about 475 employees nationwide, including 265 at its current headquarters.

The Indiana Economic Development Corp. offered the company up to $1.8 million in performance-based tax credits toward the project.

Daniels called AIT “one of the jewels in the crown” of central Indiana’s life sciences companies.