Foster Business Library


Biotechnology Industry


Foster Business Library research guides are aimed at University of Washington students, faculty, and staff, highlighting resources available to them; users not currently affiliated with the university may be unable to access some of these resources.
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Foster Business Library Databases:

The Foster Business Library offers an extensive collection of over fifty databases on its homepage; see under Databases. For a complete list of Foster databases, see the List of All Business Databases. Access to these databases from off campus requires that you first go to the Off-Campus Access button, in the upper right of all library webpages. These resources may not be accessed from off campus except by those with a valid UW Net ID and password. For more information on Foster business databases, click Databases, A-Z. For information on which Foster business databases to use, see the Database Index. For information on accessing Foster databases from off campus, see Database Access. For guidelines on responsible database usage, see Database Usage.

  • Forrester Research:   Under Business Databases on the Foster Business Library homepage. Forrester Research provides access to reports and briefings on the effects of technology change on businesses, consumers, and society, and analyzes such technology areas as new media, computing, software, networking, telecommunications, and the Internet. To use this database, UW users must establish a personal account from a UW IP address. (Available from off-campus.)

    See over 150 reports in the Healthcare & Life Sciences industry.

  • Gale Virtual Reference Library:   On the Foster Business Library homepage, listed under List of All Business Databases.   The Gale Virtual Reference Library is a database of encyclopedias, almanacs, and specialized reference sources for multidisciplinary research; go to Business for three major business sources:   the Encyclopedia of American Industries (4th ed., 2005), the Encyclopedia of Business and Finance (2001), and the Encyclopedia of Small Business (2nd ed., 2002).

    See the industry profiles for SIC 2834: Pharmaceutical Preparations and for SIC 2836: Biological Products, Except Diagnostic Substances, in the 2005 Encyclopedia of American Industries.

  • Hoovers Online:   Under Business Databases on the Foster Business Library homepage. Hoovers Online offers information on over 40,000 public and private companies worldwide, with links to company homepages and annual reports, charts, company capsule, competitors, divisions, earnings, financials, history, industry information, insider trading, mission statements, news links, press releases, officers, patents, products, SEC filings, splits, subsidiaries, etc.

    See the Biotechnology Overview and Web Resources.

  • Investext:   On the Foster Business Library homepage, listed under Business Databases; also listed under Company and Industry. Investext contains indexing and the full text of company and industry research reports prepared by leading Wall Street firms, as well as regional and international brokerage and financial firms. All reports are in PDF format. (This database is available widely on campus and may be accessed from home via the U.W. connectivity kit or via the Libraries' proxy server.)

    A search for reports on the Biotechnology industry produced over 13,000 reports.

  • Lexis-Nexis Academic Universe:  To find company information, go to Business and then to Company Financial where you can obtain financial and other data by for companies. Information is available from twenty different sources (each of which must be searched separately). SEC filings, particularly company 10K annual reports, are a particularly rich source of company as well as industry information. Use your browser's Find command (or Control-F) to locate references to particular terms of interest in 10K filings such as trends, strategy, competitors, industry, etc.

    Under Industry News, click on Biotechnology News.

  • MarketResearch.com Academic:   This database contains comprehensive full-text market research reports covering a broad range of markets, industries, and companies from reputable market intelligence sources such as Packaged Facts, Icon Group, and many others, for U.S. and global markets, covering over 2,000 industries and products.

    As an example, a search for the term Biotechnology produced over eighty reports.

  • Mergent Online:   On the Foster Business Library homepage, listed under Business Databases; click on Company and Industry.   Online access to the print edition of the Mergent Manuals, with extensive information on 11,000 U.S. and 17,000 international companies, including financials, stock, properties, joint ventures, annual reports, subsidiaries, S.E.C. filings, etc. For search tips, see About Mergent Online.

    An advanced search in this database for the primary NAICS code for Biotechnology, NAICS 541710 (Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences), in U.S. and international sources, produced a list of over 140 companies.

