For novel technologies like photobioreactors, infrastructure is scarce. Companies must partner with separate CMOs for upstream cultivation and downstream processing to reach initial commercial revenue before building their own integrated facilities.
After proving a new manufacturing platform with one profitable industrial facility, the fastest path to market-wide adoption is licensing the technology to established players. This trades maximum per-unit profit for speed and scale, leveraging partners' existing infrastructure.
Instead of forcing a microbe to create a foreign product through extensive engineering, first identify what it is predisposed to make. Then, apply minimal genetic "nudges" to optimize existing pathways. This "downhill" approach creates a much more efficient and viable R&D process.
Instead of viewing a pilot plant as just an R&D cost center, design it to be profitable. This self-sustaining model provides commercial validation and helps secure pre-sale agreements, which can then be leveraged to finance a full-scale industrial facility with less investor risk.
For energy-intensive biotech like photobioreactors using LEDs, facility location strategy should prioritize access to cheap, clean energy over conventional factors like climate. Iceland's geothermal power, for example, can be more advantageous than a sunny location that relies on the grid.