The Scott Partnership

Hay-on-Wye-Based Brecon Pharmaceuticals Increases Investment in Wales with Expansion

2012-02-21T15:01:00.000Z

Powys County, Wales (21 February, 2012) Hay-on-Wye based pharmaceutical packaging and clinical trials services specialist Brecon Pharmaceuticals announces the expansion of its storage and distribution capacity, with investment in a state-of-the-art, purpose-built facility in Pontypridd. The investment reflects Brecon Pharmaceuticals’ on-going commitment to continued excellence and to local economic growth.

Founded in 1980 and with premises based in the spectacular Wye Valley, Brecon Pharmaceuticals is one of the leading outsource service providers in the global pharmaceutical industry.

During the past 12 months, the company has defied the economic climate and continued to introduce the latest technologies and market-leading packaging solutions, attracting major contract wins. At the same time, Brecon has maintained its recruitment drive, which has seen an increase in its staff of over 10% in the same period.

Peter Belden, Managing Director comments: “The recent expansion reflects our commitment to innovation and quality through continuous investment in our people, facilities and equipment – a policy that has been rewarded with an almost tenfold increase in sales since 2002.”

Belden continues “The new site in Wales brings new opportunities for the area and the company is committed to recruiting local people from diverse background and providing them with training and expertise that are invaluable to personal development and to the development of the local economy.”

Brecon Pharmaceuticals and its sister company in the United States, Anderson Packaging, supports clients from the earliest stage of R&D through clinical trial and filing and on to commercialisation, packaging and supply. It works with a wide range of clients from small, ‘virtual’ companies through to the biggest global pharmaceutical organisations.

ENDS

Notes to Editor

About Brecon Pharmaceuticals

Founded in 1980, Brecon Pharmaceuticals is acknowledged as one of the leading outsourced-service providers in the global pharmaceutical industry. With unparalleled expertise in clinical trials supplies management and packing of solid dose forms into blisters, strips, wallets, bottles or sachets, backed by full in-house analytical services, Brecon is the preferred partner of the global pharmaceutical community. The company’s purpose-built facilities in Hay-on-Wye, Herefordshire, are the best-equipped and most modern in the UK.

Since 2006 Brecon has been a business of AmerisourceBergen Corporation. AmerisourceBergen is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical services companies serving the United States, Canada and selected global markets. Servicing both pharmaceutical manufacturers and healthcare providers in the pharmaceutical supply channel, the Company provides drug distribution and related services designed to reduce costs and improve patient outcomes. AmerisourceBergen's service solutions range from pharmacy automation and pharmaceutical packaging to reimbursement and pharmaceutical consulting services. With $80 billion in annual revenue, AmerisourceBergen is headquartered in Valley Forge, PA, and employs approximately 10,000 people. AmerisourceBergen is ranked #27 on the Fortune 500 list.

Brecon works closely with its AmerisourceBergen sister company Anderson Packaging (Rockford, IL) to deliver harmonised services in Europe, the Americas and beyond.

For further information please visit www.breconpharm.com

For further press information please contact: Michelle Valentine, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, CW4 8AA, United Kingdom Tel: + 44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540 E-mail: brecon@scottpr.com

PRECOS Appoints Dr Martin Page as Scientific Consultant

2012-02-21T12:30:00.000Z

NOTTINGHAM, UK, 20th February 2012 - Preclinical Oncology Services Limited (PRECOS), a leading pre-clinical research and development service provider with a specific focus on oncology, announces the appointment of Dr Martin Page as scientific consultant. Dr Page brings over 28 years’ experience of oncology R&D leadership gained from the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors across UK, Europe and USA. His extensive therapeutic experience and industry knowledge will contribute to the company’s expert delivery of innovative patient relevant models for oncology research.

Dr Page has led multiple teams discovering novel targeted small molecule and MAb anti-cancer agents which have entered clinical trials. Prior to this new role, he was Vice President, Head of Global Oncology Research for Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceuticals, responsible for laboratories in Belgium and USA.

Dr Neil Rotherham, chairman of the PRECOS board comments, “We are delighted to welcome Martin to our team of visionary scientists. Dr Page’s expertise will be invaluable in PRECOS’ continued success as a trusted and preferred partner for some of the world’s leading oncology research companies.”

Previously Dr Page has held senior positions as Oncology Therapeutic Area Head/Europe for Glaxo-Wellcome and Senior Director positions in the biotechnology companies Oxford GlycoSciences and Oncogene Sciences Inc. He will support PRECOS to continue to advance its world-leading work in the evaluation of potential therapeutic agents, regimens and basic research into deriving the most relevant in vitro and in vivo screening models.

“I am extremely excited to work alongside the PRECOS team of expert scientists who are leading the way in providing robust models to enable testing of the next generation of oncology drug candidates,” said Dr Page. “PRECOS translates its expertise in cancer drug development to enable the development of medicines with real patient benefits and my appointment reinforces the ambition and potential of PRECOS to contribute in a significant way to the growing cancer therapy market.”

Dr Martin Page will be attending the AACR conference, Chicago, March 31st - April 4th 2012, booth #4306, where PRECOS will be showcasing several new platforms for pre-clinical oncology research. To arrange a meeting please contact PRECOS on +44 (0)870 166 6234, email enquiries@precos.co.uk or visit www.precos.co.uk for further information.

About PRECOS Ltd
PRECOS Ltd. is a flexible pre-clinical research and development service with a specific focus on oncology, with an established track record in providing expert support to direct cancer drug development projects from concept to clinic. PRECOS evaluates the innovative cancer medicines of the future in patient-relevant models to ensure that pre-clinical efficacy assessment is predictive of how the drug is likely to behave in clinical trials with cancer patients. The PRECOS team of expert scientists assist in the selection and execution of appropriate analytical systems by a staged approach of in vitro studies, in vivo model development, subsequent in vivo mechanistic and therapeutic evaluations and post-study analyses, all conveyed with added value through specialist scientific interpretation of the data. PRECOS scientists apply cutting-edge technology and ideas to individual research programmes and delivers a flexible, tailored approach to all research objectives, whether a one-off service or a complete research programme.

PRECOS, an acronym of Pre-Clinical Oncology Services, was officially launched as a specialist business unit of the University of Nottingham (UK) in 2004. PRECOS evolved from the research expertise of the Division of Pre-clinical Oncology (formerly Academic Unit of Cancer Studies), which had successful collaborations with pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the UK, EU, US and Japan for over a decade. For further information: www.precos.co.uk

For further press information please contact: Sarah Evans - The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, CW4 8AA, United Kingdom. Tel: + 44 1477 539 539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540 E-mail: precos@scottpr.com

HCL snaps up Yorkshire Trust win

2012-02-21T12:22:00.000Z

The Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust has awarded leading locum doctor provider HCL Thames Medics the contract to be their tier one sole supplier of staff.

Mid Yorkshire Hospitals, an acute hospital Trust, primarily serves the communities of Wakefield District and North Kirklees, which makes up more than half a million people.

HCL Thames Medics Managing Director, Liz Fendyke, negotiated the deal which looks set to demonstrate HCL’s recognition of the financial constraints under which the NHS are currently operating.

“We are thrilled to have secured this contract at the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals, and we see it as in excellent opportunity to showcase HCL’s capacity as a volume supplier to the NHS,” Ms Fendyke said.
Mid Yorkshire Hospitals currently serves over 550 people per day in their emergency departments.

“Our commitment to reducing the agency spend of our clients will ensure we continue to offer the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals Trust low-cost volume solutions, compliance assurance and an impeccable service.”
HCL, as a preferred Government Procurement Service (GPS) framework-approved agency to a large number of Trusts and procurement hubs, currently holds exclusive contracts at national, regional and Trust level at some of the most prestigious hospitals across the UK.

For further press information please contact: Sarah Evans - The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, CW4 8AA, United Kingdom. Tel: + 44 1477 539 539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540. E-mail healthcarelocums@scottpr.com.

About HCL plc
HCL plc, headquartered in London, was formed in 2003 and is a leading provider of staffing solutions in the health and social care sectors within our chosen markets. HCL supply over 2,000 temporary and permanent Doctors, Allied Health Professionals (AHP), qualified social workers and administration & clerical staff to public and private sectors. We are an international company with offices in UK and Australia and recruitment drives in Europe. Please visit our website at www.healthcarelocums.com
For UK updates or job information, follow us on Twitter: @HCLplc
For Australian updates or job information, follow us on Twitter: @HealthcareAus

The Scott Partnership Appoints Former Golley Slater Managing Director in New General Manager Role

2012-02-21T11:45:00.002Z

Cheshire, UK (21 February 2012)- The Scott Partnership, a leading global business-to-business PR and marketing communications consultancy based in Cheshire, UK, is delighted to announce the appointment of Sion Ashley-Jones as Director and General Manager. A strong and continuous history of growth in The Scott Partnership has led to this appointment in which Sion will lead the expansion of the team.

As a former managing director of UK full service marketing communications agency, Golley Slater, Sion brings with him a wealth of experience in PR, marketing, branding, digital media and creative advertising in both the B2B and consumer sectors. Sion’s skills complement The Scott Partnership’s mission to continue growing their brand into becoming a full service communications agency, specializing in a number of different fields. Before joining The Scott Partnership, Sion directed communications for a variety of international and household clients including: The Army, Lloyds TSB Insurance, BMW, Mitsubishi Motors, Welsh Rugby Union, NatWest, VW and Konica Minolta. His contribution to the industry has been recognized with a breadth of prestigious awards including Silver and Bronze at the International Kinsale Shark Awards, The Cannes Gold Lion and a Silver British Television Advertising Award.

Kath Darlington, CEO of The Scott Partnership comments, “Sion is a natural choice for our rapidly growing team, his experience of providing full marketing consultancy for a broad range of international clients complements our increasing position as an integrated partner for global clients. The Scott Partnership is moving from its niche specialism into becoming a global player, and Sion joins us at a key time to make a positive impact on our future.”

Sion Ashley-Jones comments, “The Scott Partnership is positioned in the heart of the creative communications industry and I am looking forward to being an integral part of creating a new and innovative agency model. Times have changed and The Scott Partnership embraces change. Our agency offerings will now evolve alongside our clients’ requirements and we will continue to strive to excite and engage on every brief that comes through our door.”

The appointment is another step in The Scott Partnership’s continued global growth strategy. It follows the recent acquisitions of life science agencies Kapler Communications Ltd and Phoenix Marcom Communications Ltd, as well as the launch of a new corporate communications practice.

-Ends-

The Scott Partnership was founded in 1996 in the UK and over the past 15 years has become one of the leading B2B communication consultancies in Europe, with expertise in life science, healthcare, chemical and materials, security, packaging, automation and analytical instruments. In the past two years, it has accelerated its pace of expansion with newly opened offices in both Shanghai and Boston.

For more information on The Scott Partnership, please call +44 (0)1477 539 539. Alternatively e-mail business@scottpr.com or visit www.scottpr.com.

ERT Launches New Website to Support Significant Commercial Growth

2012-02-15T12:18:00.002Z

PHILADELPHIA, PA, 15 January- ERT, a global technology-driven provider of health outcomes services and customizable medical devices to biopharmaceutical sponsors and Contract Research Organizations (CROs), announced today the launch of a new corporate website to further elevate its market and thought leadership position. Complementing the company’s commercial growth in the last 18 months, web traffic to ERT’s website increased by 41% from June 2010 to October 2011, as visitors sought further detailed information about ERT’s comprehensive range of Cardiac Safety, Respiratory and ePRO solutions. To access the new website, visit www.ert.com.

The newly created website has been designed to reflect ERT’s position as a company offering unrivalled processes and scientific expertise to collect, analyze and report on clinical data. This is done in order to support the determination of health outcomes critical to the approval, labeling and reimbursement of pharmaceutical products.

Created to provide a new online customer experience, the website provides enhanced content and improved navigation in order to give visitors a more comprehensive and in-depth understanding of ERT’s services and expertise in the health outcomes research field. Providing in depth information on ERT’s distinctive cardiac safety, respiratory and ePRO solutions, visitors are also able to learn about ERT’s clinical consulting services, which offer essential scientific and regulatory expertise in order to ensure quality trial data.

ERT’s commitment to making valuable resources available to patients and clients is fully realized by the new website. Leveraging the research of ERT’s experts and other thought leaders, the site offers a resource center that provides continually updated links to articles, white papers and webinars, in addition to up-to-date news stories. Featuring images and quotes from both junior and senior staff throughout the website, the new aesthetic enables users to see the human side of ERT and familiarize themselves with the experts and dedicated staff that support their research every day.

John Blakeley, Chief Commercial Officer, comments: “Our traditional markets are changing and we felt strongly that a new online presence was needed to better support our Sponsors and our CRO partners. This new site provides a valuable resource center that allows relevant stakeholders to access industry specific information and case studies.”

For further information on ERT and its technology and services, please email info@ERT.com, call +1 215 972 0420 or visit www.ERT.com
For further press information, please contact Fiona Robinson, the Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA, United Kingdom. Phone +44 1477 539 539, Fax +44 1477 539 540, Email ert@scottpr.com

About ERT

ERT (www.ert.com) is a global technology-driven provider of health outcomes research services and customizable medical devices supporting biopharmaceutical sponsors and Contract Research Organizations (CROs) to achieve their drug development and healthcare objectives. ERT harnesses leading technology coupled with unrivalled processes and scientific expertise to collect, analyse and report on clinical data to support the determination of health outcomes critical to the approval, labelling and reimbursement of pharmaceutical products. ERT is the acknowledged industry leader in centralized cardiac safety and respiratory efficacy services and also provides electronic Patient Reported Outcomes (ePRO)and Outcomes Assessments for multiple modalities across all phases.

High-Throughput and High-Salt Measurements of Electrophoretic Mobility (Zeta Potential) with Wyatt Technology’s Möbius

2012-02-14T16:27:00.002Z

(SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA – February 14 2012) Wyatt Technology Corporation, the world leader in absolute macromolecular characterization instrumentation and software, today announces that it will be showcasing its innovative zeta potential instrument, the Möbius™, at PITTCON 2012. The Möbius has been developed to automate the measurement of the mobility and the hydrodynamic radius of precious protein samples, increasing throughput without modifying the species. Additionally, the instrument is designed to facilitate analyses in high-saline conditions, expanding the capability of the laboratory. Wyatt Technology will exhibit the Möbius on booth #2281 at PITTCON 2012, Orlando, FL, March 11- March 15, 2012.

Previously, conventional batch-mode zeta potential instrumentation has been incapable of automating macromolecular particle electrophoretic mobility for multiple samples. Used with an HPLC pump and an auto-sampler, the Möbius can overcome this challenge, presenting an automated and cost-effective instrument for protein analysis.

The Möbius offers a unique cell, designed as a closed system, which accepts sample delivery from an autosampler. Once the sample injection sequence is implemented and synchronized with a data acquisition schedule in its Dynamics™ software, automated measurement of multiple samples is enabled. This eliminates the need for manual injection, helping to increase laboratory productivity and maximize time-efficiency. With the additional possibility of a buffer injection in between samples further enhanced by a wash sequence, cross contamination of cells is minimized, helping to ensure data accuracy.

Aqueous samples with conductivities near or above the physiological saline condition have proven to be a challenge for zeta potential instruments. As electric current is passed through a conductive sample, electrochemical redox reactions bring about electrolysis on the surface of the electrodes. Inevitably, gas bubbles evolve to distort the driving electric field and compromise the light scattering signal used for the measurements.
Wyatt Technology has developed a system for use alongside the Möbius to overcome this challenge. Wyatt’s Atlas™ hardware pressurizes the cell, preventing bubble formation. As a result, previously problematic mobility analyses are now routine.

To learn more about Wyatt Technology’s Möbius and its capabilities, please visit booth #2281 at PITTCON 2012. Alternatively please visit www.wyatt.com or e-mail info@wyatt.com

####

About Wyatt

Based in Santa Barbara, California, Wyatt Technology is the world’s leading provider of instruments for absolute macromolecular characterization. With over 40 years’ experience developing multi-angle light scattering detectors, working with customers in the biotechnology, chemical, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, academic and government arenas, Wyatt prides itself on its entrepreneurial spirit, and the uniqueness of its offerings. The Company’s groundbreaking technology and uncompromising levels of customer care make Wyatt the global hallmark in its field. For more information, please visit www.wyatt.com

Greenphire Selected as a PACT Enterprise Award Finalist

2012-02-08T16:49:00.000Z

King of Prussia, PA, 08 February, 2012 – Greenphire, the leading provider of payment technologies for the clinical trials industry, today announced that it has been chosen as one of three finalists for the Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technologies (PACT) Enterprise Award in the Technology Startup division. Selection for the award was based on Greenphire’s established success in delivering an innovative product to meet a significant market need, potential for significant growth, managerial ability and record of achieving success, and demonstration of success via significant business milestones such as raising capital and achieving revenue growth.

Greenphire and the other Enterprise Award finalist companies will be honored at the 19th Annual Enterprise Awards gala of 1,200 prominent business leaders on Thursday, May 3, 2012, at the Hilton Philadelphia City Line.

The Enterprise Award finalists were selected from among hundreds of Greater Philadelphia area technology and life sciences companies nominated by entrepreneurs, investors, bankers, journalists, and industry insiders. Past winners include Siemens Healthcare, BioClinica, Shire Pharmaceuticals, and other leaders in the pharmaceutical and clinical trials industry. The PACT board of independent judges conducted a rigorous two-month selection process to determine the finalists, and will continue to evaluate each finalist’s ongoing performance in order to choose the winners.

“This year the number of applicants and, more importantly, the quality of applicants was at an all-time high,” said Charles Robins, managing director at Fairmount Partners and lead judge for the Enterprise Awards. “We have been through an era where companies have had to live on less capital, and what’s happened is we have a new generation of companies and of entrepreneurs who are growing successfully. It sets a very optimistic base for our future, and all of the judges this year felt that all of the companies being honored as finalists are superb choices.”

Greenphire CEO Sam Whitaker expressed the company’s enthusiasm with the selection, saying “The Enterprise Award is the top regional recognition in our industry and we are thrilled to be considered for this prestigious honor. Greenphire has seen rapid expansion over the past year and this selection comes at the perfect time for us to continue establishing ourselves as the leaders in clinical payments both here in the greater Philadelphia region and across the clinical trials industry.”

A full list of this year’s Enterprise Award finalists and past winners can be found on the PACT website at http://pact.gpcc.com/

About Greenphire

Greenphire’s clinical payment and communication solutions take a patient-centric and site-centric approach to driving data integrity and data completeness for sponsor, CRO, research university, and clinical research site clients. Greenphire’s web-based technologies are designed to improve the clinical experience for patients and sites, drive positive patient behavior, increase patient retention and compliance, and significantly reduce site and study team administration associated with patient payments and communication. Greenphire’s strategy is driven by the philosophy that empowered, satisfied patients and sites will deliver more consistent and better quality clinical data, which will in turn benefit both site coordinators and study teams. Learn more about Greenphire’s innovative clinical solutions at www.greenphire.com.

For further information on Greenphire and its innovative solutions please email: sales@greenphire.com, call +1 215-609-4640 or visit www.greenphire.com.

ERT and UCLA Initiate Innovative Pilot Program for Chronically Ill Patients

2012-02-08T09:28:00.000Z

More than 150 patients with COPD will receive additional health care services to improve their health and lower the costs of long term care.

Program will test the benefits of remote monitoring services on a needy and growing population.

PHILADELPHIA, February, 2012- ERT, a global technology-driven provider of health outcomes services and customizable medical devices to biopharmaceutical sponsors and Contract Research Organizations (CROs), announces the launch of the CLEAR Study. Conducted in collaboration with UCLA, the study is an innovative program to help patients suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). COPD is a leading and increasingly prevalent disease which, according to the World Health Organization, will become the world’s third most common cause of death by 2020.

COPD is a progressive and chronic inflammatory disease of airways that typically occurs in middle-aged and older patients. There is no cure for COPD, only therapies that manage the symptoms and seek to prevent acute and debilitating events such as pulmonary exacerbations. These exacerbations are an important cause of disability and further decrease in lung function, which typically require medical therapy at the home or in the hospital. Therefore, early identification and prevention of exacerbations are important, can improve the quality of life of the patients, and can delay or decrease the demand for expensive medical care.

To identify symptoms and concerns early, ERT and UCLA will be providing enhanced services to help the patients outside the physician’s office and beyond the normal process of care. The twelve month study is specifically designed to test whether remote health monitoring:
• Is feasible in patients with moderate-severe COPD
• Improves treatment adherence, symptoms, activity level and quality of life and enables early detection of COPD exacerbations, facilitating early interventions and reducing health related expenditures
The program will operate as a randomized study for patients over 40 years old receiving their care in the Los Angeles community. The program brings together home based spirometry, activity monitoring, adherence scoring, and self-reported symptom monitoring, all enabled through technology. On a daily basis in the patient’s home, enrollees will track their lung function using ERT’s SpiroPro® which will also record symptoms through questions of the CLEAR Sx Assessment instrument. Symptoms, such as breathlessness and cough, will be tracked on the SpiroPro using a novel series of screens adapted from previously reported instruments for the detection of exacerbations. The devices will also deliver the new CLEAR Rx and CLEAR Ex Assessment instruments to determine prescription adherence and perceived activity levels. Every day, enrollees will record their physical activity levels, such as the number of steps taken per day and total activity time, using a wearable accelerometer. All patient data will be securely uploaded to a web based data tracking site where trends in symptoms and concerns with patient status can be quickly identified and addressed through clinical care.

“The breadth of services is a truly unique and innovative design for respiratory care”, notes John Sory, ERT’s Chief Development Officer. “The combined efforts of UCLA and ERT will test new approaches and could well deliver a meaningful new approach for the benefit of patients where the burden of illness is high, the need for quick intervention apparent, and the demand for new forms of care increasingly acute.”

“COPD is a serious illness and early intervention can be critical in improving COPD patients’ quality of life. We welcome the opportunity to work with ERT in helping to remotely monitor patients on a daily basis in their own homes, which may help promptly identify health problems and ensure treatment adherence. Such monitoring may prove to be an important component in the future of healthcare delivery,” said Dr. Christopher Cooper, the study’s principal investigator and professor of medicine and physiology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

The first of over 200 patients are expected to be recruited starting in February, 2012 and patient outcomes will be reported in late 2013. Enrollees will have full physical exams upon enrollment and at the test conclusion. Throughout the period, the metrics to be tracked will include:

• Adoption rates of remote health monitoring
• Treatment adherence in terms of percentage of days prescribed treatment is taken
• Time to first COPD exacerbation as defined by standard criteria and number of exacerbations per year including the proportion of subjects experiencing one or more exacerbations
• Respiratory function values such as mean daily forced expiratory volume in one second (forced spirometry), inspiratory capacity (slow spirometry), and pulse oximetry (SPO2)
• Daily activity level and symptom scores
• Utilization information such as number of physician visits, emergency department visits, hospitalizations, number of days spent in hospital, and inferred health care costs

Dr. Jeffrey Litwin, President and CEO of ERT concluded, “We are excited to work with Dr Cooper and his colleagues at UCLA to help progress the adoption of remote healthcare monitoring and we look forward to learning and sharing the results of this important trial”.

For further information on ERT and its technology and services, please email info@ERT.com , call +1 215 972 0420 or visit www.ERT.com

For further press information, please contact Laura Browne, the Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA, United Kingdom. Phone +44 1477 539 539, Fax +44 1477 539 540, Email ert@scottpr.com

About UCLA

The David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA is an internationally recognized leader in research, medical education and patient care. The school has more than 2,000 full-time faculty members, almost 1,300 residents, more than 750 medical students and roughly 400 Ph.D. candidates.
About ERT

ERT (www.ert.com) is a global technology-driven provider of health outcomes research services and customizable medical devices supporting biopharmaceutical sponsors and Contract Research Organizations (CROs) to achieve their drug development and healthcare objectives. ERT harnesses leading technology coupled with unrivalled processes and scientific expertise to collect, analyse and report on clinical data to support the determination of health outcomes critical to the approval, labelling and reimbursement of pharmaceutical products. ERT is the acknowledged industry leader in centralized cardiac safety and respiratory efficacy services and also provides electronic Patient Reported Outcomes (ePRO)and Outcomes Assessments for multiple modalities across all phases.

Prism Ideas and dMetrics Launch Pioneering Service Analysing Patient–Reported Action, Behaviours and Outcomes with Social Med

2012-02-02T15:43:00.000Z

Cheshire, UK (February 2, 2012) Prism Ideas, the multi-national medical marketing and drug development consultants, today announced its collaboration with dMetrics, experts in identifying decisions made by millions of patients online, to launch a pioneering analysis service to evaluate patient healthcare outcomes reported within social media. Combining expertise in language analytics and healthcare, the two companies are interrogating social media to determine patient actions and insights, profiling patient needs, symptoms and response to treatment. The collaboration has already successfully completed projects in disease areas as diverse as allergic rhinitis (hayfever), multiple sclerosis and smoking cessation.

With increasing regulatory and healthcare provider interest in patient-reported outcomes, there is a growing need for technology that can measure and empirically substantiate the benefits to patients of new medical products. Unlike simple keyword-based market research systems, dMetrics’ MIT-founded technology harnesses Big Data to identify who makes decisions, what they decide and why those decisions are made regarding a product, connecting the multitude of voices into a compelling patient narrative. Together, Prism Ideas and dMetrics bring previously unavailable, unbiased insight and analysis of the collective action of many individual patients.

Fully compliant with industry standards of practice in both market research and pharmacovigilance, the reports can be used both for drug development planning and product assessment, providing information on disease epidemiology, symptoms and clinical outcomes, in addition to patient insight and value judgments. For sponsors requiring the rapid and efficient delivery of meaningful and longitudinal data, without the hurdle of long lead times or regulatory committees, this service is designed to provide the ideal solution and can be tailored to a sponsor’s specific requirements.

In a recent study, Prism Ideas and dMetrics designed a protocol and conducted an in silico study for Allergy Therapeutics to establish the level of symptom improvement considered to be meaningful by allergy sufferers. Previously there had been no clinical or regulatory consensus upon this subject, calling into question the value of some medications. Applying their experience and expertise, dMetrics and Prism Ideas were able to capture first person data reports relating to treatment intervention, symptoms impacted and/or outcomes-related sentiment. The results of the study were important, indicating that for many patients relief of even one hayfever symptom such as a blocked nose or sneezing was very important.

Dr Tom Holdich, Research and Development Director for Allergy Therapeutics explains: “Conventional clinical trials and patient market research studies are complex and tend to use questionnaires and grading scales. We needed an approach that would rapidly provide us with the answer to a patient-focused question, one that is very important to their care. The data analysis and report provided by Prism and dMetrics substantiated what had previously been our clinical impression with objective data. There are many potential uses to which this research methodology could be applied.”

