Virongy Biosciences is adding 70 new jobs in biotech

Virongy Biosciences, a biotech company developing virus-based tech out of Manassas, Virginia, just got some support from state government entities to make a huge expansion to its team.

Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin, the Prince William County Department of Economic Development (PWCDED), the Virginia Economic Development Partnership and the Virginia Jobs Investment Program (VJIP) have publicly assisted the company as it committed to what a statement describes as “a $471,000 expansion with up to 70 new jobs.” Tuesday announcements from both the PWCDED and VEDP did not specify the source of these funds, and affiliated agencies’ representatives did not immediately return Technical.ly’s request for comment.

The move follows the company’s recent relocation to a 2,0000 square foot space at the Northern Virginia Bioscience Center in Innovation Park.

The new jobs are only the latest that the investment program has secured for local companies. Virongy did not immediately respond to a request for details on the new positions.

“From welcoming us to the Prince William Science Accelerator in 2015, when it was just a staff of two, to our new space in the NOVA Bioscience Center, where we have the lab space to expand our ideas, our products, and now our staff — Prince William County has supported us from the start,” said Brian Hetrick, Virongy’s chief scientific officer, in a statement. “We are excited to develop new diagnostic and therapeutic technologies for SARS-CoV-2 variants and other emerging viral pathogens.”

Virongy, which was founded in 2014, works on developing technologies in virology, gene therapy, virus-host cell biology and viral immunology. The company aims to provide new technologies for studying both viruses and viral vectors, as well as clinical diagnostics, disease treatment and more.

“Virongy Biosciences is one of our stand-out success stories not only for the technology and products they produced with our partner George Mason University but also for their commitment to growing their company right here in Innovation Park,” said Christina Winn, executive director of PWCDED. “We are thrilled to have worked with this company to expand and facilitated a productive application to the VJIP program.”

Asked how the county expects to benefit from this program, Winn added in a follow-up response that the area stands to attract significant numbers of specialized workers.

“Securing talent, especially in highly competitive biotechnology fields, is a key to growing Prince William County’s workforce, both in the tech industry and overall,” she said. “The VJIP program allows Virongy’s expansion to focus on the employee attraction they need to scale to the next stage of success.”

The VJIP has made strong progress in accelerating Virginia-based job growth this year. The program, which assists local companies by reducing human resource costs in scaling up a company, has added nearly 400 jobs to the Virginia tech sector this year. In addition to Virongy, it added 70 new positions at Lorton’s Bode Technology, 60 new jobs at Easy Dynamics in Tysons and 180 new roles at Alarm.com, also in Tysons.