Biotechnology is among the advanced technologies that IFEZ is targeting as an engine for future growth. Appropriately, the very first investor was Celltrion, a U.S.- Korean joint venture to provide R&D and large- scale contract manufacturing of mammalian cell culture- derived biologics.

The Location Card Lee Hwan- Kyun, IFEZ Commissioner L ee Hwan- Kyun, IFEZ's commissioner, says location is the zone's biggest calling card. "IFEZ is strategically situated in the center of Northeast Asia, the world's third largest trading region. Particularly, it enjoys immediate accessibility to China, a country of 1.3 billion people, and also connects with 51 cities, each with a population of more than 1 million, within three and a half hours' flight from the Incheon International Airport."

After building a $135- million, 50,000- liter facility in IFEZ, Celltrion is scheduled to begin manufacturing its first commercial product in 2007, and plans to expand its capacity by 120,000 liters by 2010.
   Celltrion cited several reasons for its decision to locate in IFEZ: proximity to both Incheon International Airport and downtown Seoul; a well- educated and highly skilled work force; a high degree of English proficiency; deep resources in sciences, engineering and construction; and government incentives in the form of tax cuts and strong industrial development and infrastructure.
   IFEZ also is seeking to develop a bio- medical hub, providing medical infrastructure in fields such as genome and regenerative medicine and medical devices; seven research institutions including advanced brain science and well- being medicine, and medical clusters in the fields of medical tourism, personalized medicine, advanced medical devices and advanced genome transplantation.
   To help accomplish these goals, in December 2006, IFEZ enlisted Seoul National University College of Medicine and Gachon University of Medicine and Science to establish the East Asia Genome Institute and the Brain Science Research Institute, respectively, and to set up an advanced medical complex in Songdo.
   In January 2007, Yonsei University joined the biomedical hub project, agreeing to promote research and develop new medicines. In addition, Korea University and the Catholic University of Korea signed on to help develop advanced healthcare technology in the areas of a bio bank, biomedical networks and bio education centers.    Songdo is being built from the ground up as the world's first u- city, enabling people to use computers ubiquitously. Major information systems – business, governmental, residential, medical – are built from scratch to share data with computers that are built into homes, streets, office buildings and other facilities.
   Imagine a place where all the city's residents have homes with electronic locks, integrated video- conferencing, video on demand, and non- identity smartcards that grant entry to mass transit, parking and their front doors.
   Songdo's u- IT cluster is designed to include a $377.2 million radio frequency identification (RFID) center and a $90 million ubiquitous sensor network (USN), funded by South Korea's Ministry of Information and Communication. The RFID center and USN will support a research and production facility for design, testing, authenticating and manufacturing.
   Alien Technology, the dominant manufacturer of RFID tags with 70 percent of global market share, has established an Asia headquarters in Songdo, with responsibility for manufacturing, selling and R&D in the Asian region. California- based Alien will invest $10 million for a facility on 4.1 acres (1.6 hectares) in the u- IT Cluster.
   "The advanced stage of the Korean RFID market coupled with the technology capability, leadership and vision demonstrated in adoption of RFID in Korea, make the country an ideal location for the headquarters of Alien's business operations in Asia," said Robert Eulau, CFO and acting CEO, Alien Technology. "We look forward to further engagement with the leaders of the RFID industry in Korea to address the growing opportunities for RFID business across Asia."
   Alien Technology Asia will offer Alien RFID Academy training courses for the Korean market beginning in January 2007 utilizing the u- IT Cluster Center facilities.
   Another advanced technology foreign investor in the IT Cluster is Swiss- based Gudel, which completed its $2.5- million robot assembly factory in December 2006. IFEZ also reports two foreign- invested nanotechnology projects in the Songdo IT area, at a total $37.5 million.