James Sawyer, CEO of Prism Ideas comments: “This application of research via social media to the pharmaceutical industry is completely unique and demonstrates our dedication to being at the forefront of innovation. By marrying our expertise with the language processing technology offered by dMetrics, we have successfully developed a powerful mechanism to provide meaningful patient insight data for healthcare providers and the pharmaceutical industry. This advance is very timely and in line with the increasing emphasis on the importance of patient perspective.”

Paul Nemirovsky, CEO of dMetrics comments: “Today, we have an unparalleled opportunity to directly understand patients, in their own unbiased words, through their decisions, online. Being able to eliminate the mystery of consumer decisions is key to understanding behaviour, pulling patients’ individual experiences into a universe of healthcare insights. Our algorithms enable us to pinpoint the relevant decisions within Big Data and identify decision trends. dMetrics’ computer-generated insights, combined with Prism’s expertise in the medical domain allow the healthcare industry to interrogate patient experience in a rapid, accurate, and unbiased manner. Our goal is to help the healthcare industry to optimise their product decisions to directly improve the lives of millions of patients.”

For further information about Prism Ideas, please call +44 (0) 1270 621 724 or visit www.prismideas.com

For further information about dMetrics, please email info@dmetrics.com or visit www.dmetrics.com

About Prism Ideas
Prism Ideas is an independent company providing drug development consultancy and expert medical affairs support to the pharmaceutical industry. The company offers a full range of medical communications services, drug development consultancy and expert medical support throughout the clinical evaluation of drugs from early stage clinical studies through to post-marketing activities.

Prism’s knowledge of industry, together with a thorough understanding of the science, ensures that clinical trials and medical communications maintain the highest scientific quality whilst meeting the needs of the pharmaceutical industry.

Prism currently has offices in the UK, Basel, Switzerland and Boston in the U.S.

About dMetrics
dMetrics harnesses the clutter of Big Data, identifying, within online chatter, everyday decisions made by millions of people. In healthcare, dMetrics’ algorithms utilise a custom deep parsing natural language processing technology to ‘read’ the motivations and perceptions that surround these decisions, translating online chatter into actionable insight about any given product. The industry use for dMetrics data includes brand positioning, targeting drug development, ad-spend optimisation, as well as strengthening regulatory and reimbursement dossiers.

By providing clear, relevant, and simple ways to analyse and dissect decisions, we aim to become the primary resource for crowd-sourced decision insights for people worldwide, in healthcare and beyond.

Headquartered in Cambridge MA, the company has offices in Barcelona and Tel Aviv, with plans to establish a NYC office in 2012.

For further press information please contact: Michelle Valentine, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, CW4 8AA, United Kingdom Tel: + 44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540 E-mail: prism@scottpr.com

PRECOS to Unveil New Pre-clinical Oncology Service Portfolio at the 2012 3rd Cancer Targets & Therapeutics Conference and AACR 2012

2012-02-02T10:20:00.000Z

NOTTINGHAM, UK, 1st February 2012 - Preclinical Oncology Services Limited (PRECOS), a leading pre-clinical research and development service provider with a specific focus on oncology, will be showcasing several new platforms for pre-clinical oncology research at two leading shows: Cancer Targets & Therapeutics, Las Vegas, February 27th - 28th and AACR, Chicago, March 31st - April 4th 2012.

PRECOS leads the way in providing robust models, validated against today’s Standard Of Care agents to enable pre-clinical in vitro and in vivo testing of the next generation of oncology candidate drugs. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) forecasts that by 2030 there will be over 26 million new cases and 17 million deaths per year from cancer. PRECOS will be launching several new cutting-edge services at the North American shows which support target validation and drug screening early in the research process for anti-cancer activity. The company provides expertise, specialism and innovation to small to medium biotechnology companies and the new platforms will support new and existing projects going forward.

At the shows PRECOS will highlight how it can deliver a customised screening platform either in 2-D or 3-D in vitro and/or in vivo that can far more closely model the development of cancer and therefore more accurately reflect the effect of potential candidate entities. Cell lines created from patient primary tissue that “never see plastic” are selected based their true characteristics as cancer cells, instead of their ability to survive in vitro.

Dr Neil Rotherham, chairman of PRECOS comments, “The new service lines demonstrate our commitment to offer a world-class service and the platforms provide significant benefits to clients. We are excited to talk to existing and potential clients from around the world at these leading events to demonstrate the breadth of solutions we can offer them for their oncology research and development needs.”

The 2012 3rd Cancer Targets & Therapeutics Conference examines new and emerging targets and therapeutics in the area of cancer research. Speakers at the event provide case studies of emerging targets in order to address some of the issues surrounding target-based drug discovery and development. The AACR Annual Meeting will highlight the best and latest findings in all major areas of cancer research. PRECOS’ full service offering will be highlighted at Cancer Targets & Therapeutics 2012 and on booth #4306 at AACR 2012. For further information please call +44 (0)870 166 6234, email enquiries@precos.co.uk or visit www.precos.co.uk

###

About PRECOS Ltd
PRECOS Ltd. is a flexible pre-clinical research and development service with a specific focus on oncology, with an established track record in providing expert support to direct cancer drug development projects from concept to clinic. PRECOS evaluates the innovative cancer medicines of the future in patient-relevant models to ensure that pre-clinical efficacy assessment is predictive of how the drug is likely to behave in clinical trials with cancer patients. The PRECOS team of expert scientists assist in the selection and execution of appropriate analytical systems by a staged approach of in vitro studies, in vivo model development, subsequent in vivo mechanistic and therapeutic evaluations and post-study analyses, all conveyed with added value through specialist scientific interpretation of the data. PRECOS scientists apply cutting-edge technology and ideas to individual research programmes and delivers a flexible, tailored approach to all research objectives, whether a one-off service or a complete research programme.

PRECOS, an acronym of Pre-Clinical Oncology Services, was officially launched as a specialist business unit of the University of Nottingham (UK) in 2004. PRECOS evolved from the research expertise of the Division of Pre-clinical Oncology (formerly Academic Unit of Cancer Studies), which had successful collaborations with pharmaceutical and biotech companies in the UK, EU, US and Japan for over a decade. For further information: www.precos.co.uk

For further press information please contact: Sarah Evans - The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, CW4 8AA, United Kingdom. Tel: + 44 1477 539 539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540 E-mail: precos@scottpr.com

Wyatt Technology Instruments Employed to Develop Alternative Materials to Faulty Silicone Breast Implants

2012-02-01T10:42:00.000Z

(SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA – February 01 2012) - Wyatt Technology Corporation, the world leader in absolute macromolecular characterization instrumentation and software, today announced that Professor Judit E. Puskas at the University of Akron has developed a system using its instrumentation that will also help to solve a prevalent and particularly controversial material science challenge. The researchers are employing the multi detector system to develop alternative materials to silicone breast implants. This development will be welcomed by many as faulty Poly Implant Prothèse (PIP) implants are causing global concern about implant safety, and as a result, alternative materials are sought.

The recent scandal concerning French-made PIP implants concerns thousands of women across 65 countries with 300,000 potentially harmful implants sold over the last 12 years. It was revealed that these implants contained industrial silicone, intended for use in mattresses, rather than medical-grade silicone fillers.

Currently, only silicon rubber-based silica nanocomposite implants are available in the United States, and are subject to a number of issues including capsular contracture, gel bleed, implant rupture and infection. These prevalent issues have led to the need for material scientists and medical doctors to work together to develop alternative materials based on new nanotechnology.

The University of Akron’s Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering is employing macromolecular engineering to precision synthesize biocompatible polymers in order to produce high performance bionanocomposites for use as silicone alternatives. Professor Puskas combined six Stryagel columns with a Wyatt Technology ViscoStar viscometer, a Wyatt Optilab Refractive Index detector, a Wyatt DAWN 18-angle light scattering (MALS) detector as well as a Wyatt quasi-elastic light scattering (QELS) detector to provide accurate characterization of the separated macromolecules.

Traditionally, a simpler system would have been employed that is commonly used with column calibration to polymer standards, or 3-angle light scattering. The system using Wyatt instrumentation delivers the accurate and reproducible results needed by when performing these cutting-edge polymer studies.

“The Wyatt instruments are outstanding,” comments Professor Puskas. “The 18-angle system provides better quality than any alternatives on the market, providing more accurate and precise data. Other cheaper instruments have come onto the market, but in my experience Wyatt’s instruments far exceed the competition in terms of quality and service.”

The research group is part of an interdisciplinary group which is pursuing research aimed at reducing/eliminating capsular contracture associated with breast implants to help women in need. Material science and nanotechnology are a key element of this, supported by top class instrumentation.

For more information on Wyatt Technology’s instruments, please visit www.wyatt.com or email info@wyatt.com

###

About Wyatt
Based in Santa Barbara, California, Wyatt Technology is the world’s leading provider of instruments for absolute macromolecular characterization. With over 40 years’ experience developing multi-angle light scattering detectors, working with customers in the biotechnology, chemical, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, academic and government arenas, Wyatt prides itself on its entrepreneurial spirit, and the uniqueness of its offerings. The Company’s groundbreaking technology and uncompromising levels of customer care make Wyatt the global hallmark in its field. For more information, please visit www.wyatt.com

With The Debut of HSIR+, ZaagTech Realizes First 3D Curved Multi-touch Wall

2012-02-01T09:41:00.000Z

(Amsterdam, The Netherlands, February 1st, 2012) ZaagTech, the leading multi-touch solutions provider, unveiled a customized multi-touch wall composed of multiple touch screens powered by HSIR+ (Hybrid Scattered Infrared Plus) technology at ISE 2012 (Integrated System Europe) held in Amsterdam, January 31st to February 2nd, 2012. Zaagtech demonstrated the benefits of the multi-touch wall’s 3D curved shape, which due to the company’s HSIR+ technology, is being realized for the first time.

HSIR+ represents the new generation of infrared technology which is able to transfer any symmetrical shape onto a multi-touch screen. “The revolutionary innovation that HSIR+ signifies is breaking the constraints of traditional infrared screens which are only available on one single plane. We are the only provider that can make such 3D multi-touch walls,” said Olivia Yin, Vice President, Sales & Marketing at ZaagTech, “The multi-plane touch screen seen at the show is the first step and we will soon demonstrate the first round shape touch screen to the world. Our proprietary HSIR+ technology brings electrifying value to interactive solutions.”

At ISE 2012, ZaagTech also showcased a customized multi-touch table which is three inches thick and supports up to 40 simultaneous touch points. This solution enables smooth multi-user interaction on any sized screen and is a ready-to-use product for commercial use. The multi-touch table is a powerful addition to ZaagTech’s current product portfolio of X Series and N Series, covering multi-touch overlays supporting various numbers of true touch points (2-40) across screens ranging from 32”-200”.

ISE 2012 is the largest professional AV and systems integration trade show held in Europe, bringing together manufacturers, distributors, integrators and technology managers from over a hundred countries worldwide.

# # #

About ZaagTech

ZaagTech was founded in May 2010 by a team of engineers from Silicon Valley and an MBA from Harvard Business Scool. The company now has 15 patents, 40 engineers, three offices and two production lines. The firm has developed strategic collaboration with China Unicom, LG, Samsung, Mercedes-Benz, etc., and has received multiple governmental awards. ZaagTech has become a recognized brand for product innovation, commitment to quality and technical leadership in the field.

“Touching Life, Connecting More”. ZaagTech’s mission is to create high-end multi-touch products for use at home and office at the most affordable prices. The team members are enthusiastic in research, development, and production in the multi-touch market and the firm achieves results with products that use visually rich, intuitive, and powerful techniques. For more information, please visit www.zaagtech.com

Frühjahrsputz für den Gartenteich mit Rule Innovation

2012-01-31T11:21:00.002Z

Effizientes und einfaches Abpumpen mit der kabellosen Wasserpumpe AquaCharge™

Gloucester, MA (30. Januar 2012) – Lassen Sie den Winter hinter sich und begrüßen Sie den Frühling mit der kabellosen Wasserpumpe AquaCharge™. Darauf haben Gartenfreunde schon lange gewartet: die kabellose Wasserpumpe von Rule Innovation, einer Marke von Xylem. Mit der kompakten und leichten AquaCharge lässt sich der Gartenteich nach den langen Wintermonaten schnell und einfach reinigen.

Der Spätwinter ist die ideale Zeit für eine Frühjahrskur: Die Reinigung sollte idealerweise geschehen, bevor die Wassertemperatur auf ca. 12 Grad steigt, um die Parasiten- und Bakterienbelastung zu verringern. Da die Fische im Frühjahr noch recht träge sind, ist eine Teichreinigung in dieser Zeit für die Tiere weniger belastend und das Ökosystem wird weniger gestört.

Die AquaCharge bietet sich als perfekter Partner für den großen Frühjahrsputz an, denn sie erleichtert diese Arbeiten ungemein. Die tragbare, akkubetriebene Pumpe von Rule Innovation eignet sich dank ihrer kompakten Abmessungen (ca. 18 x 8 x 14 cm) und des geringen Gewichts (ca. 1,6 kg) für das Abpumpen von Wasser aus Teichen und Aquarien ebenso wie als Lenzpumpe für Kajaks, Kanus und Segelboote. Sie lässt sich an alle Standardgartenschläuche anschließen und in Gärten jeder Größe einsetzen. Ihre Pumpkapazität beträgt 754 l pro Akkuladung. Der Niederspannungsakku ermöglicht einen kontinuierlichen Betrieb, wobei die Pumpe sogar ins Wasser eingetaucht werden kann – ein unschätzbarer Vorteil!

Dazu Gina Arnone, Marketing Communications Manager bei Xylem: „Die AquaCharge ist ideal für alle Gartenbesitzer, die nach einer einfachen Lösung zum Reinigen ihres Gartenteichs suchen. Sie erleichtert das Reinigen von Teichen und kann zudem in vielen weiteren Bereichen für die Entwässerung eingesetzt werden. Mit dieser kabellosen Wasserpumpe lassen sich solche Arbeiten komfortabel und effizient ausführen.“

Die AquaCharge ist über das Internet und bei ausgewählten Einzelhändlern im ganzen Land erhältlich. Der Einzelhandelspreis beträgt in Deutschland und Frankreich ca. € 58,95 (+ MwSt). Weitere Informationen finden Sie unter www.aquachargepump.com. Bestellen können Sie unter www.jabscoshop.com.

Über Xylem

Xylem (XYL) ist ein weltweit führender Anbieter von wassertechnischen Produkten für den Transport, die Aufbereitung, das Testen und die effiziente Nutzung von Wasser. Die Produkte werden in kommunalen Versorgungsbetrieben, Privathaushalten sowie zu kommerziellen, landwirtschaftlichen und industriellen Zwecken eingesetzt. Das Unternehmen ist in über 150 Ländern präsent und besitzt eine Reihe führender Produktmarken. Die Mitarbeiter zeichnen sich durch ihr umfassendes, praxisbezogenes Know-how aus. Der besondere Schwerpunkt des Unternehmens liegt auf der Entwicklung lokaler Lösungen für die größten Herausforderungen der Wasser- und Abwasserwirtschaft weltweit. Xylem wurde 2011 als Ausgründung der Geschäftssparte für wasserwirtschaftliche Produkte der ITT Corporation ins Leben gerufen. Der Unternehmenssitz befindet sich in White Plains, N.Y., USA. Im Jahr 2010 setzte das Unternehmen 3,2 Milliarden US-Dollar um und beschäftigte weltweit 12.000 Mitarbeiter.

Der Name Xylem stammt aus dem Altgriechischen und bezeichnet das wassertransportierende Leitgewebe von Pflanzen. Mit seinem Namen unterstreicht das Unternehmen seinen technischen Anspruch bei wasserwirtschaftlichen Produkten – denn schließlich gibt es kein besseres Vorbild für effizienten Wassertransport als die Natur selbst. Weitere Informationen finden Sie unter http://www.xyleminc.com.

Avec Rule Innovation, préparez votre bassin d’agrément pour le printemps !

2012-01-31T11:11:00.002Z

La pompe à eau sans fil AquaCharge™ garantit un drainage simple et efficace.

(Gloucester, Massachusetts) 30 janvier 2012 - Dites adieu à l’hiver et préparez l’arrivée du printemps grâce à la pompe à eau sans fil AquaCharge™. Destinée aux amateurs de jardinage, cette pompe à eau unique a été conçue par Rule Innovation, une marque Xylem. Compacte et légère, la pompe AquaCharge est l’outil idéal pour permettre un nettoyage rapide et facile des bassins de jardin après les longs mois d’hiver.

Les semaines précédant le printemps sont le moment idéal pour remettre en état votre bassin de jardin. Il est généralement recommandé de nettoyer les bassins avant que la température ambiante ne dépasse les 13 degrés, afin de prévenir l’apparition de maladies, de parasites et de bactéries. De plus, le nettoyage des bassins à cette période de l’année, pendant laquelle les poissons sont plus calmes, présente moins de danger pour la faune et la flore tout en réduisant les risques de perturbation de l’écosystème.

Le système AquaCharge est le partenaire idéal du nettoyage de printemps et facilite les opérations de drainage les plus fastidieuses. Compacte (17,8 x 8,3 x 14 cm) et légère (1,6 kg), la pompe portable et rechargeable de Rule Innovation est adaptée à de nombreuses applications telles que la vidange des bassins et des aquariums ou l’évacuation de l'eau des kayaks, canoës et voiliers. Vous pouvez utiliser la pompe AquaCharge dans des jardins de toutes tailles. Elle est compatible avec la plupart des tuyaux d’arrosage et elle possède une capacité de pompage de 754 litres par charge. Avantage supplémentaire, sa batterie basse tension assure un fonctionnement continu en toute sécurité de l'appareil immergé dans l'eau pendant toute sa durée d'utilisation.

Gina Arnone, responsable du Marketing chez Xylem, déclare : « AquaCharge est le produit idéal pour les utilisateurs à la recherche d’une solution pour nettoyer leurs bassins de jardin. Ce système est également adapté à de nombreuses autres activités de drainage. La pompe à eau sans fil AquaCharge constitue une méthode pratique et efficace pour réaliser une large gamme d'opérations de pompage. »

AquaCharge est disponible en ligne et chez les revendeurs agréés, au prix conseillé de 51,29 £ (+TVA) au Royaume-Uni et de 58,95 € (+TVA) en Allemagne et en France. Rendez-vous sur www.aquachargepump.com pour plus d’informations ou sur www.jabscoshop.com pour acheter AquaCharge.

À propos de Xylem

Xylem (XYL) est un fournisseur mondial de technologies pour l'eau, permettant à ses clients de transporter, traiter, tester et utiliser efficacement l'eau dans les services publics, les environnements résidentiels et commerciaux ou encore industriels et agricoles. La société est présente dans plus de 150 pays via des produits et des marques à succès, et ses collaborateurs fournissent une expertise éprouvée dans la recherche de solutions locales aux problèmes les plus difficiles de la planète en matière d'eau et d'eaux usées. Née en 2011 de la scission de l'activité d'ITT Corporation dans le secteur de l'eau, la société Xylem a son siège à White Plains, dans l'État de New York. Elle a réalisé en 2010 un chiffre d'affaires de 3,2 milliards de dollars et emploie 12 000 personnes à travers le monde.

Le nom Xylem provient du grec ancien et désigne le tissu qui véhicule l'eau dans les plantes. Il souligne l'efficacité technique de notre activité dans le domaine de l'eau en la reliant au meilleur moyen de transporter l'eau qui existe, à savoir celui qui est présent dans la nature. Pour plus d’informations, rendez-vous sur http://www.xyleminc.com.

Der nächste Frühling wird grün – mit RainPerfectTM

2012-01-30T13:10:00.000Z

Einzigartige solarbetriebene Pumpe für die ökologische Gartenbewässerung

Gloucester, MA (27. Januar 2012) – Die Feiertage sind vorbei, der Winter bald auch und alle Gartenfreunde freuen sich schon auf das nächste Frühjahr. Vielleicht haben Sie sich vorgenommen, Ihren Garten in diesem Jahr noch umweltgerechter zu gestalten. Dann ist die RainPerfectTM von Rule Innovation, einer Marke von Xylem, genau das Richtige für Sie. Diese einzigartige solarbetriebene Wasserpumpe lässt sich problemlos an eine Wassertonne anschließen, so dass Sie Ihren Garten komfortabel mit Wasser aus der Regentonne bewässern können. So sorgt die RainPerfect das ganze Jahr für einen umweltgerecht gepflegten grünen Garten.

Die Wasserpumpe RainPerfect von Rule Innovation erzeugt genügend Druck für einen Gartenschlauch oder Rasensprenger und ermöglicht so die komfortable Bewässerung des Gartens mit Wasser aus der Regentonne. Betrieben wird die RainPerfect mit einem effizienten 3,5-Watt-Solarpaneel, das mit nur einer Aufladung eine Pumpleistung von bis zu 377 l bietet.

Die Feiertage haben Ihr Budget arg strapaziert? Durch die Bewässerung Ihres Gartens mit Regenwasser können Sie den Stromverbrauch senken und so Ihr Budget entlasten. Anders als viele andere solarbetriebene Geräte ist die RainPerfect außerdem sehr günstig in der Anschaffung und macht eine umweltgerechte Gartenpflege für alle Gartenfreunde erschwinglich.

Dazu Gina Arnone, Marketing Communications Manager bei Xylem: „Mit steigendem Umweltbewusstsein bemühen sich immer mehr Gartenfreunde um eine umweltfreundlichere Pflege ihres Gartens. Im Januar und Februar bietet es sich geradezu an, vorauszuplanen und den Garten auf das Frühjahr vorzubereiten. Die RainPerfect ist ideal für alle Gartenfreunde, die auch bei der Gartenpflege Wert auf Nachhaltigkeit legen.“

RainPerfect ist über das Internet und bei ausgewählten Einzelhändlern im ganzen Land erhältlich. Der Einzelhandelspreis für RainPerfect beträgt in Deutschland und Frankreich ca. € 101,39 (+ MwSt). Weitere Informationen zur Wasserpumpe RainPerfect finden Sie unter www.rainperfectpump.com. Bestellen können Sie unter www.jabscoshop.com.

-Ende-

Über Xylem

Xylem (XYL) ist ein weltweit führender Anbieter von wassertechnischen Produkten für den Transport, die Aufbereitung, das Testen und die effiziente Nutzung von Wasser. Die Produkte werden in kommunalen Versorgungsbetrieben, Privathaushalten sowie zu kommerziellen, landwirtschaftlichen und industriellen Zwecken eingesetzt. Das Unternehmen ist in über 150 Ländern präsent und besitzt eine Reihe führender Produktmarken. Die Mitarbeiter zeichnen sich durch ihr umfassendes, praxisbezogenes Know-how aus. Der besondere Schwerpunkt des Unternehmens liegt auf der Entwicklung lokaler Lösungen für die größten Herausforderungen der Wasser- und Abwasserwirtschaft weltweit. Xylem wurde 2011 als Ausgründung der Geschäftssparte für wasserwirtschaftliche Produkte der ITT Corporation ins Leben gerufen. Der Unternehmenssitz befindet sich in White Plains, N.Y., USA. Im Jahr 2010 setzte das Unternehmen 3,2 Milliarden US-Dollar um und beschäftigte weltweit 12.000 Mitarbeiter.

Der Name Xylem stammt aus dem Altgriechischen und bezeichnet das wassertransportierende Leitgewebe von Pflanzen. Mit seinem Namen unterstreicht das Unternehmen seinen technischen Anspruch bei wasserwirtschaftlichen Produkten – denn schließlich gibt es kein besseres Vorbild für effizienten Wassertransport als die Natur selbst. Weitere Informationen finden Sie unter http://www.xyleminc.com.

Avec RainPerfectTM, préparez le printemps et adoptez une attitude écologique

2012-01-30T13:08:00.000Z

Cette pompe à eau solaire unique vous garantit une solution d’arrosage respectueuse de l’environnement.

(Gloucester, Massachusetts) 27 janvier 2012 - L’hiver va bientôt laisser place au printemps. Il est temps de préparer votre jardin pour cette nouvelle saison ! En 2012, jouez la carte de l’écologie et entretenez votre jardin avec le système RainPerfectTM de Rule Innovation, une marque Xylem. Cette pompe à eau unique à alimentation solaire se connecte aux réservoirs à eau de pluie afin d’arroser facilement et efficacement votre jardin. Avec RainPerfect, préparez le printemps et respectez l’environnement pendant toute l’année.

La pompe RainPerfect de Rule Innovation permet de recycler les ressources des réservoirs à eau de pluie puis de générer une pression suffisante pour alimenter la plupart des pistolets de tuyaux d’arrosage ou des arroseurs. D’une grande efficacité, la pompe RainPerfect fonctionne grâce à un panneau solaire de 3,5 watts qui lui permet de pomper jusqu’à 377 litres par charge.

Envie de faire des économies après les excès des fêtes de fin d’année ? La pompe RainPerfect, qui permet de recycler les ressources collectées via les réservoirs à eau de pluie, contribue à réduire votre facture énergétique. De plus, la pompe RainPerfect présente un coût modéré par rapport à de nombreux autres produits solaires. Vous pouvez ainsi adopter une attitude écologique sans vous ruiner.

Gina Arnone, responsable du Marketing chez Xylem, nous explique : « En cette période de prise de conscience environnementale, de plus en plus de personnes essaient d'entretenir leur jardin avec des méthodes respectueuses de l’environnement. Les mois de janvier et de février sont le meilleur moment pour anticiper l’avenir et préparer son jardin pour le printemps. RainPerfect est le produit idéal pour placer son jardin sous le signe du développement durable. »

RainPerfect est disponible en ligne et chez les revendeurs agréés, au prix conseillé de 88,22 £ (+TVA) au Royaume-Uni et de 101,39 € (+TVA) en Allemagne et en France. Rendez-vous sur www.rainperfectpump.com pour plus d’informations ou sur www.jabscoshop.com pour acheter RainPerfect.

-fin-

À propos de Xylem

Xylem (XYL) est un fournisseur mondial de technologies pour l'eau, permettant à ses clients de transporter, traiter, tester et utiliser efficacement l'eau dans les services publics, les environnements résidentiels et commerciaux ou encore industriels et agricoles. La société est présente dans plus de 150 pays via des produits et des marques à succès, et ses collaborateurs fournissent une expertise éprouvée dans la recherche de solutions locales aux problèmes les plus difficiles de la planète en matière d'eau et d'eaux usées. Née en 2011 de la scission de l'activité d'ITT Corporation dans le secteur de l'eau, la société Xylem a son siège à White Plains, dans l'État de New York. Elle a réalisé en 2010 un chiffre d'affaires de 3,2 milliards de dollars et emploie 12 000 personnes à travers le monde.

Le nom Xylem provient du grec ancien et désigne le tissu qui véhicule l'eau dans les plantes. Il souligne l'efficacité technique de notre activité dans le domaine de l'eau en la reliant au meilleur moyen de transporter l'eau qui existe, à savoir celui qui est présent dans la nature. Pour plus d’informations, rendez-vous sur http://www.xyleminc.com.

