When it comes to technology, the Hudson Valley may be best known as a powerhouse in the nanotech and semiconductor area. But the region also has a sizeable life sciences presence with several companies currently expanding, including one that serves an interesting niche.

Simulaids, a manufacturer of medical mannequins, will move into its new factory in Saugerties in January.

   Simulaids, a manufacturer of medical mannequins, was founded in 1963 in Woodstock, N.Y. The company's sales have doubled over the last five years, necessitating a search for larger quarters.
   "We ran out of room," says Jack McNeff, the company's vice president of business operations. "Our board of directors decided to look for plants around here and found nothing that fit our needs. So, we decided to put up an 80,000-sq.-ft. (7,400-sq.-m.) plant ourselves."
   McNeff says Simulaids chose a site in nearby Saugerties after briefly considering moving some operations near a sister company in Wisconsin.
   "We decided as a strategic move that it was better to build on the east coast," McNeff says. "Our trained employees are here and they are what make the company work."
   Simulaids will open its new plant in January and will add about 40 employees to its current work force of about 100 over the next few years. The company's products, which include a range of life-like mannequins and body parts that

Par Pharmaceuticals is expanding its facility in Spring Valley to meet demand for its new patented medicine and other products.

look, breathe and bleed like humans, are used by emergency and medical personnel to practice medical procedures.
   Other companies expanding include Novelties, which plans to add 100 jobs over the next three years at its pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Rockland County. Par Pharmaceutical in Spring Valley is adding 25,000 sq. ft. (2,300 sq. m.) to its operations. The project includes installation of four new packaging lines as Par ramps up production of Menace ES, its new treatment for appetite problems.
   Bayer HealthCare is consolidating operations in Tarrytown with the move of its Diabetes Care Division from Elkhart, Ind. The move adds 100 employees in Tarrytown as Bayer consolidates its North American commercial functions, Bayer Healthcare headquarters functions and Bayer Diagnostics.
   Not surprisingly, there's also been some major recent activity nearby in New Jersey. French pharmaceutical firm Sanofi-aventis will move into a three-building complex in Bridgewater as it consolidates its U.S. headquarters operations. The company is initially leasing 670,000 sq. ft. (66,250 sq. m.) as it brings 3,000 employees to the site. A fourth building, which will add 200,000 sq. ft. (18,580 sq. m.), is planned for the campus. Sanofi-aventis is consolidating from three sites in the Bridgewater area.