HIE Lifescience Newsletter Jan 2013

HI-LS Highlands & Islands Life Science newsletter - January 2013

Welcome to the Highlands and Islands Life Science newsletter. Life Sciences is a significant growth sector within the Highlands and Islands, and Scotland, which is rapidly developing a reputation for excellence regionally, nationally and globally. We would like to keep you informed and updated of all the latest life science news, events and activities.

If you have any comments, questions or queries about this newsletter or have an interesting story you would like to include, please contact anna.miller@hient.co.uk.

Don't forget to join the Highlands & Islands Life Sciences group on LinkedIn and follow us on Twitter.

First Minister opens expanded BASF plant on Lewis The First Minister officially opened the extended BASF Pharma (Callanish) Ltd plant on Lewis in December 2012.

Alex Salmond met staff and management at the facility, seven months after BASF – the world’s largest chemical company – took a controlling stake in Lewis based Equateq, a technology leader in lipid chemistry and pharmaceutical omega-3 fatty acid production.

Planned investment worth up to £18 million is already underway at the plant with the potential to create up to 90 new jobs in total as well as safeguarding 25 existing jobs.

As part of this employment expansion, the number of people employed at the plant is already up 22 per cent to 52 and the facility is now fully operational.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise has committed more than £1 million to support the development at the Breasclete site. Alex Paterson, Chief Executive of Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), said: "HIE has been very pleased to work with BASF Pharma (Callanish) and its predecessor Equateq over many years to establish and grow this important business."

Scottish Enterprise also awarded £2.95 million to support the expansion of production capacity at the facility.

Phase one of European Marine Science Park complete Building work has been completed for the first phase of the new multi-million pound European Marine Science Park being developed by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) in Argyll.

The state of the art building at Dunstaffnage, near Oban, will provide 20,000 sq ft of office and laboratory space for existing and new businesses in Scotland's growing Life Sciences and Energy sectors, and has the potential to support up to 125 jobs.

Douglas Cowan of HIE commented: “We are delighted the first of the three buildings which make up the European Marine Science Park is now complete. The building offers businesses co-location with a thriving research, academic

CONTENTS • First Minister opens expanded BASF plant on Lewis • Phase one of European Marine Science Park complete • Inverness Campus comes to life • It's a man thing, but help is on hand to make it better • £50 million fund for university spinouts • SBRI £5m competition • Job Opportunity • Funding Opportunities EVENTS Life Sciences Partnering Event 2013 Supported by Scottish Enterprise, the 2013 Life Sciences Scotland Partnering event will take place on 7 February 2013 from 10:30-16.00 bringing together innovative Biotech, Medtech, Pharma, eHealth and service providers looking for collaborative partners. This event is open to organisations from all Life Science sectors.

The Scottish Enterprise Annual Life Sciences Awards Dinner will take place at the EICC in Edinburgh from 18.30 on 7 February 2013.

Commercialising your medical device in the US – How to avoid common mistakes in complying with FDA requirements The webinar will take place on 20 February 15.00-

and business community, and access to numerous scientific marine research facilities.”

The Dunstaffnage site is already an internationally recognised centre of excellence for marine science, with the Scottish Marine Institute being home to the Scottish Association of Marine Science (SAMS) - an academic partner of the University of the Highlands and Islands, and the European Centre for Marine Biotechnology.

In August 2010, the HIE Board approved an investment of £7.5m to create this first phase of the Park.

Inverness Campus comes to life With the infrastructure completion date only four months away, over 70 construction workers at Highlands and Islands Enterprise’s Inverness Campus are busy constructing walls, building roads and developing the landscape.

Inverness Campus will open with fully-serviced development plots available for businesses and research organisations looking to benefit from co-location with academic institutions. Scottish Government designation of the Campus as an Enterprise Area for Life Science offers the opportunity for specific incentives, such as rates relief and a streamlined planning process, for those in the life sciences sector. The largest occupier on the site, Inverness College UHI, will open for business in August 2015. For more information visit invernesscampus It's a man thing, but help is on hand to make it better Earlier this month Bill McAllister of the Inverness Courier published an article, 'It's a man thing, but help is on hand to make it better'.