Analytical Technology Expands Team to Increase Capacity as Prestigious Contract Wins are Secured

2012-01-20T14:51:00.000Z

Manchester, UK (January, 9, 2012) Specialist electrochemical sensor manufacturer Analytical Technology Inc. today announces that the company is expanding its team to accommodate increasing business as it continues to grow as the leading supplier of water monitoring instrumentation to the UK’s utility industry. Analytical Technology has expanded its workforce by more than 20%, including hiring two new employees to strengthen its Customer Service offering and meet the demands of new framework agreements with companies including Wessex Water and Yorkshire Water.

Following a series of high profile contract wins, Analytical Technology is determined to maintain the same high standards of customer support to complement its leading instrumentation. Lisa Briggs joins Analytical Technology as service administrator and is responsible for organising the top quality customer service and training that the company delivers to its customers. Lisa will coordinate the activities of Analytical Technology’s team of service engineers, ensuring that they are available to respond to challenges, such as disinfection issues, that can occur at wastewater treatment plants and need immediate attention. Lisa has a background in customer service and operational management, working at companies including AVIVA and Apropos Tectonic Ltd, ensuring that projects were delivered on time and in accordance with customer requirements.

Analytical Technology’s customer service team has also been bolstered with the appointment of Ann Jones as financial administrator. Both new employees will ensure that Analytical Technology’s customers receive a seamless and efficient service.

Analytical Technology is a UK and European specialist electrochemical sensor manufacturer, providing a range of toxic gas detectors and water monitors including peracetic acid, hydrogen peroxide, residual sulphite and chlorine. The company was set up in 1998 and from then on has enjoyed increasing success. Recent contract wins with Wessex Water, Severn Trent Water, Thames Water and Yorkshire Water mean that Analytical Technology now supplies water monitoring instrumentation to 7 out of the 10 major utility companies in the UK. In addition to this, Analytical Technology provides gas and water monitors to many food and beverage, industrial and pharmaceutical companies such as AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, Coca Cola and Britvic.

The growing success of Analytical Technology can largely be attributed to the high standard of customer service delivered by the company. Analytical Technology provides specialist product-specific customer training at its head quarters in Saddleworth, Manchester. Maintenance services and in-depth training workshops provided at customers’ premises are also part of the company’s comprehensive after-sales support.

Dr. Michael Strahand, General Manager Europe at Analytical Technology, comments: “Our decision to expand the Analytical Technology team reinforces our commitment to providing top quality customer service and I am delighted to welcome our new employees to their roles. Analytical Technology has gone from strength to strength since its inception in 1998 and we are proud to list many leading brands and companies in the food and beverage, cosmetic, utility and pharmaceutical sectors as our customers. Top class customer service is essential in this industry, where rapid response times to situations such as water treatment issues are essential to maintaining a safe and continuous water supply in water treatment and manufacturing plants.”

For more information on Analytical Technology’s water and gas monitoring instrumentation, please call or +44(0)800 8046 062, e-mail sales@atiuk.com or visit www.analyticaltechnology.com.

-ENDS-

For further press information please contact: Lindsay Baldry, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA Tel: +44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539540 e-mail: ati@scottpr.com

SmartKem Accelerates Pace in Asian Market by Signing Materials Testing Agreements with World-Renowned Asian Corporations

2012-01-20T13:59:00.000Z

(17 January 2012) – SmartKem Limited, the developer of high performance, printable organic semiconductor materials for flexible electronics, today announced that it has signed materials testing agreements with a number of leading Asian companies in the chemical and electronics sectors. The agreements will see SmartKem’s innovative organic semiconductor inks tested for use in printable electronics applications for products such as state-of-the-art eReaders, Tablet PC’s, Smartphones and TV’s.

SmartKem’s products have been designed to enable the development of high performance flexible electronic devices, which can be cost effectively manufactured using low temperature printing and coating methods. The agreements demonstrate the strong market demand for these types of organic materials in the highly technological Asia region, and come following the recent appointment of SmartKem’s Japanese representative, Dr.Hirai, as well as agents in both Korea and Taiwan.

Since its inception in 2009, SmartKem has demonstrated remarkable technological progress, moving rapidly from the early R&D stage into the supply of innovative organic semiconductor inks, formulated to deliver improved performance and improved manufacture of printable transistor arrays and organic circuits. SmartKem’s continually improving organic semiconductor technology offers a myriad of benefits over competing silicon semiconductors and delivers state-of-the-art electronic performance alongside high levels of stability. July 2011 saw SmartKem’s materials outperform its competitors and achieve performance “better than amorphous-silicon”, with impressive results in tests conducted by the UK’s National Printable Electronics Technology Centre (PETEC).

Steve Kelly, CEO of SmartKem comments, “Our partnerships with these corporations stems from our ability to establish materials with state-of-the-art electronic performance and stability. We are excited to be moving into the next phase of our journey. These agreements provide verification that our organic semiconductor materials have the potential to satisfy the needs of the display sector and provide us with an encouraging platform for further growth and investment.”

SmartKem’s niche expertise, coupled with a flexible business model has enabled it to respond quickly to the current needs of the electronics displays sector. The development of a roadmap of new organic semiconductor molecules and inks, supported by strong IP has allowed the company to take prime position and lead the way in adapting and providing innovations that meet the ever changing needs of a rapidly growing market in lightweight, rugged, flexible electronics.

For more information on SmartKem and its innovative materials, please call 01745 535190, email enquiries@smartkem.com or visit www.smartkem.com

Markes International Launches New CIA Advantage for Canister Analysis of Air Toxics

2012-01-06T12:47:00.002Z

January, 04, 2012, Markes International (Llantrisant, UK), a world leader in thermal desorption (TD) technology and innovation, today announces that it will be launching an innovative new instrument, the CIA Advantage at PITTCON 2012. Designed for the analysis of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in air and gas that is sampled using canisters, the CIA Advantage allows analytical chemists to analyse a wide range of analyte concentrations without the need for dilution, saving time and meeting an industry need for more flexible solutions. Due to the inbuilt sorbent tube functionality, the instrument has the capacity to analyse an extended range of compounds while improving workflow productivity. CIA Advantage systems are fully compliant with the US Environmental Protection Agency Method TO-15, allowing users to have confidence in results. Markes will exhibit the newly launched instrument on booth #1780, 1781 at PITTCON 2012, Orlando, FL, March 11- March 15, 2012.

Traditionally canisters have been used to analyse ambient air samples, however, they are increasingly being applied to other analyses such as vapour intrusion and soil gas studies. As a result, there is a need for instrumentation that has the capacity to manage a wider range of sample concentrations. Additionally, the harmful effects of low-level exposure to hazardous air pollutants, such as ‘air toxics’, on human health are being increasingly recognised and consequently, analytical laboratories using canisters are required to detect ever-lower levels of analytes. The CIA Advantage is a single system that can handle component concentrations ranging from ppt to low-percent levels using a combination of loop-sampling, large-volume sampling and the ability to split sample flows, presenting a time-efficient and cost-effective solution.

With cryogen-free operation, the CIA Advantage avoids the cost of liquid cryogen while the heated internal lines and efficient purge steps combine to avoid the problem of carryover, even with less volatile analytes. This negligible carryover means that canister analysis can be confidently undertaken on samples of unknown concentration, facilitating automation and therefore increasing productivity. The CIA Advantage is equipped to prevent ice formation, creating a robust system and minimising downtime.
Markes International is the world leader in TD technology and innovation, specialising in the manufacture and supply of cryogen-free TD instrumentation, sampling accessories and consumables for VOC and SVOC monitoring. Markes’ global customer base includes major industry, government agencies, academia and the service laboratory sector.
For further information on the CIA Advantage or Markes’ other thermal desorption instruments, accessories or consumables, please visit booth #1780,1781 at PITTCON 2012. Alternatively, please email enquiries@markes.com or call +44 (0)1443 230935.

# # #
For further press information please contact: Lindsay Baldry, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA, United Kingdom, Tel: + 44 1477 539 539, Fax: +44 1477 539 540, E-mail: markes@scottpr.com

Optibrium and Cresset Announce Technology Collaboration

2012-01-06T09:32:00.000Z

Technology exchange combines unique methods for design of novel, high quality compounds in drug discovery

CAMBRIDGE, and WELWYN GARDEN CITY, UK, January 4th, 2012 – Optibrium, a provider of software solutions for drug discovery, and innovative software and services provider Cresset, today announce an agreement to collaborate on the development of next-generation platforms. The innovative companies will work together, combining unique approaches to help drug discovery projects quickly identify novel, potent compounds with a high chance of success downstream.

The collaboration will involve a two-way exchange of technologies: Optibrium’s ADME models, currently provided as a plug-in module for its StarDrop™ software platform, will be made available to users of Cresset’s desktop applications. Similarly, Cresset’s FieldAlignTM software, which helps chemists understand the three-dimensional structure-activity-relationship of their chemistry in order to design active compounds, will be made available as an optional plug-in module for StarDrop, which helps project teams to confidently target compounds with a good balance of properties for their therapeutic objectives.

Achieving a combination of potency with appropriate ADME and safety properties is essential to the discovery of high quality drug candidates. Cresset’s molecular field technology provides unique insight into the biological activity, properties and interactions of molecules, which enables biologically meaningful comparisons that are not limited by two-dimensional structure. Optibrium’s StarDrop platform helps to guide decisions on the design and selection of compounds by integrating in silico and experimentally measured properties using a unique multi-parameter optimisation approach, chemical space and Glowing Molecule™ visualisations and predictive modelling.

Dr. Matthew Segall, CEO of Optibrium, said, “We are very happy to be working with the team at Cresset. This collaboration furthers our aim to deliver leading edge in silico technologies directly to the desktop of all drug discovery scientists through StarDrop’s user friendly, interactive interface. The new FieldAlign module in StarDrop will bring a powerful 3D view of compound interactions that will complement StarDrop’s existing 2D QSAR models.”

Dr. Robert Scoffin, CEO of Cresset, added “This collaboration is an excellent opportunity for two companies to combine talents and technologies in order to offer a better product to our combined customers. This highlights the power of bringing together complementary technologies from leading-edge companies to better address problems in Drug Discovery.”
The technology shared under this collaboration will form new components in upcoming releases of Optibrium's StarDrop and Cresset's desktop applications. Full details of these exciting new developments will be announced soon.

For more information about StarDrop and Optibrium’s software solutions please visit www.optibrium.com, alternatively please call +44 (0) 1223 815 900 or email info@optibrium.com.

For more information about Cresset’s software and service solutions please visit www.cresset-group.com, alternatively please call +44 (0) 1707 356 120 or email sales@cresset-group.com.

About Optibrium Ltd
Optibrium (www.optibrium.com) is dedicated to providing software to guide decisions involving complex, uncertain data in an intuitive way. Based in Cambridge, UK, Optibrium has a global customer base ranging from top-ten pharmaceutical companies to small biotechs and academic groups. Our mission is to continue to develop new technologies that will optimise project strategy, reduce wasted molecules and experiments, shorten timelines and improve the quality of candidate compounds for our clients. Optibrium’s primary product, StarDrop, is focused on the drug discovery industry, helping guide scientists to make decisions in the design and selection of high quality drug candidates. Visit the online community at http://www.optibrium.com/community/ for further discussions on improving the productivity of drug discovery.
About Cresset Group Ltd

Cresset develops software for calculating and comparing the molecular Field characteristics of chemical compounds. Field technology uses the surface properties of molecules to evaluate their activities and properties, rather than relying on 2D structure similarity, which enables Cresset’s users to find more interesting, novel and relevant results than other methods. Cresset’s Fields provide a smarter, structure independent way of hit-finding, lead switching and lead optimization in drug discovery and other chemistry-based research projects. Cresset’s Field technologies have been successfully applied to a very wide range of target classes, with and without structural information, on over 100 projects for major pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. www.cresset-group.com

For further press information please contact:

Sarah Evans, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA, UK Tel: + 44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540 E-mail: optibrium@scottpr.com

Or

Carolyn Butchers Alto Marketing Limited, Office 3, Universal Marina, Crableck Lane, Sarisbury Green, Southampton, Hampshire, SO31 7AL Tel +44 (0)1489 557672 Email: carolynb@alto-marketing.com

Greenphire Selected by AlwaysOn as a Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 Winner

2011-12-14T16:23:00.002Z

King of Prussia, PA, 13 December, 2011 – Greenphire, the leading provider of payment technologies for the clinical trials industry, today announced that it has been chosen by AlwaysOn as one of the Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 winners. Inclusion in the Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 signifies leadership amongst its peers and game-changing approaches and technologies that are likely to disrupt existing markets and entrenched players. Greenphire was specially selected by the AlwaysOn editorial team and industry experts spanning the globe based on a set of five criteria: innovation, market potential, commercialization, stakeholder value and media buzz.

Greenphire and the Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 companies were honored at the IMPACT Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic event, November 29th and 30th, 2011, at the Ritz Carlton in Philadelphia, PA.

This two-day executive event featured CEO presentations and high-level debates on the most promising emerging technologies and new entrepreneurial opportunities on the East Coast. The Greater Philadelphia Alliance for Capital and Technologies (PACT) annual venture conference, IMPACT 2011, is the most established venture conference in the northeast. For over 20 years, IMPACT has been showcasing the best and most promising investment opportunities in the technology, life sciences and clean technology sectors.

“The Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 winners are transforming the mid-Atlantic region’s technology community through innovation and creativity,” said Tony Perkins, founder and editor at AlwaysOn. “The companies represent some of the highest-growth opportunities in the mid-Atlantic private company marketplace across all industry sectors, including digital media and entertainment, on-demand computing as well as greentech and the life sciences.”

The Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 winners were selected from among thousands of mid-Atlantic technology companies nominated by investors, bankers, journalists and greentech industry insiders. The AlwaysOn editorial team conducted a rigorous three-month selection process to finalize the 2011 list.

Greenphire is the leading provider of payment and communication technology solutions in the clinical trials industry. The firm was founded by Sam Whitaker and John Samar in 2008 with the vision of creating a globally scalable technology platform to allow pharmaceutical and medical device developers and clinical research sites to electronically deliver payments to investigators, vendors and trial participants. Since then, Greenphire’s technologies have been implemented to support over 60,000 clinical trial participants across 6,000 studies at 1,200 clinical trial sites.

"We're thrilled and honored to be included in AlwaysOn's Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100,” said Greenphire CEO Samuel Whitaker. “Greenphire's unique clinical payment solutions are a perfect fit with AlwaysOn's focus on technological innovation, and this recognition is extremely valuable as we continue to establish the Greenphire brand as the leader in developing cutting-edge clinical technology platforms."

A full list of all the Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic 100 winners can be found on the AlwaysOn website at:http://www.aonetwork.com/AOStory/Announcing-2011-Venture-Summit-Mid-Atlantic-100-Top-Private-Companies

About Greenphire
Greenphire’s clinical payment and communication solutions take a patient-centric and site-centric approach to driving data integrity and data completeness for sponsor, CRO, research university, and clinical research site clients. Greenphire’s web-based technologies are designed to improve the clinical experience for patients and sites, drive positive patient behavior, increase patient retention and compliance, and significantly reduce site and study team administration associated with patient payments and communication. Greenphire’s strategy is driven by the philosophy that empowered, satisfied patients and sites will deliver more consistent and better quality clinical data, which will in turn benefit both site coordinators and study teams. Learn more about Greenphire’s innovative clinical solutions at www.greenphire.com.

About AlwaysOn
AlwaysOn is the leading business media brand networking the Global Silicon Valley. AlwaysOn helped ignite the social media revolution in early 2003 when it launched the AlwaysOn network. In 2004, it became the first media brand to socially network its online readers and event attendees. AlwaysOn’s preeminent executive event series includes the Silicon Valley Innovation Summit, OnMedia, OnHollywood, Venture Summit Mid-Atlantic, OnDemand, Venture Summit Silicon Valley, OnMobile, and GoingGreen Silicon Valley. The AlwaysOn network and live event series continue to lead the industry by empowering its readers, event participants, sponsors, and advertisers like no other media brand.
For further information on Greenphire and its innovative solutions please email: sales@greenphire.com, call +1 215-609-4640 or visit www.greenphire.com.
For further press information please contact Celine Callender, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA, United Kingdom. Phone +44 1477 539539, Fax +44 1477 539540, Email greenphire@scottpr.com

Novozymes expands collaboration with Upperton Limited to offer customers new albumin conjugation solution

2011-12-09T14:06:00.002Z

Conjugating Recombumin® Flex to drugs offers the opportunity to dramatically enhance patient lives and drive down healthcare costs.
NOTTINGHAM, UK – December 8, 2011 – Novozymes Biopharma, part of Novozymes A/S, a world leader in bioinnovation, has announced that it has expanded its partnership with Nottingham-based research and development company, Upperton Limited, to offer customers a new albumin conjugation solution. By linking drugs to Novozymes’ new Recombumin® Flex recombinant human albumin (rAlbumin), using conjugation, their pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties can be dramatically enhanced. As a result, manufacturers can benefit from the ability to tailor and control the half-life of drugs to fit patients’ medical needs.

“Novozymes is delighted to unveil Recombumin Flex along with our new conjugation solution in partnership with Upperton Limited,” says Dave Mead, Business Development Director at Novozymes Biopharma. “Novozymes has enjoyed a successful relationship with Upperton over the past 10 years and its expertise and experience in the conjugation of proteins, combined with our experience of protein engineering and production, will help customers to design drugs with tailored serum half-life and fewer side-effects. This will result in improved dosing regimes for the patient and a reduction in overall costs for the healthcare provider.”

By manipulating the interaction of albumin with its receptor, the neonatal Fc receptor (FcRn), Novozymes can produce modified albumins that bind with greater or lesser affinities, meaning a flexible half-life. Increasing the serum half-life of a drug may reduce the frequency of injections a patient receives or even reduce the amount of drug delivered, thereby significantly reducing toxic side-effects and increasing patient acceptance.
Upperton has demonstrated that proteins, peptides and small molecule APIs can be covalently attached to recombinant human albumin using a range of chemistries. Additionally, once drugs have been linked to the recombinant human albumin carrier, they exhibit dramatically improved pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties. Combining Novozymes' unique IP and know-how around the albumin molecules themselves with Upperton’s rP-conjugate™ albumin conjugation chemistry knowledge, enables the companies to work closely with customers to design and implement the best chemical linking approach for their molecule. As a result, Novozymes can provide partners with a unique service from initial product concept through to in vivo testing for developing novel drugs.
Richard Johnson, founder and CEO of Upperton Limited, comments “By combining Novozymes’ and Upperton’s unmatched expertise in our respective fields, we have developed a solution that solves industry challenges by enabling a tunable half-life that offers control and flexibility and has the potential to improve overall treatment efficacy.”
To learn more about Novozymes’ Recombumin Flex technology, please visit www.biopharma.novozymes.com.

To find out more about Upperton Limited, please visit www.upperton.com.

SmartKem Expands International Presence with Appointment of Japanese Representative

2011-12-09T14:02:00.002Z

(9 December, 2011) – SmartKem Limited, the developer of high performance, printable organic semiconductor materials for flexible electronics, today announced the appointment of a Japanese representative, Dr. Yutaka Hirai of Business Link Japan. This partnership, combining SmartKem’s niche scientific expertise and the consultation services of Dr. Hirai, will support SmartKem’s growth in the TFT and electronics display market. The expansion will enable the company to target the complete supply chain in Japan, from chemical suppliers to printing specialists and electronics manufacturers. With a strong heritage in the development of organic semiconductor technology for TFT display applications, SmartKem will deliver customised ink formulations that are designed to enable the manufacture of lightweight, ultra-thin and rugged flat panel displays as used in smartphones, laptops, tablet PCs and TV screens.

Based in Tokyo, Japan, Dr. Hirai brings to the role extensive high level technology experience, having worked for large organizations such as Canon Inc. at senior management and Director level. Dr. Hirai has specialist expertise in semiconductor materials and devices for applications such as displays, sensors, solar cells and fuel cells. Dr. Hirai will be responsible for ensuring that SmartKem’s world class organic semiconductor materials are directed at leading Japanese organisations who are involved in the development and manufacture of flexible, lightweight and large-area printed electronics. Priority will be given to market-driven applications such as EPD, OLED and HD LCD display industries. Asia is the home of electronic device manufacturing and provides an exciting market potential for SmartKem’s technology. The appointment of a highly respected representative in Japan marks the starting point of SmartKem’s Asian strategy.

“I am very excited to have the opportunity to represent SmartKem in Japan. The future of lightweight and flexible electronics will be driven by pioneering advances in material technology that will enable limitless applications comments Dr. Hirai. SmartKem is leading the development of these materials and it is with great pride that I will represent the company in the Japanese market with ground-breaking organic semiconductor solutions.”

"The global market for ultra-thin, lightweight printable electronics is growing rapidly and is estimated to reach $45 billion by 2016. Being a fast evolving industrial market, Japan is expected to play a key role in new developments, offering exceptional growth opportunities for forward-looking companies such as SmartKem adds Steve Kelly, CEO of SmartKem. Dr. Hirai is highly respected in the electronics industry and has impressive credentials within our target market sectors. We are confident that he will exceed our expectations and help us achieve our goal of becoming the leading independent provider of organic semiconductor solutions for TFT displays.”

SmartKem was advised by Peter Bacon of Electronics Link Asia on this project.

For more information on SmartKem and its innovative materials, please call 01745 535190, email enquiries@smartkem.com or visit www.smartkem.com

-ENDS-

About SmartKem
SmartKem is a high tech enterprise developing an exciting new technology platform focusing on high performance/high value organic semiconductor materials that can be ‘printed’ to form electronic circuits onto lightweight, rugged and low cost polymer films. Based in the world class Optic Technium centre, North Wales, SmartKem’s main objective is to respond to the demand for low cost, low weight, low energy, rugged electronics. The SmartKem team has proven expertise and experience in the fields of organic semiconductors, specialist ink-technology and printable transistors and was a recent winner of the inaugural Oxford Venturefest gold award for ‘British Technology Innovation of the Year’.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Fluorospectrometer Implemented by the University of California to improve the accuracy and efficiency of GFR Measurements in mice

2011-11-30T16:19:00.000Z

WILMINGTON, Del. (November 30 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced that the University of California (UC), San Diego, Division of Nephrology/Hypertension has implemented a Thermo Scientific NanoDrop 3300 Fluorospectrometer as the fluorescent detection system for mouse glomerular filtration rate (GFR) determination. The Thermo Scientific NanoDrop 3300 Fluorospectrometer offers a reliable micro-volume fluorescent platform for repeated determination of GFR in conscious mice to assess their renal function without surgical procedures. The instrument allows scientists to perform these measurements simply, quickly and cost-effectively, making the instrument a valuable tool for GFR research applications. A new application note entitled ‘Measuring Mouse GFR by Fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-Inulin using the Thermo Scientific NanoDrop 3300 Fluorospectrometer’, is available for download at http://www.nanodrop.com/3300apps.html

UC San Diego’s Division of Nephrology/Hypertension considers GFR measurement to be the most reliable method in renal function assessment and as such the technique is utilized by the team to determine GFR under physiological and pathophysiological conditions in mice. In the past, the division determined GFR by measuring radioactively labeled inulin in blood plasma and urine in anesthetized animals. However, anesthesia has multiple effects on the physiology of the mammalian body and repetitive measurements are difficult to perform. As this limitation significantly impacted the study designs, the division sought an alternative method.

UC San Diego’s Division of Nephrology/Hypertension has implemented the Thermo Scientific NanoDrop 3300 fluorospectrometer to enable the measurement of GFR using FITC-inulin. This protocol retains the sensitivity of the traditional assay by using fluorescence detection, while the instrument’s microvolume technology has enabled researchers to reduce the volumes of blood required to <10 µl per collection time point. The NanoDrop 3300 uses a patented ”cuvette-less” sample retention system for fluorescence measurements using samples as small as 1-2 µl. This enables the division to undertake studies using serial measurements from the same model without compromising the accuracy of the GFR measurement data, or the health of the model. In addition, the easy-to-use instrument is capable of analyzing multiple emission profiles from a single sample and has a small footprint, taking up minimal space in the laboratory.

Dr. Timo Rieg, Assistant Professor of Medicine at UC San Diego, comments, “The productivity and accuracy of GFR measurements within the Division of Nephrology has been significantly enhanced. By combining the sensitivity of the FITC-Inulin technique with the microvolume format of the NanoDrop 3300 instrument, required blood volumes have been reduced. This reduction in blood draw and the possibility to measure GFR under conscious conditions have facilitated further studies in mice that until now were not possible because of the physiological effects of anesthesia and the terminal nature of other methods of GFR determination.”

For further information on the University of California, San Diego, please visit http://nephrology.ucsd.edu/

For more information on the Thermo Scientific NanoDrop products and the free trial program, please visit www.thermoscientific.com/nanodrop or call +1 302-479-7707.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.

Jouez la carte de l’écologie avec le cadeau idéal pour les amateurs de jardinage!

2011-11-30T14:01:00.001Z

(Gloucester, Massachusetts) 29 Novembre 2011- Comblez les passionnés de jardinage avec la pompe à eau solaire RainPerfect de Rule Innovation, une marque Xylem. Ne vous cassez pas la tête pour trouver un cadeau de Noël : le système RainPerfect est le cadeau de jardinage idéal pour ceux qui ont déjà tout !

La pompe RainPerfect de Rule Innovation permet de recycler les ressources des réservoirs à eau de pluie puis de générer une pression suffisante pour alimenter la plupart des pistolets d’arrosage ou des asperseurs. D’une grande efficacité, la pompe RainPerfect fonctionne grâce à un panneau solaire de 3,5 watts, ce qui en fait le cadeau idéal pour tous les jardiniers soucieux de l’environnement. La pompe RainPerfect est une méthode efficace et simple pour placer son jardin sous le signe du développement durable. De plus, alors que le coût de l’énergie ne cesse d’augmenter, l’alimentation solaire de la pompe RainPerfect présente des avantages écologiques et économiques indéniables.

Gina Arnone, responsable du Marketing chez Xylem, le confirme : « RainPerfect est le cadeau idéal. De plus en plus de gens choisissent d’investir dans des citernes à eau. Tous ceux qui aiment jardiner, souhaitent économiser l’eau ou adopter une attitude plus écologique, vont plébisciter la pompe RainPerfect. »

La pompe RainPerfect est disponible en ligne et chez les revendeurs agréés, au prix conseillé de 88,22 £ (+TVA) au Royaume-Uni et de 101,39 € (+TVA) en Allemagne et en France. Rendez-vous sur www.rainperfectpump.com pour plus d’informations ou sur www.jabscoshop.com pour acheter RainPerfect.

