Interview: Montserrat Vendrell, CEO BioCat
A dynamic leader for the fast-growing BioRegion of Catalonia, Montserrat Vendrell will greet participants of BIO-Europe Spring® 2010 at the Welcome Reception set for Sunday, March 7 at the Casa Llotja de Mar.
Montserrat Vendrell, CEO BioCat
partneringNEWS caught up with Dr Vendrell as she was organizing a key investment forum and preparing for the arrival of BIO-Europe Spring 2010.
partneringNEWS : There will be a presentation at Bio-Europe Spring called: Biotechnology in Catalonia: A Leading Hub in Spain”. Can you expand upon this theme?
Montserrat Vendrell: While Spain’s position in the international biotech ranking is low, we can say that it is the EU country with highest growth in biotech results in the past years. According to the “Biotechnology Relevancy in Spain 2009” report and attending to the internal growth of a set of indicators that includes scientific relevancy in number of publications, employees dedicated to biotech R&D, increase of patents applications, public subsidy and investment, etc., Genome Spain concludes that Spanish biotechnology is growing nearly 15 percent annually. That is three times higher than German growth and five times higher than in the USA. Although the information is downplayed by countries, Spain is the country that has experienced the best biotechnological results in the last seven years.
Catalonia is an essential part of this success because the region acts like an innovation driving force. According to ASEBIO, the Spanish Biotech Employers Association, the BioRegion of Catalonia is the fastest growing biocluster in Spain. Consequently, the international sector sees Barcelona as one of the key cities in the European biotech panorama in the next years.
During the last years, Catalonia has turned in one of the most important enclaves of the European and worldwide biotechnology. Despite of being a young sector, the BioRegion of Catalonia appears already as an attractive cluster for the international agents thanks to its numerous assets, its strategic location and its capacities in areas as the medical technology or the clinical research.
Nowadays, the Catalan sector is formed by 65 biotech companies and 70 pharmaceutical enterprises, more than 4,000 workers and almost 50 investigation centers with 25,000 researchers. These figures demonstrate that biotechnology is one of the driving forces of the Catalan economy and that the BioRegion leads biotech sector in Spain, with 25 percent of biotech companies.
partneringNEWS: What recent infrastructure developments are important to note?
Montserrat Vendrell: In Catalonia, there are currently nine large scale facilities, eight of which work in this sector to some degree, like the Mare Nostrum, one of the most powerful supercomputers in Europe and one of the top 77 in the world, located at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center (BSC). Or like the Alba Synchrotron Light Laboratory, a 22,870-meter science complex located next to the Autonomous University of Barcelona. It will go into service in 2010 and when it reaches its full capacity it will employ around one thousand people, including the center’s own staff and experts from other science centers. One million square meters of land have been set aside surrounding this facility for a science and research park, as well as space for production, residences and utilities. Another remarkable infrastructure that is being built is the Molecular Sequencing Center (CSM). This new facility, that will be located at the Barcelona Science Park, will be a science/technology center for large scale genome sequencing to cover the growing demand for sequencing in genomic research projects. It will also guarantee successful Spanish participation in the International Cancer Genome Research Consortium and ensure nationwide competitiveness in the strategic area of genomics as well as other relevant economic sectors. This new center, in conjunction with the synchrotron and the supercomputer, will complement a value chain in the BioRegion of Catalonia that will offer a unique competitive advantage compared to other European bioregions.
partneringNEWS : What recent developments would you highlight?
Montserrat Vendrell: A key element in a biocluster is the existence of science and technology parks that act as a liaison between organizations that generate knowledge and start-ups, offering highly specialized technical/scientific services, business incubation spaces and technology transfer offices. In Catalonia, there are nine science and technology parks focusing on the life science sector, but the three main hubs of Catalan biomedical research are the Barcelona Science Park (PCB)—the first science park in Spain, created in 1997—the Barcelona Biomedical Research Park (PRBB) and the Autonomous University of Barcelona Research Park (PRUAB). Facilities have also been created around the universities of Girona (University of Girona Science and Technology Park), Lleida (University of Lleida Science and Technology Park) and Tarragona (Tarragona Science and Technology Park and Tecnoparc in Reus).
