Innovation Nexus Case Study 3 SMEs learn more about how to commercialise health related products at Lifescience Launchpad
With such a diverse cohort of companies spanning drug development, diagnostics and medical devices it was interesting to witness the participants engagement and evident learning throughout the programme Diane Cresswell, Executive Director of Business Development, Bionow A cohort of nine Northwest SMEs, including seven based within the footprint of Greater Manchester Academic Health Science Network (GM AHSN) took part in a unique programme to help them understand more about commercialising their health-related products and services. The Lifescience Launchpad event was organised by Bionow as part of GM AHSN s business engagement programme, which aims to build the best support structure for SMEs who wish to work with us to develop and deliver new innovations into the NHS. Bionow is a not for profit membership organisation for the biomedical / life-sciences industry in the North of England and supports business growth, competitiveness and innovation. The SMEs, listed further down, covered various topics including market research, health economics, developing products to meet specific unmet needs, NHS procurement and how to sell to the NHS, grant and seed funding among others. How it happened Bionow recruited nine companies, all of which are already developing products and services of direct relevance to the NHS, to take part in the programme. Each SME completed a business diagnostic with Bionow in order to gauge future requirements and support needed as part of the three-month programme.
Bionow The attendees were all very experienced in their respective fields but clearly all had much to learn with regard to engaging with the NHS Diane Cresswell, Executive Director of Business Development, Bionow Bionow focuses upon the specific needs of firms at their different stages of development, including dedicated business support programmes, shared procurement schemes with significant cost savings, exclusive insurance benefits, recruitment and training services, local and national events and access to a vibrant network of businesses. Members include start-ups and early stage firms as well as established growthorientated companies there are more than 250 members including corporate sponsor AstraZeneca and university sponsors Manchester, Liverpool, Lancaster, Newcastle, Durham, Sunderland and Leeds. Visit www.optasiamedical.com Innovation Nexus GM AHSN has a specific focus on helping SMEs to develop their products and support the spread of innovation at scale within the NHS. The Launchpad is one of a number of support initiatives we are bringing to Greater Manchester SMEs Linda Magee, Executive Director of Industry and Wealth, GM AHSN Focused on supporting SMEs to do business with the NHS, the GM AHSN has established the Innovation Nexus as a bespoke support system for med-tech in the Greater Manchester region. Supported by 34 member organisations and a range of influential partners, including TRUSTECH, Innovation Nexus acts as a one-stop access hub from which companies can access information, funding opportunities and expertise as well as procurement help. Its current primary priority clinical areas are cardiovascular health, patient safety and digital health/informatics. Visit
Participating SME profiles Blueberry Therapeutics employs cutting-edge nanopolymer drug delivery technology in developing treatments in the areas of infection and inflammation where there is a high-unmet medical need. Its lead product BB0305, a novel nanoparticle antifungal formulation for the topical treatment of onychomycosis, will enter Phase 3 trials in 2016. C-Major has designed and trialled the world s first controlled retraction hypodermic device system that meets the aim of clinicians to reduce the number of needle stick injuries globally. The company is now completing the design and is looking to establish production and device approvals for entry into the fastest growing segment of the $3bn safety syringe market by 2018. Galen Research Limited is a leading international developer of Patient Reported Outcome (PRO) measures for use in clinical trials, health economic studies and routine clinical practice. The company has an established reputation for high quality work with the major UK, European and US pharmaceutical companies. Gelexir Healthcare is introducing a novel, non-surgical procedure for the treatment of chronic lower back pain caused by degenerative disc disease. Imagen Biotech is developing a technology (high content screening) to allow oncologists to personalise chemotherapy and thus select the best treatment for each patient. Lumbacurve International Ltd has designed and manufactured an innovative low back pain relief device. Recent independent clinical trials have shown it to be significantly more effective than current standard treatment guidelines. Newtec Vascular Technology Ltd develops cardiovascular medical devices. Newtec is currently preparing to commence a clinical study on its first product for prevention of vascular stenosis (blood vessel narrowing). The device is simple and quick to fit at the time of surgery with minimal deviation from existing clinical practice. Optasia Medical uses novel image analysis techniques to extract clinically relevant information from medical images to better inform patient treatment. Physicians can then make better-informed decisions in managing patients suffering from musculoskeletal diseases, especially in the elderly. Sensam has developed a point-of-care breath test system to aid diagnosis of a range of illnesses. The current focus is on the diagnosis of a common stomach infection and the trials in clinical environments are currently under way. Further work has just started on fine-tuning of the Sensam system for the lung cancer detection and screening.
How to get IN touch? It s easy to access our expert advice service: Go to /gm-ahsn-advisors Then click on the link saying Access the enquiry system - this will take you to the registration page where you can create an account and fill in the enquiry questionnaires.