À propos de Xylem

Xylem (XYL) est un fournisseur mondial de technologies pour l'eau, permettant à ses clients de transporter, traiter, tester et utiliser efficacement l'eau dans les services publics, les environnements résidentiels et commerciaux ou encore industriels et agricoles. La société est présente dans plus de 150 pays via des produits et des marques à succès, et ses collaborateurs fournissent une expertise éprouvée dans la recherche de solutions locales aux problèmes les plus difficiles de la planète en matière d'eau et d'eaux usées. Née en 2011 de la scission de l'activité d'ITT Corporation dans le secteur de l'eau, la société Xylem a son siège à White Plains, dans l'État de New York. Elle a réalisé en 2010 un chiffre d'affaires de 3,2 milliards de dollars et emploie 12 000 personnes à travers le monde.

Le nom Xylem provient du grec ancien et désigne le tissu transportant l'eau dans les plantes, soulignant l'efficacité technique de notre activité dans le domaine de l'eau en la reliant avec le meilleur moyen de transport de l'eau qui existe, à savoir celui qui est présent dans la nature. Pour plus d’informations, rendez-vous sur http://www.xyleminc.com.

Une période de fêtes réussie avec la pompe à eau sans fil AquaCharge de Rule Innovation

2011-11-30T13:59:00.000Z

Gloucester, Massachusetts, 29 Novembre 2011 – Les amateurs de navigation de plaisance et de jardinage vont adorer l'AquaCharge de Rule Innovation (une marque Xylem). Plus besoin d’écumer les magasins à la recherche du cadeau parfait : l’AquaCharge est le cadeau idéal pour les fêtes de fin d’année !

Cette innovante pompe à eau sans fil peut être utilisée pour de nombreuses applications classiques telles que le drainage des bassins et des pièces d'eau du jardin, et des aquariums. En dehors du jardin, cette pompe est une solution efficace pour évacuer l'eau des kayaks, canoës et voiliers.

De dimensions modestes (17,8 x 8,3 x 14 cm) et légère (1,6 kg), la pompe portable et rechargeable de Rule Innovation constitue un objet domestique maniable et facile à utiliser. La pompe peut se raccorder à n'importe quel tuyau de jardin standard pour être facilement utilisée dans des jardins de toute taille. Sa capacité de pompage est de 754,5 litres par charge.

Avantage supplémentaire, une batterie basse tension permet le fonctionnement continu en toute sécurité de l'unité immergée dans l'eau pendant toute sa durée d'utilisation.

Gina Arnone, responsable des communications chez Xylem, renchérit en déclarant : « La pompe AquaCharge est compacte, légère et fiable. Elle est idéale pour une large gamme d'applications. C'est une idée de cadeau intelligente et « différente » pour les férus de navigation et de jardinage ou les propriétaires d'aquariums et bassins variés. »

L'AquaCharge est disponible en ligne et distribuée à l'échelon national par des détaillants sélectionnés au prix de 51,29 £ (+ TVA) au Royaume-Uni et de 58,95 € (+ TVA) environ en Allemagne et en France. Rendez-vous sur le site www.aquachargepump.com pour en savoir plus ou sur le site www.jabscoshop.com pour commander votre unité dès aujourd'hui.

Qui est Xylem ?
Xylem (XYL) est un fournisseur mondial de technologies pour l'eau, permettant à ses clients de transporter, traiter, tester et utiliser efficacement l'eau dans les services publics, les environnements résidentiels et commerciaux ou encore industriels et agricoles. La société est présente dans plus de 150 pays via des produits et des marques leaders du marché. Ses collaborateurs fournissent une expertise éprouvée dans la recherche de solutions locales aux problèmes les plus difficiles de la planète en matière d'eau et d'eaux usées. Née en 2011 de la scission de l'activité d'ITT Corporation dans le secteur de l'eau, la société Xylem a son siège à White Plains dans l'État de New York. Elle a réalisé en 2010 un chiffre d'affaires de 3,2 milliards de dollars et emploie 12 000 personnes à travers le monde.

Le nom « Xylem » (xylème), dérivé du grec classique, désigne le tissu transportant l'eau dans les plantes. Il évoque l'efficacité technique de notre activité dans le domaine de l'eau en la reliant avec le meilleur moyen de transport de l'eau qui existe, à savoir celui qui est présent dans la nature. Pour plus d'informations, visitez notre site http://www.xyleminc.com.

Neuartige kabellose Wasserpumpe AquaCharge von Rule Innovation– eine außergewöhnliche Geschenkidee zu Weihnachten

2011-11-25T10:35:00.000Z

Gloucester, MA, USA (23 November 2011) – Darauf haben Boots- und Gartenfreunde schon lange gewartet: die kabellose Wasserpumpe AquaCharge von Rule Innovation, einer Marke von Xylem. Suchen Sie nicht länger nach dem idealen Geschenk: Die AquaCharge ist genau das Richtige für Weihnachten! Die innovative, kabellose Wasserpumpe eignet sich bestens zum Abpumpen von Gartenteichen, Wasserbecken, Aquarien usw. Außerdem lässt sich die AquaCharge sehr effizient als Lenzpumpe für Kajaks, Kanus und Segelboote nutzen.

Die tragbare, akkubetriebene AquaCharge von Rule Innovation ist dank ihrer kompakten Abmessungen (ca. 18 x 8 x 14 cm) und des geringen Gewichts (ca. 1,6 kg) sehr leicht und praktisch in der Handhabung. Sie lässt sich an alle Standardgartenschläuche anschließen und in Gärten jeder Größe einsetzen.

Ihre Pumpkapazität beträgt 754 l pro Akkuladung. Der Niederspannungsakku ermöglicht einen kontinuierlichen Betrieb, wobei die Pumpe sogar ins Wasser eingetaucht werden kann – ein unschätzbarer Vorteil!

Dazu Gina Arnone, Marketing Communications Manager bei Xylem: „Die Wasserpumpe AquaCharge ist kompakt, leicht und zuverlässig. Sie eignet sich ideal für eine Vielzahl von Aufgaben und ist damit ein sinnvolles und außergewöhnliches Geschenk für Aquarianer, Boots- und Gartenfreunde usw.“

Die AquaCharge ist über das Internet und bei ausgewählten Einzelhändlern im ganzen Land erhältlich. Der Einzelhandelspreis beträgt in Deutschland und Frankreich ca. € 58,95 (+ MwSt). Weitere Informationen finden Sie unter www.aquachargepump.com. Bestellen können Sie unter www.jabscoshop.com.

Über Xylem

Xylem (XYL) ist ein weltweit führender Anbieter von wassertechnischen Produkten für den Transport, die Aufbereitung, das Testen und die effiziente Nutzung von Wasser. Die Produkte werden in kommunalen Versorgungsbetrieben, Privathaushalten sowie zu kommerziellen, landwirtschaftlichen und industriellen Zwecken eingesetzt. Das Unternehmen ist in über 150 Ländern präsent und besitzt eine Reihe führender Produktmarken. Die Mitarbeiter zeichnen sich durch ihr umfassendes, praxisbezogenes Know-how aus. Der besondere Schwerpunkt des Unternehmens liegt auf der Entwicklung lokaler Lösungen für die größten Herausforderungen der Wasser- und Abwasserwirtschaft weltweit. Xylem wurde 2011 als Ausgründung der Geschäftssparte für wasserwirtschaftliche Produkte der ITT Corporation ins Leben gerufen. Der Unternehmenssitz befindet sich in White Plains, N.Y., USA. Im Jahr 2010 setzte das Unternehmen 3,2 Milliarden US-Dollar um und beschäftigte weltweit 12.000 Mitarbeiter.

Der Name Xylem stammt aus dem Altgriechischen und bezeichnet das wassertransportierende Leitgewebe von Pflanzen. Mit seinem Namen unterstreicht das Unternehmen seinen technischen Anspruch bei wasserwirtschaftlichen Produkten – denn schließlich gibt es kein besseres Vorbild für effizienten Wassertransport als die Natur selbst. Weitere Informationen finden Sie unter http://www.xyleminc.com.

Auf ein grünes neues Jahr – mit dem idealen Geschenk für Hobbygärtner!

2011-11-25T10:19:00.000Z

Gloucester, MA, USA (23 November 2011) – Überraschen Sie die Hobbygärtner in Ihrem Freundeskreis mit der solarbetriebenen Wasserpumpe RainPerfect von Rule Innovation, einer Marke von Xylem. Suchen Sie nicht länger nach dem idealen Geschenk: RainPerfect ist genau das Richtige für Gartenfreunde, die schon alles haben!

Die Wasserpumpe RainPerfect von Rule Innovation erzeugt genügend Druck für einen Gartenschlauch oder Rasensprenger und ermöglicht so die komfortable Bewässerung des Gartens mit Wasser aus der Regentonne. Betrieben wird die RainPerfect mit einem 3,5-Watt-Solarpaneel und präsentiert sich damit als umweltfreundliches Geschenk für alle, die im neuen Jahr ökologische Vorsätze verwirklichen wollen. Die RainPerfect ist der einfachste Weg zu nachhaltiger und dabei höchst effektiver Gartenpflege. Und angesichts der steigenden Energiekosten ist die solarbetriebene RainPerfect nicht nur umweltfreundlich, sondern auch wirtschaftlich attraktiv.

Dazu Gina Arnone, Marketing Communications Manager bei Xylem: „Die Wasserpumpe RainPerfect ist ein ideales Geschenk. Immer mehr Menschen nutzen mittlerweile Regentonnen und jeder, der Interesse am Gärtnern, Wassersparen und am Umweltschutz hat, wird sich über eine RainPerfect freuen.“

RainPerfect ist über das Internet und bei ausgewählten Einzelhändlern im ganzen Land erhältlich. Der Einzelhandelspreis für RainPerfect beträgt in Deutschland und Frankreich ca. € 101,39 (+ MwSt). Weitere Informationen zur Wasserpumpe RainPerfect finden Sie unter www.rainperfectpump.com. Bestellen können Sie unter www.jabscoshop.com.

Über Xylem

Xylem (XYL) ist ein weltweit führender Anbieter von wassertechnischen Produkten für den Transport, die Aufbereitung, das Testen und die effiziente Nutzung von Wasser. Die Produkte werden in kommunalen Versorgungsbetrieben, Privathaushalten sowie zu kommerziellen, landwirtschaftlichen und industriellen Zwecken eingesetzt. Das Unternehmen ist in über 150 Ländern präsent und besitzt eine Reihe führender Produktmarken. Die Mitarbeiter zeichnen sich durch ihr umfassendes, praxisbezogenes Know-how aus. Der besondere Schwerpunkt des Unternehmens liegt auf der Entwicklung lokaler Lösungen für die größten Herausforderungen der Wasser- und Abwasserwirtschaft weltweit. Xylem wurde 2011 als Ausgründung der Geschäftssparte für wasserwirtschaftliche Produkte der ITT Corporation ins Leben gerufen. Der Unternehmenssitz befindet sich in White Plains, N.Y., USA. Im Jahr 2010 setzte das Unternehmen 3,2 Milliarden US-Dollar um und beschäftigte weltweit 12.000 Mitarbeiter.

Der Name Xylem stammt aus dem Altgriechischen und bezeichnet das wassertransportierende Leitgewebe von Pflanzen. Mit seinem Namen unterstreicht das Unternehmen seinen technischen Anspruch bei wasserwirtschaftlichen Produkten – denn schließlich gibt es kein besseres Vorbild für effizienten Wassertransport als die Natur selbst. Weitere Informationen finden Sie unter http://www.xyleminc.com.

Analytical Technology Continues Water Monitoring Success by Securing Prestigious Framework Agreement with Wessex Water

2011-11-23T14:29:00.002Z

Analytical Technology Continues Water Monitoring Success by Securing Prestigious Framework Agreement with Wessex Water

Manchester, UK (November 22, 2011) Specialist electrochemical sensor manufacturer Analytical Technology Inc. today announces that it has been awarded a framework agreement to supply dissolved ammonia monitoring systems to Wessex Water.

Following a detailed decision-making process in which Wessex Water evaluated a range of monitors against stringent criteria, Analytical Technology was awarded an AMP 5 framework agreement for its Q45N dissolved ammonia monitor.

Wessex Water is a regional water and sewage treatment business serving an area of the south west of England, covering 10,000 square kilometres including Dorset, Somerset, Bristol, most of Wiltshire and parts of Gloucestershire and Hampshire. The new agreement reaffirms Analytical Technology’s position as a leading supplier of water monitoring instrumentation to the majority of the UK’s largest utility companies, including Thames Water, Yorkshire Water, South West Water, United Utilities, Anglian Water and Severn Trent.

Analytical Technology’s Q45N dissolved ammonia monitor provides a new approach to on-line ammonia monitoring. The system uses reaction chemistry that converts ammonia in solution to a stable monochloramine compound that is equivalent in concentration to the original ammonia level. The chloramine concentration is then measured with a unique amperometric sensor that responds linearly to chloramines, while eliminating interference from excess free chlorine in solution. The Q45N system provides the measurement stability needed to avoid complicated automatic calibration systems and provides excellent repeatability over long periods.

For more information on Analytical Technology’s dissolved ammonia monitoring systems, please call +44(0)1457 873 318, e-mail sales@atiuk.com or visit www.analyticaltechnology.com.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Names Winner of 2012 Winter Conference Award in Plasma Spectrochemistry

2011-11-23T13:52:00.002Z

SAN JOSE, Calif. (November 17, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced the winner of the 2012 Winter Conference Award in Plasma Spectrochemistry, Dr. J. Sabine Becker, head of Trace and UltraTrace Analysis, Central Division of Analytical Chemistry at the Research Center Juelich, Germany. The award, which honors scientists who have made the most noteworthy contributions to the field of plasma spectrochemistry, is sponsored by Thermo Fisher. Thermo Fisher will present the award and a check for $5,000 to Dr. Becker during the 2012 Winter Conference on Plasma Spectrochemistry to be held in Tucson, Ariz. January 9–14, 2012.

Dr. Becker’s distinguished career in analytical chemistry has focused on long-lived radionuclides, ultratrace and high-purity materials analysis, isotope ratio measurements, and micro and nanolocal elemental and trace analyses. Recently she established BrainMet, an Analytical Center of Excellence at the Research Centre Juelich for brain research imaging. Based on laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), BrainMet has introduced novel imaging techniques for metals, metalloids and non-metals in biological tissues. The approach provides quantitative mapping of essential and toxic elements in thin sections of diseased and healthy medical and biological tissue sections.

“As the leader in plasma spectrochemistry instrumentation, Thermo Fisher is pleased to sponsor an industry award that brings together the major figures in this field,” said Lothar Rottmann, global support manager, inorganic mass spectrometry at Thermo Fisher. “The Winter Conference award complements our objectives for advancement and innovation, and we look forward to honoring Dr. Becker for her remarkable achievements in this field.”

The Winter Conference Award in Plasma Spectrochemistry, established in 2009, is sponsored by Thermo Fisher to recognize scientists who have made noteworthy contributions over time or through a single, significant breakthrough. The award acknowledges achievements in conceptualization and development of novel instrumentation as well as the elucidation of fundamental events or processes involved in plasma spectrochemistry. Winners include authors of significant research papers or books that influence new advancements or pioneers of outstanding new applications that benefit the field of plasma spectrochemistry.

The Winter Conference on Plasma Spectrochemistry brings together international scientists experienced in applications, instrumentation and theory in an informal setting to examine recent progress in the field. The 2012 conference will feature developments in plasma spectrochemical analysis by inductively coupled plasma (ICP), dc plasma (DCP), microwave plasma (MIP), glow discharge (GDL, HCL) and laser sources.

Entry is now open for the next Winter Plasma Award in 2014 and Thermo Fisher invites scientists worldwide to submit their applications. Candidates should send their application with CV to wpc.award@thermofisher.com by December 31 2012. The award is judged by an independent award committee consisting of seven internationally recognized spectrochemical experts, including the previous award recipient. For further information, details, terms and conditions, please visit www.thermoscientific.com/wpcaward.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Novozymes Biopharma supplies R-Tech Ueno with Albucult® for use in unique dry eye therapy

2011-11-16T11:31:00.002Z

New treatment will be the first of its kind to utilize the benefits of Novozymes’ recombinant human albumin
NOTTINGHAM, UK – November 15, 2011 – Novozymes Biopharma, part of Novozymes A/S world leader in bioinnovation, has announced that its recombinant human albumin, Albucult®, has been selected by R-Tech Ueno for use in a unique treatment for dry eye syndrome. R-Tech Ueno is a global pharmaceutical company specializing in the fields of ophthalmology and dermatology. The Japan-based company will utilize Albucult as a key component in its new therapy which will be the first of its kind developed for the treatment of severe and moderate dry eye conditions. Albucult is manufactured by Novozymes’ long-term technology partner Kaketsuken based in Kumamoto, Japan and marketed by Novozymes world-wide.

Dr Yukihiko Mashima, President of R-Tech Ueno, comments: “Novozymes’ and Kaketsuken’s commitment to supplying products that enhance the safety profile and quality of their partners’ medicines makes them the ideal collaborators for us to work with. Novozymes has a wealth of experience of biomaterials and sets the benchmark for recombinant human albumin.”

Prevalence of dry eye syndrome continues to increase, with the condition having the highest rate of diagnosis of all ophthalmic disorders. As an active ingredient, Albucult® confers a range of unique advantages to the development of R-Tech Ueno’s new therapy including an exceptional purity profile and excellent batch-to-batch consistency, which is not possible with animal-derived ingredients.
Dermot Pearson, Marketing Director at Novozymes Biopharma, comments: “Novozymes is delighted that R-Tech Ueno has selected Albucult for use in the development of this innovative new treatment. The partnership demonstrates our commitment to supplying customers with quality biomaterials that reduce operational and regulatory complexity and minimize manufacturing risk.”

The use of Albucult in R-Tech Ueno’s therapy and other drugs can help to optimize pathways through regulatory approval procedures and improve time–to-market. Albucult also delivers unprecedented performance benefits to protein therapeutics and medical devices while ensuring security of supply and consistent quality. This can drive product development efficiency for customers looking for a compliant albumin alternative.

For further information on Novozymes Biopharma’s Albucult, please visit www.biopharma.novozymes.com

###
About Novozymes
Novozymes is the world leader in bioinnovation. Together with customers across a broad array of industries, we create tomorrow’s industrial biosolutions, improving our customers' business and the use of our planet's resources.

With over 700 products used in 130 countries, Novozymes’ bioinnovations improve industrial performance and safeguard the world’s resources by offering superior and sustainable solutions for tomorrow’s ever-changing marketplace. Read more at www.novozymes.com.

Contact:
Novozymes Biopharma:
Sally Vernon, Customer Communications Manager
SYKE@novozymes.com
Tel. +44 115 955 3355

Thermo Fisher Scientific Announces New Method for Low Level Detection of Volatile Nitrosamines in Tobacco

2011-11-15T15:51:00.002Z

SAN JOSE, Calif., (November 14, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced a new comprehensive method that uses triple quadrupole GC-MS/MS to achieve lower levels of detection of volatile nitrosamines (VNA) in tobacco. The new method allows environmental laboratories, tobacco companies and government agencies to efficiently separate VNAs while lowering detection limits, increasing specificity and enabling the analysis of many other contaminants in tobacco, including pesticides. The new method is detailed in an application note entitled “Lower Detection Limits of Volatile Nitrosamines in Tobacco by Triple Quadrupole GC-MS/MS,” available to download at www.thermoscientific.com/vna.

Volatile nitrosamines are a class of compounds that can form in tobacco smoke, as well as during the curing and processing of tobacco. These compounds have been proven to have adverse effects on human health; and two of the VNAs found in tobacco, N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA) and N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), are classed as known human carcinogens by regulatory authorities. As a result, these compounds must be thoroughly monitored in order to safeguard human health and comply with increasingly stringent regulations.

The new Thermo Fisher method is a powerful alternative to other traditionally used techniques. By coupling a gas chromatograph to a triple quadrupole mass spectrometer, the new method makes detection limits of 1ng/mL achievable, enabling users to satisfy the increasingly lower detection limits required by governments and regulatory bodies. The method also increases contaminant specificity within a classification and allows many other organic contaminants and chemicals in tobacco to be analyzed simultaneously, including pesticides.

The new method includes GC-MS/MS analysis on the Thermo Scientific TSQ Quantum XLS triple quadrupole GC-MS/MS system using timed selected reaction monitoring (t-SRM). This unique feature enables easy method set-up and allows users to run samples while the instrument automatically determines the optimal time for SRM parameters.

For more information on the new Thermo Fisher GC/MS-MS method for the detection of VNAs in tobacco or to obtain a copy of the application note, please call +1 866-463-6522, e-mail analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/gc.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com

Synergy Health Announces Contract Extension With Homerton University Hospital

2011-11-15T11:53:00.000Z

Swindon, UK (11 November 2011) – Synergy Health plc, the leading provider of specialist outsourced services to healthcare providers, is pleased to announce that Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has extended its contract with the company, entering into a new sterile services agreement (for decontamination of surgical instruments) which also includes the supply of over 10,000 theatre consumables (single use bowl sets). Synergy Health delivers a range of specialist outsourced services to healthcare providers across Europe and China, aimed at supporting customers to improve the quality and efficiency of their activities, reducing risks to patients and clients. The contract is a continuation of the long standing relationship between the organizations.

The contract was awarded following a competitive tender process, with Synergy Health offering a number of innovative solutions. The company’s CEO, UK and Ireland, Adrian Coward said: “Synergy Health is a trusted and proven partner to the NHS, continually striving for mutual success based on trust, innovation and accountability. It is deeply committed to delivering the highest quality in everything it does, going the extra mile to make a difference; solve problems and reduce risk. For Homerton we incorporated single use and reusable theatre consumables into the agreement, offering significant price benefits and added value, with the potential of increasing our supply of medical products.”

Synergy Health has been running the Trust’s sterile services department for a number of years, processing around 1 million items per year. The company is fully engaged with economic pressures facing the NHS and its services offer significant economies of scale and efficiency savings to clients, backed by an exemplary track record in regulatory compliance. The company believes that improved business outcomes can be achieved by working collaboratively.

Synergy Health works with leading instrument suppliers on improving design and reducing tray defects and enjoys very low defect rates. A testament to the established relationship between Synergy Health and its customers are the high quality standards hospitals are continuing to experience, benefiting from exceptionally low defect and rejection rates from both sides of the partnership.

Adrian Coward continued: “This continued collaboration demonstrates the success of long-lasting relationships and confirms that public and private sectors can work together to provide excellent integrated services to patients. The innovative solutions offer value for money, quality enhancements and improved services, from both in-house suppliers and third party distributors.”

To learn more Synergy Health’s services, please visit www.synergyhealthplc.com, contact decontamination@synergyhealthplc.com or alternatively call 01582 501234

Notes to editors:

About Synergy Health

Synergy Health is the largest provider of outsourced hospital sterilisation services in Europe with 19 facilities across the UK and further facilities in Belgium, Netherlands and China. It safely sterilises around 60 million surgical instruments each year from NHS acute and primary Trusts and the independent sector throughout the country.

Synergy’s services offer significant economies of scale and efficiency savings to the NHS, is fully engaged with the reforms in healthcare and is committed to supporting the NHS in reducing its cost burden while striving for the highest quality of care and best outcomes for patients.

For further press information please contact: Sarah Evans, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire. CW4 8AA United Kingdom Tel: + 44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539540 mail to: synergy@scottpr.com

Thermo Fisher Scientific Launches Technical Library on LC-MS Solutions for

2011-11-11T14:28:00.002Z

LC-MS Solutions Simplify Sample Preparation Time and Maximize Mass Spec Throughput

SAN JOSE, Calif. (November 11, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced the availability of a new technical library of liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS) solutions for endocrine drug analysis in clinical research, including methods showcasing the ability of automated sample preparation and multiplexing to reduce sample preparation time and maximize mass spectrometer throughput.

The regularly updated technical library, available at thermoscientific.com/lcmsendo, comprises detailed publications from Thermo Fisher’s dedicated global clinical research team, which develops faster and more analytically sensitive methods for endocrine drug analysis for its research clients. The new library is a comprehensive resource containing application notes, webinars, technical posters, case studies, videos and web resources for numerous applications.

“We designed the LC-MS technical library for endocrine drug analysis to help laboratory managers and technicians better understand the power of LC-MS technology for clinical research. We believe what they learn from this great resource will help maximize their sample throughput, improve turnaround time and reduce overall analysis cost, without compromising data quality for drug analysis,” said Ian Jardine, vice president of global R&D, Thermo Fisher.

The technical library includes the latest applications utilized for the analysis of endocrine drugs in clinical research, including:

- Immunoaffinity for research analysis of 1,25D
- Automated online sample preparation for time savings
- UHPLC for higher throughput
- Triple stage quadrupole for necessary LOQ and dynamic range
- High-resolution, accurate mass for difficult endogenous molecules

The online technical library, designed as a knowledge transfer tool, is available free of charge at thermoscientific.com/lcmsendo.

For Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic procedures.

For the latest information about Thermo Fisher Scientific solutions and the wide range of applications for endocrine drug analysis, please call +1 800 532 4752, e-mail analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/ms

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.

Exco InTouch Wins European Outsourcing Award for Second Year Running

2011-11-04T15:36:00.000Z

Sawbridgeworth, UK – November 3, 2011- Exco InTouch, the leading provider of mobile patient communication solutions for the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors, today announced another success in the prestigious European Outsourcing Awards, held in Frankfurt on 26 October 2011. In the second year running that the company has received the EOA award, Exco InTouch has been honoured with the accolade of ‘Best eBusiness/IT strategy’, which recognizes Exco InTouch’s collaboration with Pfizer. The study, which focused on new Research on Electronic Monitoring of OAB Treatment Experience (REMOTE), is the first Participatory Patient-Centred (PPC) clinical trial to be conducted. The Phase 4 trial was facilitated with the use of proven mobile eDiary technology from Exco InTouch, enabling patients to participate regardless of location, age or proximity to site.

In order to support the success of this patient-centred, field-based study, Pfizer required a mobile technology platform offering an ease-of-use interface that provided accessibility, particularly with older patients in mind. The familiar, light-weight and accessible nature of a regular cell phone loaded with intuitive software meant it was the natural choice for Pfizer. These ePRO diaries enabled Pfizer to interact directly with study participants in a personalised and cost-effective manner, sending reminders and motivational messages directly to the patient’s cell phone. As a result, this improved patient compliance and retention, increasing overall data accuracy. Patients were also able to manage their own trial remotely and report results directly to a trial investigator who kept close oversight of patient eligibility and safety.