  • ReferenceUSA:   On the Foster Business Library homepage, listed under Business Databases; also listed under Company and Industry. Directory information for 14 million companies in the U.S.  Companies can be searched for by name, business activity, size and location. With this database, it is possible to identify businesses by geographic area and type of business, as well as by number of employees and gross annual sales. (This database is available widely on campus and may be accessed from home via the U.W. connectivity kit or via the Libraries' proxy server.)

    A custom search for the NAICS code for Biotechnology, NAICS 541710, produced over 30,000 firms in the U.S., including over 700 firms in the state of Washington.

    Web Resources:

    Unlike library databases, Web resources are available wherever you have web access; they do not require that you access them via the Off-Campus Access button, in the upper right of all library webpages. When using web resources, be sure to evaluate the credibility of these resources. For a subject index to web resources, see Business Resources on the Web on the Foster Business Library homepage.

  • About Biotech:   This site is part of the offerings of the National Health Museum, intended to provide "high school biology and life science teachers access to their colleagues, scientists, and critical sources of new scientific information via the World Wide Web. The program was originally developed and launched by Genentech Inc., a leading biotechnology company that discovers, develops, manufactures and markets human pharmaceuticals for significant unmet medical needs." This site is a good starting point for understanding the biotechnology industry, with links to the chronology of biotech, biotechnology in pharmaceuticals, food, farms and forensics, and biotech issues and ethics. See the Biotechnology Industry Review.

  • Baker Library Industry Guides:   Excellent industry guides from the Harvard University Business School Baker Library on Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals, Computer Hardware & Components, Computer Software & Services, Consulting, Food & Grocery & Beverage & Tobacco, Healthcare, Investment Management & Investment Banking, Nonprofits, Governments & Education, Personal & Household Products, Publishing & Printing, Retail-Wholesale, Telecommunications & Communications, and Venture Capital & Private Equity. See their guide for the Biotechnology.

  • Biotechnology Industry Organization:   "In 1993, when there were but a handful of biotechnology drugs on the market and the sequencing of the human genome was pegged for completion somewhere around 2005, two small Washington-based biotechnology trade organizations merged to create the Biotechnology Industry Organization, better known as BIO. One of the founding organizations, the Industrial Biotechnology Association (IBA), primarily represented larger, established companies on Capitol Hill and before federal regulatory agencies; the other, the Association of Biotechnology Companies (ABC), represented emerging companies and universities, and focused on technology transfer issues, meetings and other business development activities. BIO united the organizations' 503 companies and 18 employees under one umbrella." See their Guide to Biotechnology and Industry At A Glance.

  • Biotechnology Information Directory:   This site is an information portal for biotechnology, with links to sources of information, publications, products, services, clinical trials, software, companies in the industry, education, and more.

  • Business Full Coverage (Yahoo! Daily News):   Yahoo! Daily News for business includes Business Full Coverage webpages for four dozen important business topics of high interest, including many industries. These full coverage reports collect articles, webpages, and links to relevant organizations, audio, video, and recent news stories. See Biotechnology and Genetics.

  • The Business of Biotech:   This article in the online edition of the June 2000 issue of the Harvard Business School Bulletin describes where the industry is headed, with comments from industry veterans and experts.

  • Business Updates:   According to Robert Berkman, "This portal collects timely headlines from online news sites and a selection of blogs via the use of RSS feed technology. Business Updates currently provides news headlines on more than a dozen popular, narrowly defined business topics as well as news about and from 15 large corporations." See their Biotech Update.

  • Career Guide to Industries:   This Bureau of Labor Statistics site, part of the online Occupational Outlook Handbook, offers a career-oriented description of many industries, with information on the nature of the industry, working conditions, employment, occupations in the industry, training, earnings and outlook, as well as sources of additional information. See the industry profile for the Drug Manufacturing industry in the United States.

  • Gary Price's List of Lists:   This site, developed by a librarian, is devoted to lists of the largest or top or leading companies or individuals in a wide variety of industries, culled from an enormous number of magazines. See his lists on the Health Care industry.

