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Marking a day of "multiple celebrations," nine companies, some from abroad opening their first U.S. offices, were welcomed Monday at the dedication ceremony for the new $5 million Germantown Innovation Center at Montgomery College's Germantown campus.

Among the first tenants at the county's fifth incubator are JOINN Laboratories of China, opening its first U.S. office, and Advent InfoSystems LLC, the first U.S. office for parent Advent Software of Prune, India.

JOINN is a contract research organization that provides drug development services, from early-stage drug screening to late-stage regulatory toxicology studies. Advent InfoSystems provides health care informatics services designed to enable better access to health care for patients and help improve practice efficiency for providers.

Another new tenant is CureKids USA, the U.S. office for a venture philanthropy organization in New Zealand. The organization, more than 30 years old, has invested $19 million in medical research and development over the years, according to company information.

The county's fifth incubator has 32,000 square feet and features 45 offices and 11 wet labs, along with two clean rooms, two conference rooms, a full kitchen and several green-design elements. The nine new tenants have already leased a total of 14 offices and have about 25 employees combined.

"The opening of our fifth and newest incubator facility will, no doubt, help further the county's economic development vision to be a globally competitive, highly diversified and knowledge-based economy that provides for the retention and growth of existing companies, stimulates new job creation and enhances entrepreneurial opportunities for all businesses," said Montgomery County Executive Isiah Leggett (D), one of many elected officials who gave remarks Monday.

David W. Edgerley, the state's Department of Business and Economic Development secretary, presented a ceremonial check reflecting DBED's $1.4 million contribution to the creation of the incubator. DBED's funding was part of $5 million for the project from federal, state and county government sources, and college and private-sector contributions.

Hercules Pinkney, vice president and provost for the Germantown campus, welcomed a capacity crowd in the renovated Goldenrod Academic Center building, which hosts the incubator facility on the second floor, by calling it a day of "multiple celebrations," as college officials were also marking the 30-year anniversary of the Germantown campus and the dedication of the academic center, which has classrooms and faculty office space.

The other companies joining the incubator are Advanced Biomimetic Sensors, which develops and commercializes diagnostic medical devices; Datarchive, which provides off-site disaster recovery tools and services for businesses; Expertech Solutions, an engineering services company; Mosaigen Informatics, which was founded to "acquire, develop, aggregate and commercializes a series of propriety and enabling online and other technologies for health care, life sciences and other markets"; Syntegra Solutions, an audit and consulting company; and Torres Networks, a virtual member of the incubator that is headquartered in Ireland and provides Internet protocol service management products that "enable optimal roll out of subscriber-centric, next generation networks."

Other officials speaking and attending the event included Rep. Christopher Van Hollen Jr. (D-Dist. 8) of Kensington; state Sens. Nancy J. King (D-Dist. 39) of Montgomery Village and Robert J. Garagiola (D-Dist. 15) of Germantown; Del. Brian J. Feldman (D-Dist. 15) of Potomac; Montgomery County Council President Michael J. Knapp (D-Dist. 2) of Germantown; college president Brian Johnson; and county economic development director Pradeep Ganguly.

"We welcome the first nine companies to our newest incubator and look forward to welcoming many more growing companies in the very near future," Ganguly said in a statement.

This newest incubator facility joins four others in Silver Spring, Wheaton and Rockville, and was developed by a partnership between the county's economic development department and the college. Johnson told the crowd that the Goldenrod building dedicated Monday was the first step in a "much larger vision" by the college to create an integrated academic, business and research environment on the Germantown campus, including the development of a science and technology park and bioscience education center.

"I commend the Department of Economic Development's strategic partnership with Montgomery College, and the larger public-private partnership, that helped ensure the completion of this facility for both the college and county and the ongoing success of this joint endeavor," Leggett said in a statement.