Since its inception in 2005, the EOA awards has recognised new and significant developments in contract services and rewarded successful companies for their outstanding contribution to the industry throughout the year. Despite strong competition from multiple industry competitors, the EOA crowned Exco InTouch winners of the award for their contribution in facilitating the revolutionary study with its innovative eDiary technology and flexible, customised service. EOA judges were impressed by the potential of the cellphone-based ePRO technology to transform how patients access and participate in clinical trials and to accelerate clinical research while improving quality.
Tim Davis, CEO of Exco InTouch comments, “It is a great honour to win an award that recognizes the collaboration between Exco InTouch and Pfizer and the integral part Exco’s leading ePRO technology played in the revolutionary study. Together we have been able to meet our joint objective to focus on innovative advancements that will accelerate clinical research through enhanced data quality and improvement in the way that patients all over the world can access clinical trials.”

For further information on the Exco InTouch range of solutions, please call +44 1279 709 040 or +1 877 327 5777 or visit www.excointouch.com.

About Exco InTouch
Exco InTouch is the leading provider of regulatory compliant interactive mobile patient communication solutions for Patient Recruitment, Retention, Compliance, ePRO/eDiary and Late Phase studies. Using a combination of software and services, Exco InTouch solutions provide simple, quick and non-intrusive channels of communication that enables sponsors, CROs, sites and patient recruitment agencies, find the right patients; keep them in their studies; motivate them to maintain full compliance and facilitate the collection of quality patient data, thus ensuring a better overall patient experience.

These solutions are currently being used by hundreds of thousands of patients in over 70 countries, delivered in the local language and are fully compliant with HIPAA regulations, FDA CFR 21 Part 11 and all electronic communication privacy directives.

For more info on Exco InTouch visit http://www.excointouch.com

Thermo Fisher Scientific Launches Technical Library of LC-MS Solutions for Quick and Easy Analysis of PPCPs and Pesticides in Water

2011-11-04T14:45:00.002Z

LC-MS Solutions Reduce Sample Preparation Time While Maintaining Sensitivity and Selectivity

SAN JOSE, Calif. (November 4, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced the availability of a new technical library of LC-MS solutions for water analysis, including application information on the detection of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) and pesticides.

The technical library, available at www.thermoscientific.com/lcmswater, is a comprehensive and regularly updated searchable resource containing application notes, webinars, technical posters, articles, case studies, videos and web resources for numerous applications, including the analysis of pesticides, PPCPs, herbicides, endocrine disruptors and perfluorinated compounds.

“We designed the LC-MS technical library to give our customers ready access to water and beverage analysis resources that can help them improve and simplify their laboratory operations,” said Dipankar Ghosh, Ph.D., strategic marketing manager for environmental and food safety solutions at Thermo Fisher Scientific. “Our innovative LC-MS systems support a wide variety of applications for water and beverage sampling, from targeted and non-targeted screening to quantitative and qualitative analyses. We are committed to making our customers’ analyses as easy as possible with solutions that address both existing and future environmental concerns.”

The Thermo Scientific EQuan MAX LC-MS solution is ideal for quick and easy detection of pesticides and PPCPs in surface and drinking water, reducing the time required for sample preparation while delivering the sensitivity and selectivity needed to identify analytes of interest. The EQuan MAX system is an automated, high-throughput LC-MS solution that offers improved productivity and simplified assay development. With its unique online sample enrichment technique, scientists can significantly reduce analysis time - from days to minutes. And its high injection volume (1-20mL) enables higher detection limits than conventional LC-MS/MS analysis.

The online technical library, designed as a knowledge transfer tool, provides customers with access to Thermo Fisher’s vast application expertise and a variety of technical applications for water analysis. The digital resource is available free at http://www.thermoscientific.com/lcmswater.

For the latest information about Thermo Fisher solutions and its wide range of applications for water and beverage analysis, please call +1 800 532 4752, e-mail analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/ms.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Nano-UHPLC System Significantly Increases Productivity During Proteomics Research at the University of Southern Denmark

2011-11-03T09:55:00.002Z

ODENSE, Denmark (November 2, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. the world leader in serving science, today announced that the Center for Experimental Bioinformatics (CEBI) at the University of Southern Denmark is using Thermo Scientific nano-ultra high performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) technology to accelerate productivity and improve efficiencies during its proteomics research. Implementation of the Thermo Scientific EASY-nLC 1000 has enabled 34 percent more peptide and 22 percent more protein identifications within the CEBI laboratory, significantly increasing productivity. Additionally, the instrument has improved separations and facilitated the analysis of more complex samples within the laboratory.

Based in Odense, the University of Southern Denmark’s Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology is world-renowned in the field of proteomics, with research focusing on gene structure and organization, regulation and RNA translation. CEBI is a specialist proteomics research laboratory, aimed at applying modern methods of mass spectrometry and proteomics to functional analysis of genes.

Prior to implementing nano-UHPLC technology, CEBI used conventional HPLC. However they needed a more complete solution, such as EASY-nLC 1000, to accelerate productivity and improve efficiencies. The EASY-nLC 1000 is used in conjunction with Thermo Scientific ion trap and Orbitrap mass spectrometers for a wide range of proteomics research, including the study of complex mouse dendritic cells.

Using the EASY-nLC 1000 has allowed CEBI to take advantage of the unique ability to facilitate dedicated separation of biomolecules at ultra-high pressures. The higher operating pressures provided by the EASY-nLC 1000 have increased the number of peptide and protein identifications performed within the laboratory by 34 percent and 22 percent respectively. The instrument also allows selection of the most appropriate column dimensions and solid phase materials in order to identify the most suitable configuration to match analytical requirements. Using thinner, longer columns and smaller beads has improved separation and ionization, enhancing sensitivity and allowing the CEBI team to scale down experiments and reduce costs.

“The EASY-nLC 1000 is a highly robust instrument offering nano-UHPLC performance dedicated to proteomics scientists,” said Lasse Falkenby, research assistant at CEBI. “We decided to implement the new system in our laboratory as we felt that it would revolutionize the way we perform LC-MS analyses. The instrument has allowed our laboratory to increase productivity considerably in a way that would never have been possible before. Implementation was a very smooth process requiring minimal configuration effort and the Thermo Fisher Scientific team of experts provided valuable support both throughout and after this process.”

For more information on the Thermo Scientific EASY-nLC 1000, please visit www.thermoscientific.com/easylc, call (781) 933-4689 or e-mail analyze@thermofisher.com.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com

Thermo Fisher Scientific Showcases End-to-End Solutions for Biobanks and Biorepositories at ESBB 2011

2011-11-01T16:43:00.002Z

The Turnkey Biobanking Solution Ensures Biospecimen Quality, Improves Efficiency and Fosters Information Sharing

PHILADELPHIA (November 1 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced it will showcase its turnkey biobanking solution within booths 13 and 14 at ESBB 2011, taking place from November 16-19, in Marseille, France. This comprehensive solution set ensures sample quality and addresses the complete biobanking workflow including biospecimen collection, processing, testing and storage, as well as sample and data management.

Thermo Scientific solutions address the unique and complex needs of biobanks and biorepositories while offering scalability and efficiency to organizations of all sizes, from university research labs to contract research organizations, laboratories and large-scale pharmaceutical and biotechnology facilities. The company delivers the software, equipment, consumables, reagents and services to provide the end-to-end solution required for today’s rapidly changing organizations.

With solutions from both the Thermo Scientific and Fisher BioServices brands, the integrated biobanking portfolio encompasses everything from sample preparation (centrifuges and laminar flow cabinets) and liquid handling equipment (pipettes, automated liquid handling) to cold storage devices (freezers and cryogenic storage) and consumables and reagents for sample preparation, analysis and storage. The biobanking solution also includes high-end equipment such as mass spectrometers and robotics to automate the biobanking process.

Fisher BioServices is the largest biorepository, managing more than 170,000,000 samples across facilities worldwide. The Thermo Scientific Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) for Biobanks, specifically designed to address the unique challenges of managing biospecimen collection, location, online requests (including consent management and request management), chain of custody, data compliance and security, instrument integration and automation, and client billing, is used to manage this vast biorepository.

“Today, cross-disciplinary collaboration among peers is imperative, and many organizations are extending their reach to collaborate with university hospitals, pharmaceutical and biotech companies, contract research organizations and biobanks. This creates complexity as data and reports must be aggregated in a timely fashion without compromises in accuracy,” said Dave Champagne, vice president and general manager, Informatics, Thermo Fisher. “Our turnkey biobanking portfolio fosters collaboration and sharing so our customers can focus on advancing science and making life-saving discoveries.”

Thermo Scientific and Fisher BioServices solutions within booths 13 and 14 at ESBB include:

- Thermo Scientific LIMS for Biobanks. Biobanks require an advanced LIMS to manage biospecimen locations, online request management, data compliance and security, instrument integration, chain of custody and client billing. Thermo Scientific LIMS for Biobanks enables an integrated research information network by improving sample management and facilitating flawless transmission of data between different laboratories, partner organizations and the FDA. Standardizing on a single LIMS solution is a means of achieving easy data sharing and public access to findings.

- Biorepository Services. Fisher BioServices is the world leader in biological specimen management for the life science and clinical research industries. Its global capabilities comprise collection to repository, including transportation, inventory, biorepository services, biological lab processing and other support services. Through Fisher BioServices, the company can store BSL-3 materials, environmental samples, cell lines, tissues and blood products in facilities that are compliant with current good manufacturing laboratory and tissue practices (cGMP, cGLP, cGTP).

- Cold Storage and Freezers: Researchers worldwide protect more than two billion samples inside Thermo Scientific cold storage equipment. The company’s proven cold storage sample protection solutions range from +4C high-performance lab refrigerators to -196C cryogenic freezers. New at ESBB will be the Thermo Scientific Dense Storage system for low-temperature storage of biological samples and solutions. The system combines 1 mL Thermo Scientific Nunc CryoBank tubes with the new 13 x 13 tube dividers and Nunc™ CryoBoxes. This novel Dense Storage format effectively doubles existing storage capacity, which can reduce costs by up to 50 percent while decreasing energy use. Thermo Scientific freezers maximize sample storage capacity while minimizing the freezer’s footprint inside the lab. Five new capacities range in size from 421 - 949 liters (14.9 - 33.5 cu. ft.) and provide a number of options to suit any storage and lab space requirements. The new cabinet design and vacuum panel insulation permit storage of up to 70,000 2mL tubes or 118,300 1mL Thermo Scientific Cryobank tubes.

- Sample Storage and Automation: Integral 2D barcoded tubes and 2D readers offer a unique identifier for all samples, and the barcode scanner software is fully embedded and integrated with Thermo Scientific LIMS, allowing for a more streamlined workflow and automated data management for all samples. New at ESBB is the Thermo Scientific ID Scribe Labware Identifier for consistent and legible labeling of storage tubes, vials and other common labware. By removing the need for hand-labeling, sample misidentification is eliminated and laboratory efficiency is improved.

Also at ESBB, Thermo Fisher will present two workshops: “Efficient Storage of Biological Samples – How to store more samples in your freezer” and “Where In The World Are My Samples.”

For more information about Thermo Scientific solutions for biobanks and biorepositories, visit www.thermoscientific.com/biobankingresources, call +1 866 463 6522 (U.S.), +44 161 942 3000 (EU), +31 (0)76 579 5555 (Breda), e-mail marketing.informatics@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/informatics.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.

Analytical Technology is Awarded Prestigious Framework Agreement with Yorkshire Water

2011-10-27T14:37:00.002+01:00

Manchester, UK (October 27, 2011) Specialist electrochemical sensor manufacturer Analytical Technology Inc. today announces that it has been awarded a framework agreement to supply and install bufferless chlorine monitoring systems to Yorkshire Water. An in-depth technical evaluation was carried out by Yorkshire Water, in which Analytical Technology’s products were compared with a competitor’s against benchmark buffered units. Following this extensive process, Analytical Technology secured the agreement and commenced an asset replacement scheme for over 450 chlorine monitors.

The evaluation period lasted eight months and Analytical Technology’s bufferless chlorine monitors were tested using a wide variety of water types at four different water treatment works. During this time, the Analytical Technology monitors required very little maintenance and calibration, reflecting the company’s vast experience with membrane technology. This trial established that the monitor’s membranes would not need replacing for at least six months at all but a small minority of sites with high manganese levels.

Yorkshire Water continually monitors water from its 59 treatment plants with samples taken from 363 reservoirs where treated water is stored. In a typical year, more than 500,000 tests are carried out on water samples to ensure it meets exacting standards. The first phase of Analytical Technology’s framework agreement has been successfully completed with 75 chlorine monitors installed at 12 Yorkshire Water sites in the North and Dales areas. This includes a mixture of buffered, bufferless and pH corrected units, which are deployed depending on water quality and expected pH range. Additionally, funding for the second phase has recently been approved, in which a region wide asset replacement of chlorine monitors will be completed. This will include the installation of 377 chlorine monitors into an additional 31 water treatment plants and 20 secondary chlorination sites.

Rod Black, Asset Reliability Manager at Yorkshire Water said: “The instruments have performed well with little or no issues; chlorine control has been good and has not contributed to any call outs. It is nice to have standard instruments which can be calibrated and cleaned easily.” Alan Henson, Project Manager at Yorkshire Water commented: “Analytical Technology came out comfortably the best performer in our rigorous selection process, and the company’s vast experience with membrane technology places them ahead of most of their competitors who are only just adopting the technology. Once the roll-out has been completed, the scheme will have realised around £335K of OPEX savings per annum for Yorkshire Water and operators will no longer have to manhandle 25 litre containers of buffer around our sites. Analytical Technology has provided an excellent service and it is a pleasure working with a company who are very customer focussed.”

Dr. Michael Strahand, General Manager Europe at Analytical Technology added: “This agreement confirms that Analytical Technology’s chlorine monitors are unrivalled in the market, maintaining our position as one of the leading suppliers of water monitoring systems in the UK. Our top quality instrumentation is backed up by our commitment to delivering industry leading customer service and this new framework agreement is a great reward for our hard-working and dedicated team.”

Analytical Technology is a UK and European specialist electrochemical sensor manufacturer that supplies both water and gas monitoring instrumentation. The company was set up in 1998 and from then on has enjoyed increasing success. This new framework agreement to supply bufferless chlorine monitors to Yorkshire Water now means Analytical Technology provides instrumentation to 7 out of the 10 major utility companies in the UK. Analytical Technology’s wide range of water monitors includes peracetic acid, hydrogen peroxide, residual sulphite and several chlorine monitors. The company’s products aim to provide simpler installation, easier operation, regulatory compliance and lower cost, all combined with first class customer service.

For more information on Analytical Technology’s water and gas monitoring instrumentation, please call +44(0)1457 873 318, e-mail sales@atiuk.com or visit www.analyticaltechnology.com.

For further press information please contact: Lindsay Baldry, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA Tel: +44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539540 e-mail: ati@scottpr.com

Exco InTouch Wins Deloitte Technology Fast 50 Award in Recognition of Significant Growth

2011-10-24T17:03:00.002+01:00

(Sawbridgeworth, UK, October 24 2011) Exco InTouch, the leading provider of patient communication solutions for the pharmaceutical and healthcare sectors, today announced that it is a winner of the 2011 Deloitte Technology Fast 50. The awards, now in their 14th year, are an independent ranking of the 50 fastest growing technology companies in the UK, based on percentage growth in revenue over five years. Exco InTouch was placed as the 44th fastest growing company in the country and the 7th fastest growing company in the South East region. Receipt of the Fast 50 award is a significant achievement, recognising growth based on innovation and entrepreneurship. Exco InTouch’s win comes on the back of a recent growth investment from leading growth equity and venture capital group Scottish Equity Partners (SEP).

Exco InTouch, whose clients include nine of the world’s top 10 pharmaceutical businesses, offers an innovative suite of patient-focused services which are delivered using a combination of cell-phone and internet technology. Used in clinical trials, the company’s services benefit both patients and pharmaceutical clients, providing patient recruitment and retention support. These unique services result in improved overall compliance and the facilitation of the electronic capture of patient reported outcomes data (ePRO) during clinical trials and in Late Phase observational studies. The business, which employs some 40 staff, has its headquarters in the UK and offices in the United States and recently opened a second UK office in Nottingham to accommodate up to 30 more staff.

With the recent £3m investment from SEP, Exco InTouch is entering its next growth phase, enabling it to invest further in people, technology and infrastructure and to further enhance its revolutionary mobile technology platform. SEP has taken a minority stake in the company. Exco InTouch will use the funds to take advantage of significant growth opportunities in the clinical trial sector, particularly in the emerging mobile patient communication market. Demand for its services is growing exponentially as pharmaceutical companies are increasingly adopting smart technology to optimise clinical trial execution.

“Making the Deloitte Technology Fast 50 is a testament to a company’s commitment to technology”, says Mark Doleman, Regional Partner, Deloitte UK Technology Fast 50 and Technology Fast 500 EMEA Programmes. “With its 730% growth rate over five years, Exco InTouch has proven that its leadership has the vision and determination to grow in competitive conditions.”

“The Deloitte UK Technology Fast 50 is internationally recognised as being one of the most important business awards in the sector and we are thrilled to receive this accreditation”, comments Tim Davis, CEO of Exco InTouch. “Despite economic uncertainty, the past five years have proved highly successful for us, with particular growth in our ePRO and patient engagement services. We look forward to this continued growth in the future as sponsors increasingly recognise the benefits of our mobile technology in the healthcare and drug development sectors.”

For further information on the Exco InTouch range of solutions, please call +44 1279 709 040 or +1 877 327 5777 or visit www.excointouch.com.

For further press information please contact: Fiona Robinson, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA Tel: +44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539540 e-mail: exco@scottpr.com

About Exco InTouch:
Exco InTouch is the leading provider of regulatory compliant interactive mobile patient communication solutions for Patient Recruitment, Retention, Compliance, ePRO/eDiary and Late Phase studies. Using a combination of software and services, Exco InTouch solutions provide simple, quick and non-intrusive channels of communication that enables sponsors, CROs, sites and patient recruitment agencies, find the right patients; keep them in their studies; motivate them to maintain full compliance and facilitate the collection of quality patient data, thus ensuring a better overall patient experience.
These solutions are currently being used by hundreds of thousands of patients in over 70 countries, delivered in the local language and are fully compliant with HIPAA regulations, FDA CFR 21 Part 11 and all electronic communication privacy directives.

About Deloitte:
In this press release references to Deloitte are references to Deloitte LLP, which is among the country's leading professional services firms.

Deloitte LLP is the United Kingdom member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (‘DTT’), a Swiss Verein, whose member firms are legally separate and independent entities. Please see www.deloitte.co.uk/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of DTT and its member firms.

The information contained in this press release is correct at the time of going to press.

For more information, please visit www.deloitte.co.uk.

Deloitte Technology, Media & Telecommunications (TMT) Group
The Deloitte TMT Group is composed of service professionals who have a wealth of experience serving technology, media and telecommunications companies throughout the UK in areas including cable, communications providers, computers and peripherals, entertainment, media and publishing, networking, semiconductors, software, wireless, and related industries. These specialists understand the challenges that these companies face throughout all stages of their business growth cycle and are committed to helping them succeed. Deloitte is a leader in providing strategic, financial and operational assistance to its technology, media and telecommunications clients.

For more information, please visit www.deloitte.co.uk/tmt

Tameside Hospital and Synergy Health Extend Partnership With Sterile Services Contract

2011-10-24T14:08:00.000+01:00

Swindon, UK (24 October 2011) – Synergy Health, the leading provider of specialist outsourced services to healthcare providers, today announced that Tameside Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has renewed its relationship with the company with the signing of a sterile services agreement. The lifetime contract, worth approximately £5m, is a continuation of the long standing relationship between the two organizations. Synergy Health delivers a range of specialist outsourced services to healthcare providers across Europe and China. These services are aimed at supporting customers to improve the quality and efficiency of their activities, while reducing risks to patients and clients. This continued collaboration will allow the Trust to benefit from enhanced productivity.

The Trust runs Tameside Hospital in Ashton-Under-Lyne, Synergy Health has been running the Trust’s sterile service processing facilities for over ten years.

The contract was awarded following a competitive tender process, with the organisation offering a number of innovative solutions. Synergy Health CEO UK and Ireland, Adrian Coward said: “Synergy Health was chosen over rival competitors due to the Trust being impressed by our plans for future growth, as well as having confidence in our ability to provide an excellent, cost efficient service with a workforce delivering outstanding results.” The extension of the partnership means there will be no disruption to the running of the hospital or sterile services. A testament to the already successful relationship between the company and the Trust are the high quality standards the hospital is continuing to experience.

The service provided by the contract extension will use the latest technologies and procedures, providing cost-effective solutions to the Trust at a time when it is under great pressure to make savings. Gillian Parker, Director of Estate and Facilities said: “The Trust is delighted to be extending our relationship with Synergy Health. Since the start of the relationship, the work of staff has been exemplary. All employees are incredibly hardworking and dedicated to delivering a first-rate service. We already enjoy an excellent working relationship with Synergy Health and it is thanks to the brilliant work of the staff that the Trust is confident this will continue over the next ten years.”

Adrian Coward continued: “The continuation of Synergy Health’s relationship with Tameside Hospital is a testament to the quality service we are able to provide Trusts across the country. It also demonstrates how public and private sectors can work together and forge lasting relationships which provide excellent services to patients while also providing value for money.”

Synergy Health Hires Specialist Business Development Manager in Line with Continued Growth Strategy

2011-10-20T15:27:00.000+01:00

Swindon, UK (20th October 2011) – Synergy Health, the leading provider of specialist outsourced services to healthcare providers, today announced the appointment of Steve Poynter as Business Development Manager. The new role is part of Synergy Health’s growth strategy and is in response to increased demand for its services.

Poynter’s extensive health experience will be put to good use helping the NHS to maximize limited resources while improving quality and safety. Recent successful partnerships based on this model include University Hospital Leicester, Sheffield, Knowsley and The Royal London with Synergy Health providing the decontamination of surgical instruments, which demonstrate how investment in expertise and collaboration results in increased patient safety and cost savings.

Previously Head of Health Sales at Fujitsu, Poynter brings with him a wealth of experience in the UK health market, with an extensive track record in sales management, business development and consulting. Poynter’s skills complement Synergy Health’s to offer consultative business solutions to the NHS through an excellent understanding of the challenging market that the health service faces; a changing environment where new ways of treating patients is needed to meet these challenges.

Adrian Coward, CEO, UK and Ireland comments, “Steve joins us at an exciting time of expansion and will be a key addition to our team. It will enable us to continue to offer the highest level of service our customers have come to expect. Our expert team is the foundation of the company and Steve’s appointment will ensure the support is in place for us to continue to forge expert partnerships,, develop first-class outsourcing solutions for clients, all backed by quality of service.”

It is an opportune time as customers are looking to improve the quality and efficiency of their activities, whilst reducing risks to their patients and clients. Synergy Health delivers a range of specialist outsourced services and products to healthcare providers and other clients concerned with health management. As Business Development Manager, Decontamination Services, Poynter will work to ensure an effective strategy is in place for the company’s ongoing development while continuing to deliver excellent quality and service to customers.

To learn more about Synergy Health’s services, please visit www.synergyhealthplc.com, contact decontamination@synergyhealthplc.com or alternatively call 01582 501234

Optibrium Expands StarDrop Availability with Apple Mac Compatibility

2011-10-18T12:58:00.000+01:00

Delivering Enhanced Functionality to Guide Decisions in All Stages of Drug Discovery

CAMBRIDGE, UK, October 18, 2011 – Optibrium, a provider of software solutions for drug discovery, today launches StarDrop 5.1, an upgraded version of its innovative support tool which helps drug discovery scientists to guide key decisions in drug discovery and quickly achieve successful project outcomes. As a result of this upgrade, StarDrop’s unique capabilities to guide the design and selection of high quality, novel compounds are now available on the Apple Mac, a reflection of the increasing popularity of Macs within the industry.

The revolutionary StarDrop 5.1 is a powerful yet user friendly software package which combines predictive capabilities with intuitive approaches to quickly and confidently target compounds with a good balance of properties, thereby reducing wasted effort and speeding progress to identify effective lead and candidate drugs. StarDrop’s unique approach to ‘multi-parameter optimisation’ explicitly accounts for the uncertainty in drug discovery data, whether due to experimental variability or predictive error, to provide scientists with a rigorous, objective analysis on which to make rational decisions.

As well as compatibility with the Apple Mac, StarDrop 5.1 brings a number of significant enhancements to existing features of StarDrop. For example, there is a new method for creating ‘chemical space’ visualizations based on the latest machine learning algorithm for ‘visual clustering’, that helps to easily explore the diversity of a project’s chemistry and identify ‘hot spots’ of high quality chemistry for further investigation.

There are also improvements to StarDrop’s plug-in modules: The Auto-Modeller™ sees the addition of the ‘Random Forests’ technique to its extensive repertoire for building predictive models tailored to a project’s chemistry and data. The addition of this new method has also led to improved QSAR models in the ADME QSAR module, which provides predictions of key ADME properties. StarDrop’s P450 metabolism module has been upgraded to provide improved prediction of regioselectivity and lability of metabolism by Cytochrome P450 enzymes, specifically around N-oxidation pathways. Finally, in response to user feedback on the new Nova™ module, further advances allow the generation of novel, relevant compounds ideas, prioritised against a project’s required property profile, starting from multiple initial structures and filtered according to user-specified rules to avoid unwanted substructures.

Dr. Matthew Segall, CEO of Optibrium, explains “These latest developments within StarDrop 5.1 demonstrate Optibrium’s commitment to deliver leading-edge technology while simultaneously responding to user feedback in order to ensure that it is accessible in the most user-friendly way. We work with drug discovery scientists, project leaders and R&D directors to provide tools that support confident decision-making to focus resources and improve efficiency.”

For more information about StarDrop 5.1 and Optibrium’s software solutions please visit www.optibrium.com, alternatively please call +44 (0) 1223 815 900 or email info@optibrium.com

About Optibrium Ltd
Optibrium (www.optibrium.com) is dedicated to providing software to guide decisions involving complex, uncertain data in an intuitive way. Based in Cambridge, UK, Optibrium has a global customer base ranging from top-ten pharmaceutical companies to small biotechs and academic groups. Our mission is to continue to develop new technologies that will optimise project strategy, reduce wasted molecules and experiments, shorten timelines and improve the quality of candidate compounds for our clients. Optibrium’s primary product, StarDrop, is focused on the drug discovery industry, helping guide scientists to make decisions in the design and selection of high quality drug candidates. Visit the online community at http://www.optibrium.com/community/ for further discussions on improving the productivity of drug discovery.
For further press information please contact: Sarah Evans, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA, UK Tel: + 44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540 E-mail: optibrium@scottpr.com

The TSP Shanghai Office Team!

2011-10-17T15:42:00.000+01:00

We love this picture of our TSP China team on a group day out to celebrate the end of first year trading and a successful start to Quarter One of Year Two.

From left to right: Olive Zhang, Zoe Wang, Daisy Shao, Joyce Wang, Rae Wang, Jacky Cheng, Coco Gu, Lily Liu, May Lan.

