Life Technologies to hire 100 people next fiscal in India

[OhioChick]

Source: Economic Times of India

5 Mar, 2012

NEW DELHI: US-based biotechnology firm Life Technologies today said it will hire up to 100 people in India by the end of next fiscal and also plans to set up a manufacturing facility.

"We will add up to 100 people by the end of next fiscal. They will be scientists and technical support specialists," Life Technologies South Asia Manging Director Devashish Ohri told PTI.

He was speaking on the sidelines of an event to introduce a new human genome sequencing equipment 'Ion Proton Sequencer'.

Asked about planned investments in India, he said: "We could invest up to USD 2 to 3 million to set up the manufacturing facility in Delhi." The firm has already ramped up its research laboratory in Delhi, he added.

Read more: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/jobs/life-technologies-to-hire-100-people-next-fiscal-in-india/articleshow/12150634.cms

---

Meanwhile.....last August.....

Layoffs underway at Carlsbad-based Life Technologies

Layoffs began at Life Technologies on Thursday, three weeks after executives revealed plans to cut expenses by as much as $20 million to offset sluggish demand for the Carlsbad company's research laboratory products and the fumbled launch of a new sales strategy in China.

"In the face of a challenging economic environment and as part of the continued evolution of Life Technologies, the company is implementing a number of previously disclosed cost-savings efforts," the company said in a brief statement.

Life declined to say how many jobs were being eliminated or where the cuts were occurring.

http://web.utsandiego.com/news/2011/aug/18/layoffs-underway-carlsbad-based-life-technologies/

[ChromeFoundry]

1. Are they going to be forced to return the US Grant Money?

You know, the taxpayer dollars that funded their research (Not holding my breath).

[sharp_stick]

2. Lifetech doesn't do granted research.

they provide products for research and are not part of any national granting agency.

[ChromeFoundry]

4. So indirectly, tax dollars fund them...

Life Technologies’ performance has been adversely affected by a sustained slowdown in government and academic research funding over the past few quarters, a trend that is expected to continue in 2012. This is significant since the company derives almost 45% of its revenues from these customers.

Source: http://www.zacks.com/stock/news/70192/Life+Technologies+Remains+Neutral

[sharp_stick]

3. These guys are basically the Microsoft of the research industry

they provide products/equipment for biotech and have been for years buying up any and all competitors in their path.

Just over the last few years I can think of:

Applied Biosystems, Ambion and Gibco.

They routinely have layoffs after each and every one of their little mergers.

[usrname]

6. Not so much Microsoft as

taking a page out of Bain & Co. Looks like they learned straight from the Rmoney buy and purge and rehire with foreign workers at 1/10 the wage rate.

[jtuck004]

5. And, lest you are 40 and your delusion includes some vested right to your work...

...
Anonymous sources say approximately 2-4% of their workforce (11,000 people globally and 1,300 people in Carlsbad) will be downsized by the end of the year. While specific positions were not listed as targets, the layoffs are affecting all areas of the business, including R&D, corporate marketing, product marketing, and operations.

It has not escaped notice of many that the laid off people were predominantly over forty years old and had committed a substantial number of years to IVGN/ABI/Life Tech. No good deed goes unpunished. The age factor has led to speculation that an ageism lawsuit may be in the works.
...
here...

So these thousands of at least junior college-educated (most likely?) people will retrain for fabulous positions in the travel industry, or will there be real competition springing up? They bought competitors, and assuming that is intellectual property competitors would have a real reseach job ahead of them, perhaps?

If these fired employees are ever going to get back on an equal footing with that company they are going to have to own and develop assets, and if they can cooperatively and democratically develop competition to these people they could re-employ all of those people, I'm guessin'. I wonder what the scale of that would have to look like, or how possible it really is? Sounds like they could sell into China, at least.