Pictured, left to right: BIOVECTRA Process Development Senior Scientist, Kathryn Lewis; Trainee Neeraj Vedantam; and Hardik Upadhyay, CASTL Biomanufacturing Trainer and Site Manager, Charlottetown.
Montréal, QC – June 18, 2025 – The Canadian Alliance for Skills and Training in Life Sciences (CASTL) today announced the CASTL BioBridge Co-op Training Program, a program to prepare post-secondary co-op students for roles in biotechnology and biomanufacturing. Funded through the Future Skills Centre, BioBridge blends classroom theory, intensive practice on state-of-the-art equipment, and immersion in CASTL’s GMP-simulated training facilities, ensuring that students learn essential technical and compliance skills in advance of their summer coop work terms
This initiative embodies CASTL’s commitment to excellence in workforce development meeting learners at every stage of their career journey. CASTL’s industry-experienced subject-matter experts designed every module of the curriculum to ensure learning outcomes map directly to biomanufacturing competencies. By uniting academia and industry in a single training pathway, the initiative accelerates the flow of job-ready talent into biomanufacturing facilities and showcases how strategic partnerships can help solve Canada’s life-sciences skills gap.
"Industry consistently reinforces the need for hands-on training in GMP fundamentals as the single biggest gap for new talent,” said Penny Walsh-McGuire, CEO of CASTL. “CASTL’s BioBridge Co-op Training Program bridges that gap by exposing students to a GMP-simulated training facility and industry experienced trainers giving them hands-on access to upstream, downstream and quality-control equipment similar to that used in their work placement."
"Hands-on training in real-world environments is essential to prepare students for high-demand roles,” added Noel Baldwin, Executive Director of the Future Skills Centre. “We’re proud to support CASTL BioBridge and its potential to create smoother transitions and improve productivity to meet the workforce of Canada’s growing biomanufacturing sector needs.”
CASTL gratefully acknowledges the partner colleges, universities and employers whose insights into student competencies, job requirements and training quality have shaped the BioBridge program from concept to launch. Their ongoing feedback will help refine the program curriculum, provide students with hands-on experience, and support them in their career progression.
In the pilot stage, BioBridge will help evaluate how targeted GMP training boosts student confidence, contribution, and productivity in their co-op work placements. Early findings will clarify whether students—equipped with core GMP fundamentals—enter worksites ready to add value immediately, while employers benefit from interns whose learning can be aligned quickly with facility‑specific processes, shortening onboarding time and lowering associated costs and risk. At the same time, academic partners support their students learning journey and path to employment by offering this advanced pre‑placement training, attracting high‑calibre applicants and improving graduate employment outcomes.
Among the first companies to participate in the project was BIOVECTRA, a part of Agilent, an Atlantic Canadian company specializing in clinical-to-commercial scale production for biologics, synthetic small molecules, highly potent APIs, and bioreagents, as well as in pDNA and mRNA vaccine manufacturing. As part of the BioBridge pilot, the company enrolled eight of their interns from McGill University in the program in Charlottetown.
“As we celebrate our 55th anniversary, BIOVECTRA, now part of Agilent, is proud to be a partner in the BioBridge initiative,” affirmed Normand Blais, Chief Science Officer, BIOVECTRA. “Our collaboration with CASTL supports the next generation of biomanufacturing talent – strengthening Canada’s biologics ecosystem and building the skilled workforce that will drive future industry growth.”
BioBridge was delivered at CASTL’s GMP-simulated facilities in Vancouver, Charlottetown, and Montréal. For more information on the CASTL BioBridge Co-op Training Program, contact Kelsey Turner, Program Manager, at kelsey@castlcanada.ca
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About CASTL
The Canadian Alliance for Skills and Training in Life Sciences (CASTL) is Canada’s biomanufacturing training partner, dedicated to developing skilled talent to drive the country’s thriving biomanufacturing sector. With state-of-the-art, GMP-simulated facilities from coast to coast (in Charlottetown, PE; Montreal QC, and Vancouver, BC), CASTL delivers hands-on, industry-informed training alongside flexible online learning. As Canada’s exclusive provider of National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT) programs, CASTL offers world-class education with support from adMare BioInnovations and its adMare Academy, shaping the next generation of life sciences professionals.
About Future Skills Centre
Future Skills Centre (FSC) is a forward-thinking centre for research and collaboration dedicated to driving innovation in skills development so that everyone in Canada can be prepared for the future of work. We partner with policymakers, researchers, practitioners, employers and labour groups, and post-secondary institutions to solve pressing labour market challenges and ensure that everyone can benefit from relevant lifelong learning opportunities. FSC is founded by a consortium whose members are Toronto Metropolitan University, Blueprint, and The Conference Board of Canada, and is funded by the Government of Canada's Future Skills Program.
About BIOVECTRA
BIOVECTRA is a part of Agilent, a leader in clinical and analytical lab technologies and specialized CDMO services. With operations in Atlantic Canada, BIOVECTRA specializes in clinical-to-commercial scale production capabilities for biologics, synthetic small molecules, highly potent APIs, and bioreagents. Its expertise has expanded into pDNA and mRNA vaccine manufacturing. Currently it employs close to 700 people across a variety of roles in science, quality, manufacturing and production, and business administration.
Media Contacts
Heidi Reinblatt
Director, Marketing and Communications
Canadian Alliance for Skills and Training in Life Sciences (CASTL)
Heidi@castlcanada.ca
Eglantine Ronfard
Director, Strategic Communications, FSC
eglantine.ronfard@torontomu.ca
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