Dr Sarah-Anne Munoz, a Research Fellow at the UHI Centre for Rural Health, is an expert in health geography and has previously worked in Australia on a social enterprise project named 'Men's Shed'. The project aims to provide men with a community workspace to use their skills, meet other people and maintain an active body and

16.00, delivered by John Hoggard, Trade & Investment Officer, Life Sciences, UKTI New York.

The online conference will provide an overview of the US Food and Drug Administration’s medical device regulations and how to avoid the most common mistakes made by medical device exporters.

The new normal - growing your medtech company in times of change The conference in Glasgow on 7 March 2013, cohosted by ABHI, Medilink UK and Life Sciences Scotland, will provide an overview of the changing (business) environment for medtech companies and discuss healthcare trends, opportunities arising from these and ways for businesses to grow in these times of change.

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mind. Dr Munoz is currently preparing a funding bid to The Big Lottery to launch a pilot project in the Highlands. Read the full article on the Centre for Health Science website. £50 million fund for university spinouts A £50m venture capital fund has been launched in Scotland by Rock Spring Ventures to provide capital for early stage life science companies including university spin-outs.

Based in Edinburgh, the fund will invest in establishing companies developing new approaches in the research and treatment of major diseases and new technologies and methods for the delivery of healthcare.

Rock Spring Ventures said it had already secured commitments worth more than £25m from a range of investors. The fund will have £6 million worth of investment from three Scottish universities – Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh. And additional investors include the European Investment Fund (EIF), Scottish Enterprise (via the Scottish Investment Bank) and Strathclyde Pension Fund.

Rock Spring Ventures EU is co-led by Sinclair Dunlop, who recently returned from the US to his native Scotland to launch the new fund.

SBRI £5m competition The Department of Health has opened two new SBRI competitions with a total of £5m available to develop technologies and innovative solutions that can: • Improve experience for people with mental health illnesses • Improve experience for people at the end of their life.

This is an open call for innovative proposals in these areas and the focus of this competition will be on technologies that can make a difference to people with mental health illnesses or at the end of their life.

The deadline for applications is 12 noon on 28 February 2013. For more details and for access to the application system visit: Improved experience for people with mental health illnesses Improved experience for people at the end of their life

Job Opportunity Administrator, Centre for Rural Health Based within the Centre for Rural Health (CRH), in Inverness, this post is an exciting opportunity for an experienced and motivated administrator. Closing date for applications is Friday 8 February 2013. For full details and to apply, visit www.centreforhealthscience.com/vacancies.asp Funding Opportunities For more funding information please visit the Centre for Health Science website.

MRC; Methodology Research Programme Research methods in disciplines underpinning health research including: biomedical, behavioural and social science, experimental medicine, randomised trials, cohorts and other research designs investigating health, healthcare, health services and health policy. Application rounds available through 2013.

Wellbeing of Women Research Grants Applications are invited for projects in basic science, clinical or translational research in the areas of Pregnancy and Childbirth, including pre-term birth, miscarriage and fertility, Quality of Life issues such as menopause, incontinence and prolapse, sexual health, menstrual disorders and endometriosis and Gynaecological Cancers.

Closing date for applications 4th February 2013.

Insulin Dependent Diabetes Trust The Insulin Dependent Diabetes Trust invites applications for its research grants in the area of primary care relating to diabetes. Of particular interest to the trust are new ways of thinking and treating diabetes, especially when consumer input and consumer experience are to be used as a key aspect of the research. No closing date stated.

MRC Stratified Medicine The MRC, through the MRC-NIHR Methodology Research Programme (MRP), wishes to develop a portfolio of research aimed at improving the methodology underpinning patient stratification and its potential impact on trials, health economics and public perceptions. No published deadline but proposals must be discussed with MRC HO at an early stage.

DH Policy Research Programme Research initiative on health and mobile communications.

Closing date for applications 5th February 2013 NHS National Institute for Health Research; Health Technology Assessment Programme. Pre-conception care

for women with diabetes How can pre-conception care interventions be implemented with diabetic women of childbearing age to improve management of diabetes and planning and outcomes of pregnancy? Closing date for applications 2nd May 2013 Unsubscribe from this newsletter. Š2013 Highlands and Islands Enterprise Cowan House, Inverness Business Park, IV2 7GF. Tel (01463) 234171