CMBB activities are based in the Faculty of Science and primarily associated with the Schools of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, Biological, Earth and Environment Sciences and Chemical Sciences. The Centre is located on the 6th floor of the Biological Sciences Building at the University of New South Wales.

Key research activities also occur within, and in collaboration with the School of Chemistry at UNSW, CSIRO, The Technical University of Denmark, Lund University, the Biomedical Mass Spectrometry Unit, the CRC for Eye Research and Technology, the Center for Biofilm Engineering, the United States Navy, University of Skovde, University of Aarhus, Agricultural University of Norway, National Environmental Research Institute of Denmark and a number of commercial collaborators. The Centre is also a member of a network of international marine Pacific Institutes of Marine Science (PIMS).

The Centre's commercial activities are managed by the commercial arm of the University of New South Wales, Unisearch Pty Ltd and by Biosignal Pty Ltd, a start-up company formed in 1999 to commercialise specific intellectual property arising from the Centre.