Novozymes to showcase state of the art cGMP-grade hyaluronic acid (HA) at CPhI 2011

2011-10-13T13:20:00.002+01:00

HA designed specifically to fill a gap in the market for medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers looking for Q7 cGMP regulatory compliant ingredients with superior performance benefits.
NOTTINGHAM, UK – October 13, 2011 – Novozymes Biopharma, part of Novozymes A/S, world leader in bioinnovation, will showcase its soon to be launched state of the art Q7 cGMP-grade hyaluronic acid (HA) at CPhI Worldwide 2011. The new Bacillus-derived HA has been developed to improve how customers process and formulate HA for medical device and pharmaceutical applications, helping to speed up product development and creating improved therapeutics. The product confers a range of unique performance advantages for medical devices, drug delivery and formulation and will be showcased on booth #42H55 in hall 4.2 at the Messe Frankfurt, October 25-27, in Frankfurt, Germany.

“Novozymes is delighted to be returning to CPhI to showcase the company’s soon to be launched Q7 cGMP HA”, comments Hans Ole Klingenberg, global marketing director at Novozymes. “Delegates will be able to see the HA and our team of experts will be on hand to provide insight into how it can be incorporated into their manufacturing processes to reduce testing time, save on manufacturing costs and take products to market faster.”

Novozymes’ HA has been developed to expand opportunities for HA across multiple applications in the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Produced at Novozymes’ new facility in Tianjin, China, which has been designed exclusively for HA, the company uses a patented water based process which is run in compliance with ICH Q7 cGMP guidelines. The resulting HA is free of animal derived components and organic solvents, resulting in a high degree of purity and reduced risk of contamination. It offers high batch-to-batch consistency with tight control of molecular weight for improved formulation control, as well as the capability to dissolve up to five times faster than other commercially available sources of HA. In addition, superior heat stability permits autoclaving without significant loss of product viscosity.

The new HA can be customized further using Novozymes’ proprietary crosslinking technology to achieve a specified viscosity, allowing the product to be adapted for a range of drug delivery and medical device applications. From ophthalmology and dermal filling to osteoarthritis treatments and cancer treatment, the unique technology will assist customers to create improved therapeutics with real benefits for both manufacturers and patients.

Novozymes’ HA will be commercially available in December.

To learn more about Novozymes’ HA, please visit booth #42H55 in hall 4.2 at CPhI Worldwide 2011. Alternatively, please visit www.biopharma.novozymes.com.

About Novozymes
Novozymes is the world leader in bioinnovation. Together with customers across a broad array of industries, we create tomorrow’s industrial biosolutions, improving our customers' business and the use of our planet's resources.

With over 700 products used in 130 countries, Novozymes’ bioinnovations improve industrial performance and safeguard the world’s resources by offering superior and sustainable solutions for tomorrow’s ever-changing marketplace. Read more at www.novozymes.com.

Synergy Health (UK) Appoints The Scott Partnership to Support Hospital Sterile Services

2011-10-11T16:58:00.002+01:00

Cheshire, UK (Date, 2011) – Global B2B strategic communications agency The Scott Partnership has been appointed by Synergy Health (UK) Ltd. to support growth in its Hospital Sterile Services division.

Synergy is a leading provider of outsourced and managed decontamination services for reprocessing surgical instruments, processing more than 60 million surgical instruments per year for Acute NHS Trusts, NHS primary care providers and healthcare operators in the private sector. With 18 sterile service facilities, Synergy is the UK’s market leader in the provision of this service.

The client is being managed by The Scott Partnership’s Healthcare division whose brief is to engage stakeholders around Synergy’s innovative operating model which improves service and instrument processing quality, while significantly reducing operating costs.

Mike Langhorn, Synergy’s Commercial Director said: “We chose The Scott Partnership for their invaluable NHS experience and wide knowledge of the healthcare sector. This makes them a valued partner in positioning our hospital sterile services as a viable solution to enhance patient safety, improve quality and reduce costs – critical to today’s NHS.”

“This welcome addition to The Scott Partnership’s portfolio is a significant step in our continued expansion - further strengthening our customer base and presence in the healthcare sector,” adds Kath Darlington, CEO. “This account very much plays to our strengths and joins many existing clients who specialise in contract outsourcing and where high-level clinical engagement is critical.”

Based near Manchester, UK, The Scott Partnership is a specialist business-to-business PR agency for the healthcare, scientific, technology and pharmaceutical industries and which has grown to become one of the leading communications consultancies in Europe. Founded in 1996, the company’s accelerated growth plan has seen it establish offices in Boston and Shanghai in the past three years as well as its recent acquisition of Kapler Communications, a Bedfordshire-based life sciences consultancy.

For more information on The Scott Partnership, please call +44 (0)1477 539 539. Alternatively e-mail business@scottpr.com or visit www.scottpr.com.

The World's Biggest Coffee Morning!

2011-10-11T11:53:00.000+01:00

Last week we took part in a charity event for a very worthy cause, Macmillan Cancer Support. The coffee morning is a national event which started as a small gathering, organised by a local fundraising committee in 1990. It is now is a hugely recognised event, taking place in offices, schools, universities and fundraising societies all over the country. It has grown massively since its inception and has turned into the world’s biggest coffee morning, 43,000 people signed up and took part last year!

At the last minute The Scott Partnership decided it would be good to do something fun for a good cause, especially when it involved mountains of cake….our office loves cake! A coffee morning is a great way to socialise and support a charity at the same time. The money raised goes towards people living with cancer, as well as providing support for their families and loved ones. With cancer affecting 1 in 3 people in some way, it is an issue close to everyone’s hearts and one that we were all willing to put our hands into our pockets for.

After deciding to have the coffee morning at such short notice I think everybody was impressed at the quality of food which was baked! Homemade vol au vent’s , lemon drizzle cake, chocolate fudge brownies, donuts, cookies and fairy cakes ( to name only a few) were enough to keep us entertained for the whole day, and full for the whole weekend!

In the end we raised nearly £80 for the charity and went home with our Tupperware boxes full of leftovers. So far the charity has raised over three million pounds and we are proud to say that we were part of it. We hope that in the end Macmillan manages to smash last year’s amount of £8 million. The coffee morning was a huge success and it is definitely safe to say that we will be doing it again!

Thermo Fisher Scientific Introduces New Informatics Solution for Water and Environmental Testing Laboratories

2011-10-10T16:16:00.000+01:00

PHILADELPHIA (October 10, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced a new informatics solution specifically developed for laboratory professionals working in water and environmental testing laboratories. The Thermo Scientific Water and Environmental LIMS is preconfigured to enable customers to comply with water and environmental regulatory guidelines and requirements, and it is built on the comprehensive functionality provided by the company’s flagship laboratory information management system, Thermo Scientific SampleManager LIMS. The company will showcase the Water and Environmental LIMS at Thermo Scientific booth # 4145 during WEFTEC 2011, being held October 17 - 19, in Los Angeles.

Water and environmental testing laboratories face unique challenges with delivering accurate, consistent and traceable results. In the current economic environment, it’s more important than ever to standardize workflows and processes that facilitate regulatory compliance, ensure public safety and monitor quality throughout the entire sampling, testing and reporting process. The Safe Drinking Water Act, and the subsequent release of the EPA’s Drinking Water Infrastructure Needs Survey and Assessment, puts pressure on municipal, state and privately owned water facilities to remain in compliance with mandatory limits for an increasing array of contaminants. Thermo Scientific Water and Environmental LIMS offers tools and functionality to enable lab managers to deliver the defensible data necessary to meet the compliance requirements of the Safe Drinking Water Act.

Thermo Scientific Water and Environmental LIMS helps laboratory professionals make faster, more informed decisions at all levels of the organization, delivering information needed to manage laboratory processes and respond to the most current regulatory and business demands.

Purpose-built functionality helps labs:

• Establish protocols and documentation methods that meet NELAC compliance requirements and ISO 17025 guidelines

• Automate reports and records to ensure full traceability

• Improve lab and workflow efficiencies

Developed in conjunction with environmental experts for ISO 17025 and NELAC requirements, Thermo Scientific Water and Environmental LIMS has built-in functionality designed for workflows found in water and environmental labs. Pre-defined test methods, batch sequences, regulatory reports and other templates allow customers to reduce administration overhead, cost and implementation time. In addition, comprehensive dashboard functionality addresses the regulatory and operational needs of three distinct but interrelated aspects of a laboratory’s business: personnel, quality assurance and the customer.

Companies working within the environmental and water and wastewater sectors face many challenges in improving efficiencies, processes and traceability while ensuring regulatory compliance. To assist the industry in meeting these challenges, a series of five educational on-demand webinars is now available for viewing at www.thermoscientific.com/waterandwastewater. Developed in collaboration with industry experts from EM2 Solutions, Pilgrim Software and the Winvale Group, the webinars address topics relevant to professionals working in the environmental and waste testing industries.

“The pace of regulatory change in the water and environmental industry is sometimes faster than the adoption of new technologies to meet those new requirements,” said Dave Champagne, vice president and general manager, Informatics, Thermo Fisher Scientific. “With the EPA establishing compliance parameters for five new contaminants every year, the cycle of certification for state, municipal and privately owned water supplies is in a constant state of oversight. Our Water and Environmental LIMS will help industry professionals meet these ongoing challenges. And by developing this on-demand webinar series with our industry and technical partners, we are able to deliver an overview of the key issues to the industry and contribute to the adoption of newer technologies which can enable easier and more cost effective regulatory compliance.”

For more information about Thermo Scientific Water and Environmental LIMS, please visit Thermo Scientific at booth # 4145 during WEFTEC 2011. Alternatively, please call +1 866 463 6522 (US) or +44 161 942 3000 (EU), e-mail marketing.informatics@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/waterandwastewater.

A Day at the Races

2011-10-07T15:56:00.001+01:00

Friday 9^th September was the first decent day, weather wise, that we had seen in a while. Perfect timing as it was the day of The Scott Partnership’s trip to the Chester Races. Our southern partners Kapler, along with our sister company Scott Brothers Ltd. came along for the day which made it a big day out. After an excited morning at work, we piled onto the coach at lunchtime clutching our copies of the daily Racing Post in hope of winning some money. On the coach we were given our county concourse badges for admission which allowed us access to more of the course than most other ticket options. We were able to see the Paddocks Parade Ring and the Winners Enclosure, as well as having access to fine dining, various bars and an exclusive champagne bar. A pretty good deal I’d say!

Shortly after arriving at the racecourse and checking out the horses/track (as if we had a clue what we were looking for) we sat down for a 3 course Á la carte meal. The food was great and the wine was flowing all day, as was the conversation. It was an enjoyable change to get out of the working environment with our colleagues and chat about things that we normally wouldn’t get time to. I feel, however that a special mention should be given to a couple of members of our dedicated team who had a client call in the car park at the side of the racecourse halfway through the day; dedication at its finest!

After several races, plenty of jumping up and down and screaming for a sport that most of us have never had an interest in, we left the races. Some of us had won big, some of us had proceeded to cry into our glasses of wine but nevertheless, all of us had a great day. It was a welcome change for all of us and I think those of us who had never attended an event like this were surprised by how much it offered, it felt more like a miniature festival than a horse racing event. Lucky for us, a couple of the big winners of the day were generous enough to fork out some of their winnings on treats to bring into the office the following week, thanks guys.

All in all, I think everyone would agree that the day was a success, although it wouldn’t have been possible without the sound organizational skills of Carol and Claire, as well as Kath for allowing it all to happen. The races are renowned for corporate hospitality events, with Chester being, in my opinion a perfect place to hold a racing event. Its medieval buildings and the fact that its racecourse is the oldest in England (dating back to the 16^th century) provided a second to none atmosphere and experience.

I think I speak for everyone when I say that days like this are one of the many reasons we love working for TSP, a little reward now and again cheers everybody up and works wonders for team morale. Look out next year Chester!

Thermo Fisher Scientific Leading Mass Spectrometry Systems Selected by CVUA-MEL to Ensure Food Safety with Rapid and Reliable Contaminant Analysis

2011-10-06T11:51:00.000+01:00

SAN JOSE, California (October 05, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced that the Chemical and Veterinary Analytical Institute Münsterland-Emscher-Lippe (CVUA-MEL) has standardized on Thermo Scientific LC-MS and GC-MS systems for routine analyses of contaminants in food, feed and human samples. The CVUA-MEL requires extremely high resolution and highly sensitive instruments that can analyze small molecular weight contaminants in samples quickly and accurately and to the lowest limits of detection (LOD). Following a call to tender, which involved evaluation testing and result comparisons of a broad range of competitor products, the CVUA-MEL selected the Thermo Scientific Exactive benchtop MS coupled with the Transcend TLX system and DFS high resolution GC-MS systems. For information on how the systems help the CVUA-MEL ensure regulatory compliance, increase sample throughput and achieve greater sensitivity and improved accuracy, please see a detailed case study which is available to download: www.thermoscientific.com/fsnews

The CVUA-MEL aims to ensure food safety through vigorous scrutiny of potentially hazardous residues and contaminants, in line with current legislation. The Institute is the central official laboratory for food and feed control in the Münster district of Germany, specializing in the food chemistry, veterinary medicine, molecular biology, chemistry and physics fields. The Exactive MS and DFS GC-MS systems are now being used by the Institute to analyze small molecular weight compounds such as dioxins, PCBs, pesticides and veterinary drug residues in food, feed and human samples.

The Exactive LC-MS system offers a high resolving power of up to 100,000 FHWM along with the ability to run pre-programmed targeted screening of samples without the need for thorough clean-up when combined with the Thermo Scientific Transcend TLX system. This benefit is achieved through the Transcend TLX system’s capacity to automate online sample preparation, eliminating much of the manual work of extracting and cleaning compounds. The Exactive LC-MS also provides efficient, automated screening of urine samples taken from farms, detecting illegal drugs administered to animals and ensuring that withdrawal periods are being upheld by farmers in accordance with EU legislation. While delivering the analytical performance of a much larger instrument the Exactive system is conveniently small and compact, requiring minimal space in the laboratory.

Since its implementation, the Thermo Scientific DFS high-resolution GC-MS has significantly improved the analysis of dioxins, PCBs and brominated flame retardants at the CVUA-MEL. The versatile nature and ease-of-use of the system, with its optional two GCs for different column separations, provides the unique ability to simultaneously run two separate unattended batches of samples at different settings, greatly increasing screening speed, overall throughput and increasing full method versatility. The unparalleled high resolution capabilities of the DFS GC-MS have also substantially increased the accuracy of the laboratory’s trace and target compound analysis.

Prof. Dr. Peter Fürst, head of the special instrumental analyses department at the CVUA-MEL, comments: “After an extensive selection process, we chose the Exactive MS coupled with the Transcend TLX System and the DFS high resolution GC-MS based on their ability to provide both high resolution and high sensitivity. The systems have not only uniquely fulfilled all our requirements, but have exceeded our expectations and provided significant additional benefits such as extended testing time due to the Transcend system’s unattended overnight clean-up, improved staff productivity and improved screening speed. As a result, both these instruments have greatly enhanced our ability to ensure the safety of food and feed products and safeguard consumers from dangerous contaminants.”

For more information about Thermo Fisher Scientific solutions and the wide range of applications for food safety, please call 800-532-4752, e-mail analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/foodsafety.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Announces New Method for Precise and Reliable Analysis of Oil

2011-10-04T11:08:00.001+01:00

ECUBLENS, Switzerland (October 3, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced that it has developed a new precise and reliable method for elemental analysis of oil samples in the petrochemical industry. The innovative method uses the Thermo Scientific ARL PERFORM’X X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometer to create a flexible and high-performance solution that is capable of reaching detection limits of below 0.5 parts per million (ppm). The new method, which covers a wide range of applications including the analysis of sulfur in oil and lead in gasoline, is detailed in an application note entitled “Analysis of Oils,” available to download free-of-charge via www.thermoscientific.com/performx.

Petrochemical regulations are becoming increasingly strict and are demanding lower levels of quantification for key elements such as sulfur, nickel, vanadium and lead in products. Compliance with various norms, including ASTM D2622, ASTM D4927 and ISO 20884, requires a method that can offer high sensitivity and stability to ensure content conforms to regulatory limits. The new Thermo Fisher method uses wavelength dispersive XRF (WDXRF), which is increasingly being used for analyses in the petroleum industry and has many advantages over traditional methods. This technique offers excellent repeatability and resolution, particularly for light elements such as sodium and calcium. In addition, it allows oils to be measured directly without dilution, which significantly reduces sample preparation time and increases speed and throughput of analyses.

Designed for demanding laboratories, the ARL PERFORM’X system offers dual sample loading and is able to process more than 60 samples per hour, offering rapid and precise analysis of up to 84 elements including sulfur, nickel, vanadium and lead. The instrument provides the highest standards of safety with an innovative sample recognition capability that ensures safe and straightforward loading of liquids. With its helium shutter, the ARL PERFORM’X completely protects the goniometer from chemical attacks and thermo instability by separating the primary chamber for the spectral chamber. The system also offers unmatched stability and repeatability of results, making it ideally suited to solving complex composition problems in demanding industrial applications.

The ARL PERFORM’X instrument features the latest version of the state-of-the-art Thermo Scientific OXSAS software, which is able to operate with Microsoft Windows® 7 to ensure simple and trouble-free analyses. Users also benefit from a synoptic panel that mimics real-time operation and internal functioning of the instrument on a separate display screen, enabling users to monitor the status of their analyses and improve productivity as a result of the software’s fast and accurate reporting capabilities.

For more information about the new Thermo Scientific ARL PERFORM’X and to obtain a copy of the new application note, please call +1 800-532-4752, email analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/performx.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.
###

CHESHIRE B2B AGENCY THE SCOTT PARTNERSHIP ANNOUNCES SECOND ACQUISITION IN TWO MONTHS IN CONTINUED GROWTH STRATEGY

2011-10-03T13:30:00.000+01:00

03 October 2011: Cheshire based B2B agency The Scott Partnership Ltd (www.scottpr.com) announces the acquisition of Cambridge-based scientific marketing agency Phoenix Marcom Ltd (www.phoenixmarcom.co.uk). The acquisition sees Phoenix move into the holding company of The Scott Partnership Ltd to operate as a wholly owned stand-alone business. The addition of Phoenix Marcom marks the second acquisition since July 2011 for Scott Partnership Holdings Ltd, as it continues to expand its offering in scientific markets with three strong autonomous brands.

CEO Kath Darlington explains "Phoenix Marcom is a strong, established business, with a solid record of scientific, full-service marketing in Europe. The company provides its clients with a broad portfolio of marketing services, and has an impressive customer base. Our intention is that Phoenix will remain autonomous, servicing its predominantly European clients, retaining its focus in the Cambridge area, via the existing Phoenix team. The founder of Phoenix Marcom, Paul Carter, will join The Scott Partnership to support our expansion in Europe. All five companies in Scott Partnership Holdings will now offer PR and marketing services, specializing in healthcare and life sciences markets worldwide."

"The acquisition fits with our strategy for controlled growth, as we strengthen our footprint both globally and locally. In Europe, three brands located in the scientific hubs of Manchester and Cambridge now serve clients internationally, while our companies based in Boston, USA and Shanghai, China develop our business in North America and the Far East and provide locally based support for all clients."

The three brands, led by flagship The Scott Partnership, supported by Kapler and now Phoenix Marcom, are building an untouchable service offering in healthcare and life sciences.

Paul Carter, founder of Phoenix Marcom, is also the UK and Eire delegate for the DECHEMA Society for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (DECHEMA is the organiser of ACHEMA, the largest process industry trade show which takes place in Germany on a tri-annual basis). He will retain this role.

For more information on The Scott Partnership, please call +44 (0)1477 539 539. Alternatively e-mail business@scottpr.com or visit www.scottpr.com.

Novozymes enters into an exclusive supplier agreement to supply Recombumin for Type 2 Diabetes drug

2011-09-30T15:59:00.000+01:00

NOTTINGHAM, UK – September 30, 2011 – Novozymes Biopharma, part of Novozymes A/S, a world leader in bioinnovation, has announced that it has concluded an exclusive supply agreement with ConjuChem LLC of Los Angeles, California. Novozymes will supply its recombinant human albumin, Recombumin, for use in the development of a new GLP-1 analog in Phase 2 testing for Type 2 diabetes. The use of Recombumin in the development of the product potentially significantly reduces dosing frequency, allowing patients to self-inject once per week instead of once or twice daily.

“This supply agreement is a great example of using Novozymes’ Recombumin as a vehicle for extending the half-life of peptides in drug delivery applications,” said Thomas Videbæk, Executive Vice President of Novozymes’ BioBusiness. “Also the agreement for this new drug will potentially pave the way for the use of Recombumin in other peptide-based therapies.”

Recombumin is the only commercially available, animal-free recombinant human albumin approved for use in human therapeutics. Manufactured to cGMP quality standards in large-scale facilities, the product is compliant with United States Pharmacopeia (USP) National Formulary (NF) standards and is supported by a strongly documented safety package and drug master file. These features greatly improve regulatory approval processes for therapeutics, thus accelerating the time to market. In addition, Recombumin offers a secure supply and batch-to-batch consistency, which reduces processing and testing times to drive product efficiencies for manufacturers.

Patrick Soon-Shiong, M.D., CEO at ConjuChem, said: “This exclusive agreement is an excellent partnership for Conjuchem. The Recombumin technology, and the strong commitment from Novozymes, will be key as we develop next generation treatment for a disease affecting more than 360 million people worldwide.” To learn more about Novozymes’ Recombumin, please visit www.biopharma.novozymes.com.

EXCO INTOUCH SECURES GROWTH INVESTMENT FROM SEP

2011-09-29T11:09:00.000+01:00

Mobile patient communication leader to use funds to accelerate growth strategy

LONDON, UK - 29 September, 2011 - Leading growth equity and venture capital group Scottish Equity Partners (SEP) has led an initial £3m pound investment in Exco InTouch, the leading provider of mobile patient communication and management solutions for the pharmaceutical and healthcare sector.

SEP has taken a minority stake in the company which will use the funds to accelerate its expansion, enabling it to take advantage of significant growth opportunities in the clinical technology sector, particularly in the emerging mobile patient communication market.

Exco InTouch, whose clients include nine of the world’s top 10 pharmaceutical businesses, has developed an innovative suite of patient-focused services which are delivered using a combination of cell-phone and internet technology. Used in clinical trials, the company’s services benefit both patients and pharmaceutical clients: supporting patient recruitment and retention; aiding compliance; and facilitating the electronic capture of patient reported outcomes data (ePRO) during clinical trials and in Late Phase observational studies.

The company’s services have already successfully supported more than 600,000 patients participating in clinical trials in more than 70 countries, including working with Pfizer on the industry’s first ever mobile-enabled clinical trial. Benefits include significantly improved patient communication and compliance as well as ease of integration with users’ proprietary systems.

Demand for its services is growing exponentially as pharmaceutical companies are increasingly adopting smart technology to optimise clinical trial execution. Exco InTouch is also targeting opportunities in the broader healthcare market as its mobile platform can also be used to manage patient education, medication compliance and measure effectiveness.

The business, which is already generating profits and employs some 40 staff, has its headquarters in the UK and bases in the United States and recently opened a second UK office in Nottingham to accommodate up to 30 more staff. ts strategy is focused on a patient-centred solution, a stance supported by regulatory authorities.

Exco InTouch, which was founded in 2004 by Chief Executive Tim Davis and Chief Technology Officer Mike Hansen, benefits from a highly experienced senior management team. The company is headed by Executive Chairman Neil Rotherham, co-founder of ClinPhone, another clinical technology business which he steered from start up to a successful IPO on the London Stock Exchange, before it was acquired by Parexel, one of the world’s top contract research organisations.

SEP will support the company through its next growth phase, enabling it to invest further in people, technology and infrastructure and to further enhance its revolutionary mobile technology platform. Jan Rutherford, a Partner at SEP, joins Exco InTouch as a non-executive director. She brings on board a wealth of experience in providing strategic support to high growth companies in the healthcare sector as well as previous experience in working for Novartis and Quintiles.

Jan Rutherford said: “We have great confidence in the Exco InTouch management team who have an outstanding track record in the clinical technology sector. We see significant growth opportunities for what is truly game-changing technology. They are conducting pioneering work with world leaders in drug development which is helping to make healthcare more efficient, effective, accessible and patient-centric.”

Dr. Neil Rotherham, Executive Chairman at Exco InTouch, adds, “We were attracted to SEP’s extensive industry experience and heavy investment in the market sector we work in. SEP will be able to complement and challenge us, as well as helping our continuing growth. This financial year has proved highly successful for us, with particular growth in our ePRO, and patient engagement services that are used for patient retention, recruitment and compliance in clinical trials and other healthcare settings.”

Thermo Fisher Scientific Launches New Total Nitrogen and Sulfur Analyzer for Precise and Accurate Analysis of Petroleum Products Using a Single Introduction Module

2011-09-27T15:33:00.000+01:00

CAMBRIDGE, UK (September 27, 2011) - Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced the launch of a new Total Nitrogen and Total Sulfur (TN/TS) analyzer, which features an innovative direct injection design providing the capacity to analyze both heavy and light hydrocarbons without changing introduction modules. As a result of the versatility, precision and accuracy offered by the Thermo Scientific iPRO 5000 series analyzer, scientists in petrochemical and commercial testing laboratories, oil refineries, R&D centers and chemical plants, will benefit from significant time savings and productivity advantages, in addition to total ASTM compliance.

The iPRO 5000 series TN/TS analyzer features the proprietary Thermo Scientific jetPRO direct spray injector, which enables automatic analysis from ppb levels up to percent levels for both nitrogen and sulfur on just one instrument and without changing introduction modules. As a result, it is now possible to quantify nitrogen and sulfur in heavy hydrocarbons within just three minutes. Compared to the standard boat method, this is a dramatic reduction in the time spent from analysis to viewing results, which provides an immediate cost-saving and productivity increase. Offering exceptional precision of two percent or better when analyzing light hydrocarbons at ultra-low concentrations, the analyzer ensures high accuracy, as well as reproducibility and repeatability of analysis. Providing meticulously controlled combustion processes, the analyzer also contains a proprietary pre-soot detection technology which ensures complete combustion that is soot-free. The iPRO 5000 series analyzer is also the smallest and most compact total nitrogen and total sulfur analyzer currently available.

Developed for a wide range of applications, the iPRO 5000 series analyzer offers an ideal solution for the diverse requirements of petrochemical analyses. The instrument provides the capacity to analyze virtually any refinery sample from raw crude to end product, while ensuring ASTM compliance and enabling optimization of refinery processes. For commercial testing laboratories requiring ASTM compliant results quickly and cost-effectively over a wide range of applications, the iPRO 5000 series analyzer is four times faster than previous methods which enables a significant increase in productivity and cost-efficiency. In addition, the instrument's exceptional precision makes it the ideal choice for high performance applications such as those conducted by research and development centers.