  • Industry Profiles (Wetfeet.Com):   This job hunting site from Wetfeet.Com, offers profiles of 31 industries, with an industry overview, trends, industry organization, job prospects, what's great and what's to hate in the industry, from the viewpoint of a jobseeker, major companies in the industry, and example job descriptions and tips on how to get hired in the industry. There are also links to industry associations and a profile of an individual working in the industry. The amount of industry information makes up for annoying popups. See their lowdown on the Biotechnology and Pharmaceuticals industry.

  • Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America:   "The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) represents the country's leading research-based pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies." See the link to their Publications for the Industry Profile.

  • U.S. Food and Drug Administration:   This government agency regulates the pharmaceutical industry in the U.S. as well as the medical product and devices marketplace. See the link for the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research; among other things, see its Information about the Products We Regulate.

  • U.S. Office of Biotechnology Activities:   This office, part of the National Institutes of Health, "monitors scientific progress in human genetics research in order to anticipate future developments, including ethical, legal, and social concerns, in basic and clinical research involving Recombinant DNA, Genetic Technologies, and Xenotransplantation," among many activities.

  • Wikipedia:   This free online user-created and maintained encyclopedia can be a good starting point for an orientation to a topic. See their entry for Biotechnology.

  • Yahoo! Finance Industry Center:   This site is a good source for industry information as well as on the companies in industries. Under Healthcare, see Biotechnology & Drugs, for a list of companies in the industry, leaders and laggards, top stock performers, market capitalization rankings, industry statistics, etc.

    Foster Business Library Reference Collection:

    The Foster Business Library Reference Collection consists of business handbooks, encyclopedias, dictionaries, and other quick reference tools. It is located behind the Reference Desk in Foster, arranged by call number. Reference materials cannot be checked out; they may only be used in the library.

  • Standard & Poor's industry surveys.
    This three-volume set provides 30-page profiles on 52 industries with a focus on the current economic environment, trends, regulation and outlook for each industry. Major companies in each industry are profiled, with references to sources of additional industry information.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HC106.6 .S74 (Quarterly)

    See Biotechnology in volume one.

  • Industry studies.
    This excellent reference work provides essays, mostly by professors of economics, about 14 significant industries: automobiles, beer, broilers, pharmaceuticals, steel, airline service, retail commercial banking, casino gambling, electric power, health insurance, motion pictures, nursing homes, microcomputer platforms, and telecommunications.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HC106.8 .I53 2002.

    See Pharmaceuticals on pages 96 to 117.

  • Encyclopedia of global industries.
    Twelve-page descriptions of 125 global industries, with background and development information, current conditions, industry leaders and further reading.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HD2324 .E53 2003.

    See Biotechnology on pages 53 to 68.

  • Encyclopedia of emerging industries.
    Five page descriptions of over 100 new industries, with an industry snapshot, organization and structure, background and development, pioneers in the field, current conditions, industry leaders and references to further reading.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HD2324 .E528 2001.

    See Genetic Engineering, pages 289 to 298.

  • HDMA industry profile and healthcare factbook.
    This spiral bound paperback, published by the Healthcare Distribution Management Association (formerly the National Wholesale Druggists' Association), provides a wealth of data about the drug, biotech, and related distribution industries, as well as copious health care and drug data, demographics, trends, etc.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HD9666.1 .N92 (Annual)

  • Plunkett's biotech & genetics industry almanac.
    This new reference paperback provides statistics, trend, and company information about this industry, with tables, charts and company profiles.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HD9999 .B44 .P58 (Annual)

    See industry information in the first several chapters.

  • Market share reporter.
    Annual two-volume compilation of U.S. and world market share data for companies, products and services, arranged by SIC code, and with indexes by product, company and topic.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HF5410 .M35 (Annual)

    See the tables for Biotechnology and for Drugs.

  • Business rankings annual.
    This annual volume provides 5,000 rankings of companies, products, services and business activities, with data culled from thousands of sources.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HG4050 .B88 2004.

    See Biotechnology Industry on pages 107 to 108.

  • Mergent industry review.
    Statistical data on 3,000 companies in 137 industries, with ranking, key financial information, operating data and ratios.
    Foster Business Library Reference, CALL NUMBER: HG4961 .M68.