In total, these parks occupy more than 500,000 square meters and estimates say this will multiply by 2.5 before 2011. This growth trend is clearly illustrated by the creation of BioPol, a science and healthcare park that brings together hospitals, universities and large companies located next to the Bellvitge University Hospital (l’Hospitalet de Llobregat, the second town of Catalonia in number of inhabitants, near Barcelona).
partneringNEWS : What companies are ‘success stories’ for Catalonia biotech?
Montserrat Vendrell: One very recent example is the three year-old Catalan company Sepmag Technologies, which develops, manufactures and markets magnetophoresis equipment, and who has opened a new branch in one of the most emblematic buildings in downtown Atlanta (Georgia, USA), 191 Peachtree Tower. This center represents the company’s first expansion and another stage in its globalization plan to increase its presence in the North American market. Sepmag’s sales in 2008 were distributed as follows: 68 percent in Europe (not counting Spain), 16 percent in Spain, and 16 percent between Japan and the USA. Founded in 2007, the company is partly financed by seed capital and has received funding from public programs.
Another example of success story is Oryzon, one of the first biotech companies created in Catalonia. Upon graduation from the bioincubator, the company moved to new facilities three times the space it previously occupied in the Barcelona Science Park. The move was the result of the company’s notable growth—2008 turnover of more than 7 million and a team of 80 international scientists—above all with their acquisition of Crystax Pharmaceuticals last March. Founded in 2000, Oryzon was the first biotech company to be set up in Catalonia and among the first in Spain. Since then, they have focused on developing and marketing diagnostic and prognostic solutions for oncologic and neurodegenerative diseases. In 2008, their turnover surpassed EUR 7 million and they currently employ a team of 80 international scientists.
Also a success story is the development of the RUTI® vaccine, the first polyantigenic vaccine to treat latent tuberculosis infection. It was initiated at the end of 2000 as a result of the collaboration between Archivel Technologies and the Tuberculosis Experimental Unit at Germans Trias i Pujol University Hospital (Can Ruti), and that is now starting Phase II.
On the research side, at the second call for proposals for experienced researchers held by the European Research Council (ERC), 6 of the top 236 researchers in the European Union that have received an Advanced Grant work at research centers in Catalonia. Of these, Dr Josep Baselga, head of Oncology at the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital, is a success story. Clinical research in the Oncology Department of the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital moved into a new era in 1996 when Baselga joined the team as coordinator of Oncology, Hematology and Radiotherapy. Over these years he has focused mainly on clinical and translation breast cancer research. The ERC has recognized his work, awarding him a grant to carry out a project that will research why some breast cancers stop responding to chemotherapy. Dr Baselga and Dr Joan Massagué, both Catalan top researchers on oncology, have been chosen by the American Association for Cancer Research to be members of its Council of Scientific Advisors for the next three years.
partneringNEWS : What can participants expect in attending the Welcome Reception the Sunday prior to the opening of BIO-Europe Spring 2010?
Montserrat Vendrell: This will be the first contact with the local authorities, and the President of Biocat, Manel Balcells, will welcome participants to Barcelona. According to international reports, Barcelona is the 5th European city chosen for business, the third destination for investment, and one of the top 5 locations for hosting international conventions.
The combination of talent, lifestyle, social benefits, vibrant multiculturalism, universities, technology and R&D is leading more and more international companies to decide to locate their businesses here. For the ninth consecutive year, European executives have rated Barcelona as the European city with the highest quality of life for employees.
We want to summarize all this inputs in one reception that will be hosted at the historical building of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, one of the best examples of civil gothic of the Mediterranean area. The current construction was set on the XVIII century on top of a Middle-age building. The “Sala de Contractacions”, where the reception will take place, is the most outstanding piece of this building, conserved from the medieval times.
The evening will be flavored by live classical music and Catalan-style Mediterranean food. We really hope everybody could enjoy it.
Related Posts
No related posts.