The iPRO 5000 series analyzer is controlled by Thermo Scientific NSX Visual software, which supports Microsoft Windows 7 and has been developed to adapt to the specific workflows of users who require ease-of-use and flexibility.The NSX Visual software assures total ASTM compliance through pre-loaded ASTM method templates, which enable the user to simply select the required method and start the analysis. The software is also programmed to proactively alert the user if method parameters are changed to a value which is outside the scope of the official ASTM methods.

For more information about the Thermo Scientific iPRO 5000 series analyzer, please call +1 800-532-4752, email analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/ipro

Thermo Fisher Scientific Introduces New Imaging ATR Accessory for Fast and Reliable FT-IR Chemical Imaging Analyses

2011-09-23T16:27:00.000+01:00

MADISON, Wis.,(Sep 23, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced the launch of a new imaging attenuated total reflectance (ATR) accessory offering enhanced spatial resolution and high speed data acquisition capabilities for Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) chemical imaging applications. The Thermo Scientific imaging ATR accessory has been designed to seamlessly and effortlessly integrate with the Thermo Scientific range of FT-IR microscopes to enable efficient, fast and reliable chemical imaging of challenging samples. This is of particular benefit to manufacturers of composite structures, paper products, pharmaceutical dosage forms, biological tissues, polymer films and coatings. The product was showcased at the JAIMA Expo 2011 in Makuhrai Messe, Japan.

ATR is a popular sampling technique for infrared spectroscopy allowing direct contact sampling of solids and liquids without further preparation. When coupled with an FT-IR microscope, ATR provides a unique capability for exploring the microscopic structure of heterogeneous samples. Single point ATR mapping, while more flexible in terms of total image size and dimensions, requires many separate contact points to build up the imaging data set. The Thermo Scientific imaging ATR accessory provides a more rapid method because it requires the sample to be compressed only once against an extended area of contact. Data collection may then proceed at the same speed as normal transmission or external reflectance experiments.

The new imaging ATR accessory greatly simplifies the task of obtaining high quality infrared spectra in cases of samples that are difficult to prepare for transmission analysis. Observable features in specimens, such as defects, particles, fibers or inks, may be effectively analyzed with spatial resolution improved by a factor of four relative to transmission measurements. The accessory quickly snaps into the sample holder feature of Thermo Scientific Nicolet iN10, Nicolet iN10 MX and Nicolet Continuµm microscopes in a matter of seconds without the need of tools. All standard microscope optics remain available, thus avoiding any concerns of alignment or down time when switching between sampling modes. Transmission, external reflection, micro-ATR and imaging-ATR capabilities are all immediately available to address the requirements of any FT-IR microscopy application.

For more information about the new Thermo Scientific imaging ATR accessory, please call 800-532-4752, e-mail analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/ftir.

###

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.

For further press information please contact: Laura Browne, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA, United Kingdom Tel: + 44 1477 539539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540 E-mail: thermo@scottpr.com

###

Leicester’s Hospitals and Synergy Health raise decontamination standards through new facility

2011-09-19T09:15:00.000+01:00

Swindon, UK (15th September 2011) –University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust and Synergy Health (UK) Limited, the leading provider of specialist outsourced services to healthcare providers, have officially launched a multi-million pound 'super-centre' for decontaminating surgical instruments today.

The facility, formally opened by NHS Medical Director Professor Sir Bruce Keogh at Meridian Business Park, Leicester, will enable the Trust to streamline this critical sterile service, further enhance the quality of sterile instrument output and benefit from new revenue streams.

As part of the Department of Health's National Decontamination Project, Trusts around the country have been working to find solutions to ageing, non-compliant decontamination facilities, which are a critical link in the surgical pathway. After an extensive procurement process, Synergy Health was selected by Leicester’s Hospitals as its partner to create a state-of-the-art sterile service and decontamination service.

Synergy Health invested £3.5million to create the decontamination 'super-centre' and, after becoming fully accredited, it is now serving the Trust’s three hospitals: Glenfield, Leicester General and Leicester Royal Infirmary. The centre will eventually accommodate the additional instrument decontamination requirements of neighbouring PCTs, GPs and dentists.

The new decontamination facility adopts a joint venture approach. This means the Trust retains control of its service but is reassured by full operational compliance, able to free up ageing estate, make considerable quality and productivity improvements to the supply chain feeding the surgical pathway, and transfer risk and the associated facilities management burden to its partner.

60 former highly-skilled NHS employees have been transferred to the new facility and are continuing ‘business as usual’ but in a much enhanced environment while at the same time contributing to a new income stream for the Trust.

Neil Doverty, divisional manager for clinical support at Leicester’s Hospitals, said “This is an excellent – and timely – example of the public and private sectors working together towards the best possible outcomes for patients’ safety and for the surgeons and clinical support staff who rely on safe and efficient surgical equipment in order to do their work.”

The 16,000 sq ft facility complies with the Medical Device Directive and stringent international standards and is already serving the Trust’s multiple-site theatre demands after a staged transfer process. It boasts sophisticated track-and-trace technology, which allows staff to ensure millions of items of surgical equipment are collected, decontaminated, sterilised, packed and returned to the correct client on time.

Synergy Health’s CEO UK and Ireland, Adrian Coward said: “The new super-centre heralds an exciting new phase in Synergy Health’s operations in Leicester and cements the long-established relationships we have built up with our NHS clients here.

“We are seeing Trusts around the country looking to streamline costs, increase quality and productivity and - most importantly – achieve compliance. Leicester’s Hospitals are to be congratulated for working towards an innovative and beneficial solution across a number of critical indicators.

“Harnessing the latest technologies and procedures, this flagship centre will play a key role in providing cost-effective solutions to the NHS at a time when it is under huge pressure to make savings.”

Recognised by the Carbon Trust for its continued CO2 reduction, Synergy Health has included a number of state-of-the-art technology features at the premises including:

• Steam boilers that recover waste heat and transfer it back to the boiler water feed.

• A central system that regulates air flow into the clean room according to occupancy levels

• Energy efficient lighting throughout the unit

• Compressors that are 35% more efficient than standard models

Thermo Fisher Scientific Launches iTEVA Precision Software for Rapid Analysis of Precious Metals and High Concentration Elements

2011-09-15T16:25:00.000+01:00

CAMBRIDGE, UK (September 15, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced a new software module to enable high-precision and automated analysis of precious metals and high concentration elements. The Thermo Scientific iTEVA Precision software seamlessly integrates with the Thermo Scientific iCAP 6000 Series of inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometers (ICP-OES) to deliver analytical results with high precision. Designed specifically for the metallurgy industry, the new module enhances the Thermo Scientific iTEVA software solution and delivers a simple and efficient workflow for high-precision analysis with real-time data processing using the bracketing standards approach.

ICP-OES is one of the most popular elemental analysis techniques due to its rapid, robust and multi-element capabilities. It can, however, be challenging to analyze elements in samples of high financial value, or with analytes at high percentage concentrations on a daily basis. The unique iTEVA Precision software module meets this challenge by using bracketing algorithms (as stipulated by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for data processing) to generate high-quality ISO-compliant data in real-time.

The software features advanced data processing, which routinely enables relative standard deviation (RSD) values of <0.3 percent between sample aliquots, a notable enhancement in analytical precision for the ICP-OES technique. Furthermore, the powerful automated data processing capability makes labor-intensive external calculations unnecessary and eliminates the potential for human transcription errors associated with performing manual ”off-line” calculations. An added benefit of the new software module is its ability to perform required post-run data reprocessing without re-analyzing samples; this accelerates workflows and conserves high-value samples.

The iTEVA Precision software provides flexible options for unit sets that are user-definable on a per analyte basis. Customizable data filtering and reporting tools are also available, enabling users to maintain their preferred workflow while automating current sample analysis processes. In addition, the software offers multi-language support, including English, German, French, Chinese, Japanese and Russian.

For more information about the Thermo Scientific iTEVA Precision software, please call +1 800-532-4752, email analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/iteva

Greenphire Closes Series A Financing Led by FirstMark Capital

2011-09-15T12:44:00.000+01:00

KING OF PRUSSIA, PA (September 14, 2011) – Greenphire, the leading provider of web-based payment and communication technologies for the healthcare clinical trials industry, announced today that it has completed a Series A financing led by prominent New York-based venture capital firm, FirstMark Capital.

All of Greenphire’s existing angel investors, including leading healthcare industry veterans and entrepreneurs, participated in the funding. Gerald A.Poch, a Founder and Managing Director at FirstMark Capital, will join Greenphire’s Board of Directors alongside the company’s existing Directors—CEO Samuel Whitaker, Dr. Neil Rotherham, and David Reuter—as part of the financing. The Series A funding will support the recent launch of Greenphire’s innovative eClinicalGPS technology, a clinical payment platform designed to automate site and vendor payments within the clinical research environment. Additionally, the capital will be used to expand global sales and marketing initiatives for Greenphire’s flagship technology platform, the ClinCard System, which currently hosts a client base of more than 140 clinical trials sponsors, research sites, contract research organizations and research universities.

Gerald A. Poch stated, “Greenphire’s strong management team, established track record with existing, top-tier clients, and the accelerated adoption of the company’s new eClinicalGPS technology were critical to our investment decision. FirstMark is excited to have the opportunity to build upon the existing success achieved by the Greenphire team. This investment represents a unique opportunity to take advantage of internet and payment-processing technologies to provide the healthcare industry with a real-time, secure, and regulatory-compliant payment and communications network.”

Dr. Neil Rotherham, co-founder of ClinPhone and the Executive Director of Greenphire’s board since 2009, also offered his perspective on the deal, stating, “We are delighted to have Jerry Poch and his FirstMark team on board. Greenphire is a very exciting business with a tremendous future and it is good to see this endorsed by such an experienced investor. We will be looking to drive the business forward in the coming months with further development of our products and the strengthening of our commercial and project management teams.”

Greenphire co-founder and CEO Samuel Whitaker expressed his enthusiasm with the infusion of growth capital, commenting, "Our company has recognized phenomenal growth in an industry that is notorious for slow adoption of new technology. Our clients continue to rave about our technology platforms and the corresponding support that is provided throughout each study. Our partnership with FirstMark and the growth capital that has been provided by all of our investors will give us the fuel to expand our team and continue to improve operations, support and product functionality.”

About Greenphire’s ClinCard System:

Greenphire’s ClinCard System is a web-based platform enabling pharmaceutical sponsors, CROs, research universities, and clinical research sites to manage global subject payments, and use text, email, and voice messaging programs to communicate with subjects throughout the clinical trials experience. The ClinCard System is currently supporting over 8,000 studies and 60,000 patients across 1,500 clinical research sites in North America and Europe.

About Greenphire’s eClinicalGPS Technology:

The eClinicalGPS technology allows pharmaceutical sponsors to manage and automate all investigator, site, and vendor payments associated with a clinical study from a single web-based portal, replacing traditional manual payment processes and drastically reducing administrative burden.

PRECOS Enjoys Successful First Year with Significant Client Growth

2011-09-15T12:29:00.000+01:00

NOTTINGHAM, UK, 13 September 2011 - Preclinical Oncology Services Limited (PRECOS), a leading pre-clinical research and development service provider with a specific focus on oncology, announces that it has more than doubled the number of new clients using its strategic services during the first six months of 2011.

Since its spin-out from the University of Nottingham in August 2010, the company has enjoyed increasing success. Additionally, PRECOS has added a new senior member of staff to its rapidly growing team in order to accommodate this growth and the significant expansion envisaged for 2012.

Dr. Aaron Cranston joins PRECOS as head of in vivo services with 15 years’ extensive experience in oncology research. His expertise has been honed in both academia and practice, more recently in drug discovery and translational medicine for KuDOS Pharmaceuticals as Head of Pharmacology.

In line with the company’s continued projected growth, PRECOS is also doubling its existing laboratory space by mid 2012. The simultaneous expansion of staffing, client base and operational facilities at PRECOS will support the growth of its leading in vitro and in vivo oncology drug discovery services.

“I am delighted to be joining the PRECOS team and participating in the leading specialist services that PRECOS provides,” comments Dr. Cranston. “The company is an innovative leader in oncology and is committed to offering a world-class service to its clients. I am looking forward to being able to apply my experience and expertise to existing and new projects.”

Dr Neil Rotherham, chairman of PRECOS comments, “Aaron’s extensive background in the drug discovery field makes him an ideal addition to our growing team and we look forward to benefiting from his expertise. We are taking significant steps in our growth strategy by providing services for an ever-expanding number of clients. Aaron’s appointment will strengthen our senior team in support of our growing client base and we aim to continue expanding into 2012 and beyond.”

The technology used by PRECOS offers several unique methods which allow drugs to be screened early in the research process for anti-cancer activity, while those with no useful activity can be ignored. It is possible to create cell lines from patient primary tissue that “never see plastic” and are therefore not selected based on their ability to survive in vitro, but on their true characteristics as cancer cells. PRECOS can deliver a customised screening platform either in 3-D in vitro and/or in vivo that can far more closely model the development of cancer and therefore more accurately reflect the effect of potential candidate entities.

For further information on PRECOS, please call +44 (0)870 166 6234, email enquiries@precos.co.uk or visit www.precos.co.uk

New Lavender Space Bags Launch alongside Stylish and Discreet Storage Solutions to Suit Every Home

2011-09-15T12:14:00.000+01:00

Keep your Belongings as Fresh as the Day they were Washed

(13 September, 2011) Something’s in the air this autumn. Scott Brothers Ltd., specialist distributor of home storage products, has released new additions to its space-saving Space Bag range, including the Lavender Scented Space Bag, a fragrant vacuum storage solution for your home. With a subtle floral lavender scent, the new Space Bags are ideal for storing bedding, keeping them fresh and beautifully scented, while saving space in your home. If Lavender isn’t your bag, try the new Ottoman storage container or Space Bag under-bed organiser, stylish and discreet storage solutions proving Space Bag has something for every home. All three new storage solutions are available from nationwide stockists including www.vacuumstoragedirect.co.uk.

Protect your summer clothes with the Lavender Space Bag this autumn ready for when the sunshine returns. The Lavender Bag is an extra large vacuum-seal Space Bag (67cm x 100cm) with a subtle lavender scent and is perfect for keeping duvets, pillows and bed linen clean and smelling fresh. The new Space Bags compress items to make the most of precious storage space in your home and also help to keep dust and moths away, protecting and preserving your items so they remain in pristine condition for longer.

The newly introduced Ottoman storage containers and under-bed organisers together offer unique and innovative solutions to household storage issues. Whether you want a stylish decorative storage solution using the Ottoman storage container or neat and organised storage for clothing and shoes in the Space Bag under-bed organiser, Scott Brothers Ltd has something for every home.

The space-saving Ottoman (34.25cm x 34.25cm x 35.5cm) from Space Bag is a really clever storage solution, concealing a high capacity vacuum storage bag inside a quality, brown faux leather container. This stylish storage container also has a cushion top that can be used as a foot rest, coffee table or even as extra seating, making it a useful item in any home.

The Space Bag under-bed organiser (91cm x 70cm x 15cm) has compartments to store up to eight pairs of shoes and can also store anything from clothes to children’s toys and bedding in two large vacuum-seal bags. For storage under the bed, or even on top of your wardrobe, the under-bed organiser is ideal for storing and protecting clothing, shoes, accessories, toys and seasonal items.

Scott Brothers Ltd. is the largest supplier of Space Bag vacuum storage bags in the UK, providing a large range of valuable de-cluttering tools to keep all rooms in your home perfectly tidy. On top of these new additions to the Space Bag range, Scott Brothers has existing products including popular Space Bag vacuum-seal storage bags in various sizes, Space Bag Tote storage bags and the Space Bag hanging bag, ideal for protecting suits and other clothing.

For more information on the Space Bag range of products, please visit www.vacuumstoragedirect.co.uk. For more information on Scott Brothers Ltd., please visit www.scottmail.co.uk, email sales@scottmail.co.uk or call 01477 539 500.

-Ends-

For further press information please contact: Lindsay Baldry - The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, CW4 8AA Tel: +44 (0)1477 539 539 Fax: +44 (0)1477 539 540 e-mail: sbl@scottpr.com

Analytical Technology Secures New Framework Agreement with Thames Water Continuing to Lead the Way in Supplying Monitoring Systems to the UK’s Major Utility Companies

2011-09-12T16:03:00.000+01:00

Manchester, UK (September 8, 2011) Specialist electrochemical sensor manufacturer Analytical Technology Inc. today announces that it has been awarded the framework agreement to supply and install triple validated chlorine monitoring systems to Thames Water. The new chlorine monitoring systems will replace Thames’ existing instrumentation, improving process control and enabling considerable operational and maintenance savings in line with current company strategy. The new framework agreement reinforces Analytical Technology’s position as a leading provider of water monitoring instrumentation to many of the UK’s largest utility companies.

Following a lengthy and detailed decision-making process, Analytical Technology was awarded the framework agreement by Thames Water in February 2011, beating off competition from six of the world’s leading providers. The company scored significantly higher than its competitors in all three characteristics on which the award was based, achieving scores 20% higher than all other companies in areas including commercial, technical and term and conditions of trade (T&C). Thames Water currently has the UK’s largest installed base of chlorine monitors and is investing in the new technology during AMP 5, the asset management plan period between 2010 and 2015. Due to the large size of the order, the new framework agreement was jointly awarded to both Analytical Technology and Siemens.

Analytical Technology launched its UK and Europe business in 1998 and the company has enjoyed growing success, now providing compliant instrumentation to most UK water providers and leading the way in developing reliable and cost-effective monitoring systems. Developing and producing the highest quality instruments available, Analytical Technology recently added the Profibus DP standard to its monitoring systems, enabling water and wastewater treatment plants to optimise maintenance and achieve a high level of confidence in chlorine measurement. The triple validated chlorine monitoring systems selected by Thames Water will enable them to improve process control and make great savings over the whole life of the asset.

Garry Tabor, Sales Manager Europe at Analytical Technology, comments: “Our goal was clear; Analytical Technology set out to be the UK's number one supplier of chlorine monitoring systems and this new framework agreement is a great reward for our dedicated team. We have been working with all the UK's major water companies for some time and have been able to pass on operational costs which amount to hundreds of thousands of pounds. This is backed up by our dedication to providing top quality service to our customers, which includes personalised training programmes and maintenance services. This award confirms our claims that Analytical Technology’s chlorine monitors are the best on the market, with no rivals either technically or commercially.”

In addition to Thames Water, Analytical Technology has the frameworks to supply chlorine monitors to Scottish Water, United Utilities, South West Water and Yorkshire Water.

For more information on Analytical Technology’s triple validated chlorine monitoring systems, please call +44(0)1457 873 318, e-mail sales@atiuk.com or visit www.analyticaltechnology.com.

ITT completes acquisition of YSI Incorporated to enhance its water instrumentation business

2011-09-07T16:25:00.000+01:00

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y., September 6, 2011 — ITT Corporation (NYSE: ITT) announced today that it has completed its acquisition of YSI Incorporated, forming a water-focused analytics business with annual revenue of approximately $300 million. YSI is a leading developer and manufacturer of sensors, instruments, software, and data collection platforms for environmental water monitoring, with facilities in the U.S., Europe and Asia.

"YSI’s product offering complements our existing water portfolio and enables us to better serve our global customers and build on our commitment to solve challenges that our customers face across the water industry,” said Gretchen McClain, president of ITT's Fluid and Motion Control business, and future chief executive officer of Xylem, the new standalone water company separating in a tax-free spinoff from ITT later this year.

“YSI’s expertise in field and outdoor, environmental applications strongly enhances and broadens our analytical instrumentation platform,” said Chris McIntire, president of ITT’s Analytics business area.

YSI, with a legacy of invention and innovation, was founded in 1948, and reported 2010 global revenues of $101 million. Since 1990, YSI has demonstrated a commitment to its core values and good corporate citizenship through the YSI Foundation.

ITT Analytics is a leading manufacturer of premium field, portable, laboratory and online ¬analytical instruments used in water and wastewater, environmental, medical, and food and ¬beverage applications. The company’s meters, sensors, analyzers and related consumables are used every day by thousands of end-users worldwide to analyze and control quality in countless industrial ¬applications where precise measurement is required. ITT Analytics’ products are sold under the globally recognized brands WTW, SI Analytics, OI Analytical, Royce Technologies, Aanderaa Data Instruments (AADI), Global Water Instrumentation, ebro and ¬Bellingham & Stanley. www.ittanalytics.com

About ITT Corporation
ITT Corporation is a high-technology engineering and manufacturing company operating on all seven continents in three vital markets: water and fluids management, global defense and security, and motion and flow control. With a heritage of innovation, ITT partners with its customers to deliver extraordinary solutions that create more livable environments, provide protection and safety and connect our world. Headquartered in White Plains, N.Y., the company generated 2010 revenue of $11 billion. www.itt.com

Thermo Fisher Scientific Opens New Biomarker Translational Center

2011-09-07T14:45:00.000+01:00

GENEVA, Switzerland (September 6, 2011) - Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced at the Human Proteome Organization (HUPO) 2011 World Congress the establishment of a new Biomarker Translational Center (BT Center). The purpose of the BT Center is to accelerate mass spectrometry (MS)-based biomarker discovery research and its translation into the development of routine clinical assays for subsequent commercialization. Based in Cambridge, Mass., the BT Center combines advanced expertise from across Thermo Fisher including its B·R·A·H·M·S product line and the team at the Biomarkers Research Initiatives in Mass Spectrometry (BRIMS) Center.

“Through the vertical integration with the unique talent in MS-based biomarker discovery and high-throughput quantitative assay development at BRIMS, we aim to expand our pipeline of new protein and peptide biomarkers with potential as clinical assays,” said Bruno Darbouret, director of research and development for B·R·A·H·M·S Biomarkers at Thermo Fisher. “Ultimately, this development effort will speed the commercialization of diagnostic tests that address life threatening diseases.”

Thermo Fisher, already a leading provider of specialty in-vitro diagnostic tests based on its patented Thermo Scientific B·R·A·H·M·S biomarkers, understands clinical market needs and will apply core strengths in diagnostics development, validation and commercialization to define the disease areas of focus for the BT Center. The company’s well-established relationships with clinical researchers will provide access to clinical partners and patient samples for biomarker discovery and validation studies using B·R·A·H·M·S Biomarkers.

For the disease areas chosen, the BRIMS Center will apply its competencies in quantitative MS biomarker discovery and multiplexed selected reaction monitoring (SRM) assay development to identify putative biomarkers and their clinically relevant isoforms. Subsequently it will develop robust, reproducible, targeted MS-based assays appropriate for the validation of putative biomarkers and ultimately for the clinical diagnostics market.

Thermo Fisher will own all intellectual property around the biomarkers and assays, and it will commercialize the assays as clinical diagnostic products and services after obtaining all requisite regulatory approvals.

“Efficient translation of MS-based biomarker discovery research into the development of routine clinical diagnostic assays is an important challenge in the field of personalized medicine,” said Bryan Krastins, group leader, BT Center. “Bridging this gap requires high-level competence in MS-based biomarker discovery and routine assay development for biomarker verification and validation. Understanding clinician and patient needs and having extensive experience in clinical validation are also essential to the transformation of novel tests into clinical routine assays. The new BT Center integrates all the capabilities needed to speed the clinical assay development pipeline from biomarker discovery to clinical assay development and validation.”

The Thermo Scientific B·R·A·H·M·S product line features a range of diagnostic test procedures to improve the diagnosis and treatment of life-threatening diseases, using patented biomarkers to bring about medically and economically superior diagnostic know-how for patients and users. Thermo Scientific B·R·A·H·M·S products are used in more than 60 countries around the world.

Located in Cambridge, Mass., the BRIMS Center develops methodologies and applications for protein biomarker identification and verification. Equipped with a full complement of Thermo Scientific mass spectrometers, and staffed by a team of scientists with expertise in mass spectrometry, protein techniques and informatics, the BRIMS Center also develops leading software tools for proteomic research.

For more information about Thermo Scientific solutions for proteomic research, please call +1 800-532-4742, email analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/ms.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Scientist Dr. Alexander Makarov Receives Inaugural HUPO Science and Technology Award

2011-09-06T14:58:00.002+01:00

GENEVA, Switzerland (September 5, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced that Dr. Alexander Makarov, its director of global research for life sciences mass spectrometry, has received the first HUPO Science and Technology Award from the Human Proteome Organization (HUPO). The award, which honors Dr. Makarov’s principal role in developing the Orbitrap mass analyzer, will be presented on September 7 at the HUPO 2011 10th World Congress in Geneva, Switzerland.

Dr. Makarov, who has authored more than 40 papers and holds more than 40 patents worldwide, first presented the Orbitrap mass analyzer in a paper published in 2000. The Thermo Scientific LTQ Orbitrap hybrid mass spectrometer, introduced in 2005, was the first commercial mass spectrometer to be based on this new type of mass analyzer. Orbitrap-based mass spectrometers offer performance that was previously only available from larger, more expensive, difficult-to-operate and less reliable Fourier Transform Ion Cyclotron Resonance (FT-ICR) mass spectrometers, enabling more widespread use of ultra-high resolution and high mass accuracy instrumentation.

Orbitrap mass spectrometers have quickly become essential tools in many fields, and have enabled breakthroughs in proteomics, the large-scale study of proteins, their structures and their functions within biological systems. Only six years after commercial introduction, Orbitrap mass spectrometers are found in leading proteomics laboratories worldwide. They are used to identify both intact and enzymatically digested proteins, find proteins that have undergone chemical modification and identify the type and location of modification, all essential to the understanding of biological systems. Orbitrap mass spectrometers have been referenced in hundreds of articles in scientific journals.

“We are extremely pleased to see Alexander receive this award, and we are grateful to HUPO for recognizing him in this way.” said Greg Herrema, senior vice president and president, analytical instruments group, Thermo Fisher Scientific. “We are proud of the contributions that Orbitrap mass spectrometers have made to scientific knowledge in proteomics, metabolomics, metabolism and many other fields, and Alexander continues to play an important role in the advancement of Orbitrap technology.”

In June of this year, Thermo Fisher introduced several new Orbitrap-based mass spectrometers at the 59th ASMS Conference on Mass Spectrometry and Allied Topics in Denver, Colorado. The Thermo Scientific Orbitrap Elite hybrid mass spectrometer features a next-generation, high-field Orbitrap mass analyzer that is smaller than its predecessor yet provides dramatically higher performance. The Thermo Scientific Q Exactive mass spectrometer is the first hybrid mass spectrometer to pair a transmission quadrupole mass analyzer with an Orbitrap mass analyzer. Both instruments are being shown this week at the HUPO World Congress as part of Thermo Fisher’s Comprehensive Proteomics and Protein Quanfirmation workflows, respectively.

For more information about Orbitrap technology and Orbitrap-based mass spectrometers, please call 1-800-532-4752, e-mail analyze@thermo.com or visit www.planetorbitrap.com.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.

