Biomanufacturing sounds complicated, but in a simple explanation, it is using biology and biological systems to perform certain operations in the manufacturing process. The goal is to produce goods and products that can be sold in the marketplace. Listen in this episode as Blake Simmons, Chief Science & Technology Officer and Vice President for Deconstruction at the Joint BioEnergy Institute, describes how biomanufacturing supports the U.S. goal of increased domestic production.
In this 9-minute audio interview, Simmons discusses beer and wine as the forerunners of today’s biomanufacturing economy.
Listen below or read a transcript of this interview.
In addition to his role at JBEI, Simmons is also the Division Director of Biological Systems and Engineering in the Biosciences Area of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). Simmons has also been part of the Senior Management team at Sandia National Laboratories, most recently serving as the Senior Manager of Advanced Biomanufacturing, Biomass Program Manager. His expertise includes biofuels, renewable chemicals, biomanufacturing, abiotic-biotic interfaces, biomass pretreatment, enzyme engineering, biofuel cells, templated nanomaterials, microfluidics, desalination, and biomineralization.