John McCLoudis editor of Industrial PropertyJournal.

Trenton, NJ—The decision of the Biotechnology Council ofNew Jersey to change its name to BioNJ as of the end ofSeptember marks a subtle but significant step in the state's effortto push itself to the forefront of the emerging biotech industry.The locally based 220-member trade organization also unveiled a newlogo, a DNA chain within the outline of New Jersey, and marketingslogan, "Advancing the State of Biotechnology."

"We've experienced tremendous growth over the last severalyears, and we expect the growth to continue," says BioNJ presidentDebbie Hart, who helped found the organization in 1994 with CEOsfrom several New Jersey biotech companies. "Depending on whichfigures you use, we're either the third or the fifth largestbiotech cluster in the nation. We had 230 companies as of the lastcount in 2006, and I expect the number is above 240 now."