    See industry review #075, Biotechnology.

    Foster Business Library Books:

    The Foster Business Library maintains a collection of over 70,000 books on all business topics. To search for materials on all three campuses of the University of Washington, go to the UW Libraries Catalog, in the upper left corner of the Foster Business Library homepage. Search by keyword, title, author, series, etc.

    To limit the results of your search just to materials in the Foster Business Library collection, use the Modify or Limit options at the top of the search results and change the library location to Foster Business Library. Availablity is indicated on the right of each online catalog record. First, note in which collection, within Foster, your materials are in, since the library has ten different Collections, each in a different location and often with differing arrangements. "Available" indicates that the book should be on the shelves under that call number and available for you to check out. "Due" and a date indicates that the book is already checked out to someone and is due back on the date indicated; you can have the "Request/Place Hold" feature to recall the book for your use.

    If the material you want is not in the collections of the University of Washington, you can use the "Search Summit" feature to repeat your search in the combined holdings of over thirty cooperating libraries in Washington and Oregon. Use the "Request This Item" feature in Summit to have books in those library sent here to Foster for you to check out.

    The Foster general stacks collection is located south of the main part of the Foster Business Library, through the two pass-throughs into the basement of Balmer. The arrangement is by call number, from A (at the east end, near the Copy Center) to Z (at the far west end).

    A search for the subject Biotechnology Industries retrieved over 190 records in the UW Libraries, with over fifty records in the Foster Business Libraries' collections, including:

    See also books elsewhere in the UW Libraries on such subjects, as:

     Foster Business Library Corporate Annual Reports:

    The Foster Business Library maintains a collection of several thousand annual reports for hundreds of U.S. and foreign companies. These reports are filed in lateral filing cabinets near the Foster Reference desk under the sign Corporate Annual Reports. Annual reports for companies in an industry can be a valuable source of information about the industry itself. For a list of all the companies in the collection, see the library's Corporate Annual Reports Collection. For an index to corporate annual reports in the collection by industry sector, see the Annual Reports Industry Sector Index. For an index to companies in the collection with headquarters outside the U.S., see Corporate Annual Reports Headquarters Index.

    The collection includes annual reports for about thirty companies in the Drug industry.

    Foster Business Library Articles:

    Articles in academic journals, magazines, trade periodicals, and newspapers are one of the best sources for any kind of research. While the Foster Business Library offers a large periodicals print collection, comprising over 800 titles, articles are most easily accessed online, 24/7, in such fulltext article databases as EBSCO Business Source Premier, Factiva, LexisNexis Academic, Newsbank Infoweb, and ProQuest Databases. These article databases are available in the library or from off-campus, and provide access to over 10,000 periodicals and millions of articles.

    Library access to most ProQuest databases will terminate at the end of spring quarter 2008, except for ProQuest NewsStand, ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, Historical New York Times, and the Historical Wall Street Journal. For more about this change, see UW Libraries Providing New Databases. After this change, comprehensive article searches should be performed in EBSCO Business Source Premier, Newsbank Infoweb, and ProQuest NewsStand. Also, after this change, links to the articles below will be broken.

    ProQuest Databases:

    This database--actually, a family of over two dozen databases--offers full text articles for over 10,000 publications, including scholarly journals, magazines, trade and industry periodicals, newspapers, and reports on a very wide range of topics. To find articles on specific topics, search by word or phrase by keying your search phrase into the search box--or search for your topic in the Topic Guide.

    Your search terms will be highlighted in red in each article.

    A search in Publications, for Biotechnology, produced a list of several publications in this database with article full text: Critical Reviews in Biotechnology, the Journal of Commercial Biotechnology, and Nature Biotechnology.

    A subject search for SUB(Biotechnology) produced over 55,000 articles.

    A subject search for SUB(Biotechnology Industry) produced over 13,000 articles. A narrower search, for SUB(Biotechnology Industry) and Seattle, produced over 250 articles.

    Examples of articles, from the searches above, include:

    Help:

    25 August 2004; updated 4 March 2008.   Peter Stevens, Business Librarian, stevens@u.washington.edu