BizBIOSCIENCE continued from page 87 growth arrow pointing upward ever since. “We went public the old-fashioned way,” said Grogan. “After we made money and showed we could operate profitably, we were allowed to go public. In those days, that was the way it was done.” Ventana stock was initially offered in June 1996 at $10 per share, which was the start of an amazing run in which Ventana never fell below market expectations in any quarter over the next dozen years. Grogan never regretted that Ventana went public. “If you are going to change hospital practice and the practice of medicine, the denominator of capital that you need is in the hundreds of millions of dollars,’’ he said. “How could you start in a garage off of Grant Road and become a global company without raising capital? And where else are you going to get $100 or $200 million? I happen to be very positive about Wall Street because of its old-fashioned mode of supplying capital for ideas like this. That’s when Wall Street is brilliant.” In 1997, Ventana sold 500 systems. In 1999, the company, which long ago had established locations in Europe, opened offices in Japan and the Asian Pacific. Virtually every year, Ventana improved its medical devices, introduced new models or came up with new products. In 2000, the rapidly growing company purchased land in Oro Valley where it began construction of its modern campus. In 2001, Ventana moved into its new home at Innovation Park, which originally included 182,000 square feet in four buildings. Ventana experienced huge change in 2008. Three more buildings were constructed at the Oro Valley campus, bringing it to its current size of 360,000 square feet in seven buildings. Next, Ventana was purchased by Roche for $3.4 billion. Grogan was among the majority of Ventana board members who favored the Roche buyout offer because Roche gives the company a significantly greater global footprint and the capital required to speed growth. 88 BizTucson
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In late 2010, Ventana announced it would add 500 workers and embark on a $184 million capital investment plan for new buildings and equipment at its headquarters at Innovation Park. The planned expansion translates into an economic impact of $640 million over 10 years for the region, reflecting a ripple effect of jobs, capital investment and increased productivity. Tucson Regional Economic Opportunities, the Town of Oro Valley, Pima County and the State of Arizona provided a $12.2 million economic development incentive package to ensure the Ventana/Roche expansion occurred in Oro Valley.
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The technology and approach at Ventana could go forever. Now with the backing of Roche, I think it could be as big as Raytheon one day.
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– Dr. Ray Woosley President Emeritus Critical Path Institute
The deal includes $8.2 million in property tax reduction from Pima County, $3 million from the state that came from federal stimulus funds and a rebate of up to $1 million in infrastructure impact fees from Oro Valley. George, of Solstice Capital, said Roche could have chosen to pull Ventana from Tucson. “When a company gets started in Tucson, as the company grows and goes public and often gets acquired, there is always a risk that when it gets acquired we will lose it, as we did with BurrBrown,’’ he said. “It is a great success that it has grown, it has gotten to this
scale and that it is planning to continue to grow in Tucson. “You really couldn’t overstate the impact that Ventana has and will have on Tucson’s knowledge-based economy, and especially the biotech sector,’’ George added. “It’s the single most important influence.’’ After the flurry of planned expansion is complete, Grogan said more will come. He said Ventana “is only 1/20th” of what it will eventually be. “In 2011, our products were used to run 32 million assays, or tests, in more than 90 countries,” said Grogan. “It usually takes four tests per patient, that’s the norm. So that means we were involved in the care of 8 million patients. But that’s a drop in the bucket. We want to be in every country in the world, and our big brother Roche is going to help get us there.’’ Aspinall, who became Ventana president in 2011, believes the next decade will bring tremendous change. “In 10 years, I believe every patient’s tissue sample will be digitized so it can be viewed and shared across one health system or across the world by experts in a specific cancer,’’ Aspinall said. “It will also reduce health care costs and provide more specific and faster diagnosis – which will save lives.’’ Aspinall does not believe a single miraculous cure for cancer is coming. Instead, she believes improved diagnostics and therapies may transform cancer from a potential death sentence to a chronic disease. “Given the diversity of the cancer challenge, I don’t believe there will be a one-size-fits-all solution. I believe it is all about diagnostics on day one, and day 30, and day 60, and day 90, and throughout the patient’s treatment and fight against cancer.’’ Ventana is poised to develop the technology to conquer some forms of cancer, and make others manageable. “We think big and out of the box,’’ Aspinall said. “We have earned the right, through our large size, to create new opportunities and push the edge of the envelope.’’ Reporter Eric Swedlund contributed to this report.
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