Wave Goodbye to Water Woes in the Garden and Home with the New AquaCharge Cordless Water Pump

2011-09-02T15:39:00.000+01:00

GLOUCESTER, MA – 01 September, 2011 – From routine garden pond and aquarium draining to clogged sinks, the Rule Innovation AquaCharge is the water-pumping solution for the job. The launch of this product brings to the market a portable and rechargeable water pump that provides an instant solution for household use. The AquaCharge pump also has the unique ability of evading salt water corrosion, providing the capability to pump salt water in addition to fresh water.

The AquaCharge handheld water pumping solution is small (7” x 3.25” x 5.5”) and lightweight (3.6 lbs), making it a manageable and easy to use household item. The pump is suitable for a range of domestic applications including aquarium cleaning, pond cleaning and water feature emptying. The AquaCharge water pump is also just as efficient when solving marine flooding problems, such as the removal of water from kayaks, canoes or even sailboats.

Included in the AquaCharge package is a fully-submersible pump, a rechargeable, low voltage NiMH battery, a flexible eight foot (2.45 metre) hose and a convenient charging station. The low voltage battery means the water pump can be in continuous operation and also allows safe submersion in water for the duration of use. It can connect to any standard garden hose, facilitating easy use in a garden of any size, and has 166 UK gallons (754 litres) per charge pumping capacity. The included charging station allows for easy recharging of the battery to ensure your pump is never inactive due to not having batteries on hand.

“The AquaCharge water pump unites first class engineering and rapid innovation from ITT, allowing the ever changing needs of the customer to be met,” explains Jeff Schopperle, Product Manager at ITT Flow Control. “The pump is a dependable, efficient and compact solution to any household water removal issue, facilitating easy use for a wide range of applications.”

AquaCharge is available online and through a selection of retailers nationwide. It retails for an estimated £51.29 in the UK and €58.95 in Germany and France. Visit www.aquachargepump.com for more information

In January 2011, ITT announced its intent to separate the corporation into three standalone publicly traded companies by the end of 2011. ITT’s water-related businesses will form a new standalone water company to be called Xylem Inc. Xylem is the Greek word for the tissue that moves water in plants. Following the spinoff, the company will retain its industry leading product brands such as Flygt, Goulds Water Technology, WEDECO, WTW, Flojet, Bell & Gossett, Lowara and many others.

Cheshire-based Scott Brothers Ltd Celebrates Substantial Business Growth and Record Sales in the Retail Market

2011-09-02T14:08:00.000+01:00

(2 September, 2011) Scott Brothers Ltd., the specialist distributor of storage products for the home, today announced that the company has experienced increasing success, growing by over 130% in the last two years. June 2011 has proven to be the most successful month in Scott Brothers’ history as the company expands its product range to become a ‘one stop shop’, accommodating the storage needs of every home. This achievement is testament to the hardworking and dedicated team within Scott Brothers and the company’s commitment to invest in and retain the best employees in the industry. This was recently recognised by the achievement of an Investors in People (IIP) award, which places Scott Brothers among the top UK companies, with only a small proportion achieving this award on the first attempt.

Since its inception in 1996 Scott Brothers Ltd has expanded its product range to become the specialist distributor of storage products for all areas of the home, providing storage solutions for the garage, kitchen, bedroom and living room. Scott Brothers is the largest supplier of branded vacuum storage bags in the UK and holds a unique position as the distributor of both leading brands in this segment – Pack-Mate and Space Bag. In addition, the company also distributes the Ordinett soft storage range, including suit hangers and colourful storage boxes to suit every home. Another successful product is the Racor storage range, which consists of various wall mounts, racks and hangers to store bikes and gardening and car cleaning products in sheds and garages.

As the business has grown, Scott Brothers Ltd is now supplying products to high profile customers such as Argos, B&Q and Lakeland, as well as developing distributions within leading supermarkets including Tesco, Asda and Aldi.

While the company has experienced a considerable amount of growth, the number of Scott Brothers employees has remained the same, showing the hard work and commitment of the Scott Brothers team. Scott Brothers was recently awarded IIP status in just one attempt, following a rigorous review process. This award is a goal that thousands of employers hope to achieve each year and is given to companies who provide a positive working environment and show commitment to continuous business improvement through their employees. Scott Brothers was particularly praised for its clear communication of team vision and the openness of the management team, which strives to encourage team input into decision making.

Duncan Pratt-Thompson, Director at Scott Brothers comments, “We are delighted that we have been awarded IIP status in just our first attempt and that our employees feel valued and supported within the workplace. This new award complements the ISO 9001 standard which we are also accredited with and highlights our commitment to attracting, developing and retaining the right people to help grow the business. We have experienced increasing success in recent years, culminating in record sales in May and June 2011. We look forward to the exciting future ahead and I would like to thank our dedicated team for their efforts.”

Wyatt Technology’s Calypso GC-MALS System Provides Fast and Accurate Measurements of Biomolecular Interactions

2011-09-02T11:43:00.000+01:00

(SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA - September 02 2011) - Wyatt Technology Corporation, the world leader in absolute macromolecular characterization instrumentation and software, today announced that its Calypso Composition-Gradient Multi-Angle Light Scattering (CG-MALS) system achieves accurate measurements of biomolecular interactions. The Calypso offers the unique capability of determining both the affinity and binding stoichiometry for macromolecules in solution with no need for immobilization or tagging, which may influence the interaction. This is demonstrated in a new application note, titled “Measuring Antibody-Antigen Interactions with the Calypso”, which is available to download free-of-charge via http://www.wyatt.com/files/literature/Calypso-Measuring_Antibody-Antigen_Interactions.pdf

Antibody-antigen binding, hormone-receptor interactions and many other common biomolecular interactions occur at stoichiometries other than 1:1. Conventional separation techniques, such as size exclusion chromatography MALS (SEC MALS) and field flow fractionation MALS (FFF MALS) have been extensively used to study interactions, however they are associated with certain important limitations. As the molecules become separated in the course of dilution and fractionation, they no longer interact. Additionally, upon reaching the detectors, the molecules are often not in equilibrium, neither are they in a well defined kinetic state.

The new application note illustrates how Calypso complements traditional MALS separation techniques, keeping the molecules in close proximity to probe their interactions. The analyzer was used in conjunction with an online UV/Vis concentration detector and Wyatt’s DAWN HELEOS MALS instrument to provide rapid and precise measurements of the interaction between an anti-thrombin antibody (Ab) and human thrombin a (Thr). The equilibrium dissociation constant determined by the system agreed well with the manufacturer’s data as measured by ELISA. In addition, both thrombin and the antibody exhibited no propensity for self-association, a finding that could not be evaluated by conventional ELISA.

Calypso employs a series of unfractionated samples of different composition or concentration in order to characterize macromolecular interactions, including reversible self- and hetero-association of proteins, reaction rates and affinities of irreversible aggregation, and virial coefficients. No special modifications, such as sample tagging or immobilization procedures, are required. Instead, samples are unlabeled and entirely in solution. Furthermore, Calypso’s automation capabilities enhance productivity by improving repeatability and reliability, while minimizing time and effort.

For more information on Wyatt Technology’s instruments or to obtain a copy of the new application note, please visit www.wyatt.com or email info@wyatt.com

Green Up Your Act with the New Solar Powered RainPerfect™ Water Pump

2011-09-02T09:37:00.000+01:00

(Gloucester, MA) 01 September, 2011 - It has now never been easier to go green, with the launch of the solar powered RainPerfect^™ pump from Rule Innovation, a brand from ITT Flow Control. Designed to help everyday consumers live a more environmentally conscious lifestyle, the pump enables users to more conveniently recycle rain by generating sufficient pressure to run their hose or sprinkler from their water butt. Providing added green efficiency, the water pump is powered by a unique solar panel.

“Water usage increases in the average suburban home during the summer by 30 percent from garden watering’, Jeff Schopperle, Product Manager at ITT explains. “Water harvesting provides an alternative to using water supplied from utility companies and the RainPerfect pump provides the perfect solution to make water harvesting more accessible. The pump enables people to optimize their usage of available natural resources in an easy and accessible way.”

As public awareness of the need to live environmentally conscious lifestyles increases, more people are now investing in water butts to conserve and reuse natural resources. Using the water pressure generated by the RainPerfect pump and solar panel, individuals can now recycle the rain water collected in their barrel and use it through an everyday garden hose. Providing pumping pressure of up to 0.9 bar, the pump can be used to run low pressure garden sprinklers, wash a car and water anything else around the garden.

Environmentally friendly on a second front, the RainPerfect pump is powered by a solar panel, meaning there is no need for an electrical outlet. As energy costs continue to rise, the RainPerfect pump is not only environmentally efficient but economical. The ability to use the pump without a power cable also ensures it is easy to install and use.

RainPerfect’s features include:

- Usage of a rechargeable NiMH battery, powered by the included solar panel

- Easy and quick top-mount installation, adaptable to most rain barrel styles

- Standardised garden fixturing, ensuring compatibility with all major hose brands

- Pumping up to 83 UK gallons (377 litres) on a single charge, emptying most standard barrels

RainPerfect is available online and through select retailers nationwide. RainPerfect retails for approximately £88.22 in the UK and €101.39 in Germany and

France

. Visit www.rainperfectpump.com for more information.

In January 2011, ITT announced its intent to separate the corporation into three standalone publicly traded companies by the end of 2011. ITT’s water-related businesses will form a new standalone water company to be called Xylem Inc. Xylem is the Greek word for the tissue that moves water in plants. Following the spinoff, the company will retain its industry leading product brands such as Flygt, Goulds Water Technology, WEDECO, WTW, Flojet, Bell & Gossett, Lowara and many others.

About ITT Flow Control

With an innovative history spanning over 65 years, Gloucester, Massachusetts based Flow Control is a leading producer of pumps, valves, membranes, and related products for the marine, beverage, general industrial, and developing region markets. The Flow Control portfolio includes the brands Rule Innovation, Alcon, Flojet, Jabsco, Midland-ACS, Rule, and PCI. For more information on ITT Flow Control and an archive of its press releases, please visit http://www.ittflowcontrol.com/.

About ITT Corporation

ITT Corporation is a high-technology engineering and manufacturing company operating on all seven continents in three vital markets: water and fluids management, global defense and security, and motion and flow control. With a heritage of innovation, ITT partners with its customers to deliver extraordinary solutions that create more livable environments, provide protection and safety and connect our world. Headquartered in White Plains, N.Y., the company reported 2010 revenue of $11 billion. http://www.itt.com/

Wyatt Technology’s FFF-MALS Provides Efficient Liposome Characterization

2011-08-26T09:27:00.001+01:00

(SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA – (August 18 2011) - Wyatt Technology Corporation, the world leader in instrumentation for absolute macromolecular characterization and software, announces that its field flow fractionation (FFF) technology combined with multi-angle light scattering (MALS) and quasi-elastic light scattering (QELS) enables rapid measurements of particle size, size distribution, particle count, as well as structure. The combined system performs the most difficult sizing tasks in key areas of research and development in molecular biology and nanotechnology analyses, including the separation and characterization of liposomes and nanoparticles. This novel technology is illustrated in a new application note, titled “Liposome Characterization by FFF-MALS-QELS”, which is available to download free-of charge via http://www.wyatt.com/files/literature/Field_Flow_Fractionation-Liposome_Characterization.pdf.

Liposomes are made of lipid bilayers. The size of a liposome ranges from some 20 nm up to several micrometers and may be composed of one or several concentric membranes. Liposomes possess unique properties owing to the amphiphilic character of the lipids, which make them suitable for drug delivery. Liposomes have attracted considerable attention as potential vehicles for drug delivery to selected cells or tissues in vivo. Therefore, it is of great importance to monitor liposome size and encapsulation during liposome research, formulation, manufacturing and quality control. However, conventional methods to characterize liposomes fail to perform efficiently and to cover the whole size of liposomes.

In this new application note, a method combining the Wyatt Technology Eclipse FFF system with a DAWN HELEOS and online QELS was used to analyze two liposome samples, one empty, and one filled. The results demonstrated that the combined method is capable of determining the degrees of encapsulation and the internal structures of the two liposomes without making assumptions.

The FFF system offers a number of distinct advantages over column separation techniques for many applications. The method is robust and easy to use, involving minimal shearing and enabling a broad separation range, from small proteins (nm) to large particles (µm). FFF is a non-destructive technique that achieves true particle size distribution and on-line absolute characterization of a wide range of solutions and dispersions. Combined with MALS detectors, the method can determine the absolute size and molar mass distributions as well as the structure and conformation of the particles.

For more information on Wyatt Technology’s instruments or to obtain a copy of the new application note, please visit http://www.wyatt.com/ or email info@wyatt.com.

####

ERT Appoints Linda Deal Head of Health Outcomes Research

2011-08-25T16:36:00.000+01:00

PHILADELPHIA, PA, 24 August 2011- ERT, a global technology-driven provider of clinical services and customizable medical devices to biopharmaceutical and healthcare organizations, announced today the appointment of Linda Deal to lead ERT’s Health Outcomes Research initiatives. This strategic appointment extends ERT’s commitment to health outcomes research and augments its Patient Reported Outcomes capabilities and multi modality product offering with deeper scientific expertise.

Jeffrey Litwin MD, President and CEO of ERT comments, “Linda’s expertise and extensive industry knowledge will assist us in increasingly providing innovative outcomes research solutions to better serve our clients’ developing needs. Having worked inside sponsor organizations and across a number of entities within the PRO community, Linda brings insight and perspective on the creation and implementation of Patient, Clinician and Observer reported outcomes. Her domain knowledge will enable her to add considerable value to ERT’s offerings and to our clients.”

Ms Deal brings a breadth of experience in health outcomes and in the development and validation of patient reported assessments. Most recently she was the Immunology Patient Reported Outcomes (PRO) Lead at Janssen Pharma, a division of Johnson & Johnson, where she was responsible for developing and integrating the PRO strategy within the end to end development process. Prior to Johnson & Johnson, Linda was head of the PRO Center in Global Health Outcomes Assessment (GHOA) at Wyeth Research, now Pfizer. She has also supported health economics and outcomes research for Wyeth, Research Triangle Institute, and Glaxo Welcome.

Over her career, she has designed a number of assessments used in clinical trials today and has prepared over 20 regulatory briefing documents addressing PRO development and validation for supporting registration and labeling. She now brings this wealth of experience and expertise to benefit ERT’s clients.

In the context of health outcomes research ERT’s multi modality ePRO solutions offer the advantages of simplicity, mobility and immediacy of use over traditional paper-based methods. The company offers its customers truly independent solutions and advice providing the appropriate ePRO modality considering the complexity, length, site location, patient population, budget and size of trial. ERT’s ePRO suite comprises an IVR solution (VIAPhone®), a digital pen (VIAPen®), a handheld device (VIAPad®) and an internet application (VIAWeb®).

For further information on ERT and its technology and services, please email info@ERT.com , call +1 215 972 0420 or visit www.ERT.com

For further press information, please contact Neil Drake, the Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire CW4 8AA, United Kingdom. Phone +44 1477 539 539, Fax +44 1477 539 540, Email ert@scottpr.com

About ERT

ERT (www.ert.com) is a global technology-driven provider of clinical services and customizable medical devices to biopharmaceutical and healthcare organizations. It is the market leader for centralized cardiac safety and respiratory efficacy services in drug development and also collects, analyzes and distributes electronic Patient Reported Outcomes (ePRO) in multiple modalities across all phases of clinical research.

Statements included in this release may constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied from such statements. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, the Company’s ability to obtain new contracts, variability in size, scope, and duration of projects, integration of acquisitions, competitive factors, technological development, market demand, and other factors described in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Launches New Robotic Autosampler for Unmatched Automation in Sample Preparation and Handling

2011-08-24T16:45:00.000+01:00

BRUSSELS. (August 24, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today introduced the Thermo Scientific TriPlus RSH Autosampler featuring exceptional precision, flexibility and productivity in sampling solutions. Compatible with Thermo Scientific GC and GC/MS systems, the autosampler sets new standards in automation and provides advanced liquid handling cycles that enable automated functionality beyond traditional liquid, headspace and solid-phase microextraction (SPME) injections. This flexible sampling solution will be showcased at the 31st International Symposium on Halogenated Persistent Organic Pollutants – Dioxin 2011, in Brussels, Belgium, August 21 – 25, 2011.

Designed to provide exceptional repeatability and reliability, the TriPlus RSH Autosampler delivers high-quality analytical results and features precise built-in automation to improve productivity and prevent human error.

The TriPlus RSH sampling system brings together several technology innovations that further expand autosampling productivity, performance and versatility. The groundbreaking Automatic Tool Change (ATC) capability enables seamless operation by automating the exchange of syringes for different tasks in a single, unattended sequence prior to sample injection. In this way, high-precision sample-handling capabilities eliminate the need for extensive manual labor and downtime traditionally required to complete tasks, such as standard or stock sample dilutions, internal standard addition and derivatization.

Another significant feature provided by this new sampling system is the ability to expand unattended operations and productivity by offering unprecedented sample capacity. Unequivocal lab throughput is attainable by using one of the largest sample capacities available for an autosampler. A sample vial capacity of 648 2-mL vials, combined with multiple 100-mL wash/waste bottles, allows the Thermo Scientific TriPlus RSH to achieve weekend-long unattended operations – a goal not attainable with most other sampling systems currently on the market.

Vial Bottom Sensing is a further innovation that expands the application range of the TriPlus RSH autosampler. Precisely detecting the vial bottom, the autosampler accurately withdraws microliters or fractions of microliters from a sample as low as five microliters in a vial. Trace analysis, radioactive samples or samples requiring expensive internal standards are just a few examples of the applications that benefit from this breakthrough.

For more information about the TriPlus RSH autosampler, please visit the Thermo Scientific booth # 14-16 and 20-22 at the Dioxin 2011 conference.

Alternatively, please call (800) 532-4752, e-mail analyze@thermofisher.com or visit www.thermoscientific.com/triplusrsh.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific

Hello, The Scott Partnership!

2011-08-12T11:20:00.000+01:00

I’m Lucy and I am currently in my third week of work at The Scott Partnership. I’m here for a year on an internship after graduating in Public Relations from the University of Central Lancashire, Preston.

Although I am still getting used to setting my alarm for 7am every morning, I have to say that I am really enjoying adapting to working life. The team here have made fitting in a breeze and have been extremely accommodating and willing to help. I decided to take part in an internship as I feel they are a great way to get into the industry you want to be in and learn loads of useful stuff along the way. After all, experience is one of the most essential attributes which employers in the PR industry look for.

With parts of experience within the industry here and there I can’t pretend to be an expert, However, my first few weeks here have taught me a considerable amount about how PR agencies operate, most of which I was not told in my 3 years at university! Everything from looking for and clipping coverage, posting press releases online, reaching out to editors, writing articles, researching for new clients, proof reading articles and keeping up with the company’s social media sites are included in my day to day responsibilities. That rains on whoever said interns only make the tea and coffee!

The rate in which the company is growing at a time of economic downturn makes me proud to have secured an internship here and to be able to work with a friendly, professional and experienced team. I know this year will teach me a lot and give me the experience and knowledge I need to fulfil a career within the PR industry. The only downside is the fact I have to go for longer runs every weekend to burn off all the tea and biscuits we consume in the week- putting on a stone wasn’t in the job description!

New Pharma Application Notebook features a variety of The Scott Partnership clients.

2011-08-05T16:31:00.002+01:00

The new edition of Pharma Application Notebook features some great coverage of The Scott Partnership and a number of our clients. The global supplement from Pharma-Mag concentrates upon the techniques and applications used across all aspects of the pharmaceutical production process. Pharma Mag- features everything from packaging and distribution to drug discovery.

Click on the link to read cutting-edge editorial on topics such as patient recruitment, ePRO solutions for cardiac safety and the challenges of pharmaceutical-grade water monitoring.

CEO of Molecular Profiles Recognized as One of 100 Most Inspiring People in the Life Sciences Industry

2011-08-05T14:40:00.000+01:00

(Nottingham, 5, August 2011) Molecular Profiles, a leading provider of pharmaceutical development services, announces that Nikin Patel, CEO, has been acknowledged as one of PharmaVOICE magazine’s top 100 most inspiring individuals in the life sciences industry. Dr. Patel has been recognized for his 13 years of dedicated commitment to advancing pharmaceutical technology that has seen him co-found a company infused with his own brand of innovative problem solving and new industry techniques. The PharmaVOICE 100 winners are nominated by the magazine’s readers, who identify the individuals they consider to have the most influence and positive impact on leadership, research and development, technology, creativity, marketing and business strategies.

“I feel incredibly honoured to be receiving this award,” said Dr.Patel. “But I have to add that it would not have been possible without my talented and inspiring colleagues. This award is very gratifying, and my team and I will continue the hard work to improve and add to our portfolio of services for the pharmaceutical industry.”

After gaining a first class honours degree and doctorate in Pharmacy from the University of Nottingham, Dr. Patel and his PhD supervisors founded Molecular Profiles in 1997 to provide high-end pharmaceutical analysis. Since the company’s inception it has grown into a recognized contract research provider, successfully servicing multinational pharmaceutical companies and supporting the development of novel drugs. Molecular Profiles continues to improve and expand its formulation capabilities, such as through its recent purchase of the Xcelodose system, making it one of very few organizations to offer this time-scale reducing technology.

Dr. Patel’s leadership and contribution to the organization have previously been recognized through the UK’s most prestigious industry accolade, the Queen’s Award for Enterprise, won by Molecular Profiles both in 2007 and 2011 in the Innovation category. These awards highlight Molecular Profiles’advances in pharmaceutical development.

Dr. Patel’s considerable expertise in pharmaceutical technology means that he has been invited to present papers, speak at conferences and present to pharmaceutical companies around the world. Dr. Patel also works closely with the local science community, providing guidance and business support on a pro bono basis, as well as being involved with Lab13, an after-school science club, which focuses on making science exciting for children.

More information about Molecular Profiles’ award-winning services is available at www.molprofiles.co.uk, by e-mail at info@molprofiles.co.uk or call Dr. Nikin Patel on +44 115 8718888.

About Molecular Profiles
Molecular Profiles was founded in 1997 by a group of pharmaceutical scientists specialising in advanced characterisation of pharmaceutical and biological materials. Since then, the company has achieved a unique global position in pharmaceutical R&D and has developed a wide portfolio of pharmaceutical development services including formulation & analytical development and clinical trial manufacturing up to Phase IIa. The company is ideally placed to offer its clients a range of targeted solutions to help them to overcome the most challenging issues in drug development. Molecular Profiles’ contribution to the industry was acknowledged in 2007 and 2011 by the receipt of the Queens Award for Enterprise in the innovation category, the most prestigious business honour achievable in the UK.

For further press information please contact: Celine Callender, The Scott Partnership, 1 Whiteside, Station Road, Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, CW4 8AA, United Kingdom. Tel: + 44 1477 539 539 Fax: +44 1477 539 540 E-mail: molecular@scottpr.com.

Thermo Fisher Scientific Launches Build-Your-Own FT-IR Microsite to Help Users Design Customized Analyzers

2011-08-04T14:58:00.000+01:00

MADISON, Wis., (August 3, 2011) – Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc., the world leader in serving science, today announced its updated Build-Your-Own FT-IR website. The site offers many options for configuring the high-performance Thermo Scientific Nicolet 6700 FT-IR spectrometer so any laboratory can design the ideal FT-IR to meet its unique analytical challenges. This flexibility, which includes several optical component options that span the full range of applications involving infrared spectroscopy, is especially important in quality control, analytical services and research environments.

The Build-Your-Own FT-IR microsite demonstrates the versatility of the Nicolet 6700 spectrometer by matching specific sample types with component and accessory options that provide the best results. To access the site, please visit http://www.buildyourownftir.com/.

The new microsite offers users information about the function and benefits of each component. Each accessory is matched with the type of sample the customer plans to analyze, allowing them to construct an instrument with the perfect combination of components and accessories. Items can be added or removed any time during the configuration process.

The Nicolet 6700 spectrometer combines analytical performance and reliability. Easily exchanged sampling accessories and optical components, combined with powerful Thermo Scientific OMNIC software, provides enormous flexibility and problem-solving capabilities. The microsite provides highlights of the entire OMNIC software suite, including the groundbreaking Thermo Scientific OMNIC Specta software for analysis of mixtures. For customers new to FT-IR, the microsite contains an introductory guide to the technology.

“The Build-Your-Own FT-IR microsite offers increased flexibility and control for our customers,” said Brian Davies, vice president and general manager of molecular spectroscopy and microanalysis, Thermo Fisher Scientific. “It is easy to use and comprehensive, providing access to a reasonably priced, compact instrument so that even non FT-IR specialists can begin benefiting from this powerful technology.”

For more information about the Thermo Scientific Build-Your-Own FT-IR microsite, please call 1-800-532-4752, e-mail analyze@thermofisher.com or visit http://www.buildyourownftir.com/ or www.thermoscientific.com/ftir.

About Thermo Fisher Scientific
Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. (NYSE: TMO) is the world leader in serving science. Our mission is to enable our customers to make the world healthier, cleaner and safer. With revenues of nearly $11 billion, we have approximately 37,000 employees and serve customers within pharmaceutical and biotech companies, hospitals and clinical diagnostic labs, universities, research institutions and government agencies, as well as in environmental and process control industries. We create value for our key stakeholders through two premier brands, Thermo Scientific and Fisher Scientific, which offer a unique combination of continuous technology development and the most convenient purchasing options. Our products and services help accelerate the pace of scientific discovery, and solve analytical challenges ranging from complex research to routine testing to field applications. Visit www.thermofisher.com.

Goodbye Internship

2011-08-03T16:00:00.001+01:00

By Adam Gron, Public Relations Intern, The Scott Partnership

Right… There is no easy way to start with this reflective post so I’ll just do it: big thanks to all of you!

A few things I’ve learned during this crazy journey through the unexplored shores of PR practice at The Scott Partnership:

One: Be enthusiastic.

Two: If you are unsure about something you have to do (or feel totally lost like me during my first days) ask questions! Nothing questioned, nothing learned!

And three: Respect the people you work with. They’re the people that motivate and inspire you. At The Scott Partnership there is something about the team that has always encouraged me to run faster, work harder and face down my fears when I had to move out of the comfort zone. And that is, without doubt, the best way to learn.

But first, a little bit of background…

My name is Adam Gron and I’ve been doing an internship with The Scott Partnership since August 2010. I am a final year Public Relations and International Business student at the University of Central Lancashire in Preston.

When I first joined The Scott Partnership I could not predict how exciting it would be. Throughout the year I had the pleasure to work on some really fascinating projects ranging from copywriting for Fortune 500 companies to supporting some of the world’s leading analytical instrumentation companies at Pittcon 2011 – the world’s largest exposition for analytical science.

I have to say it’s been a valuable and rewarding lesson. The internship has a very flexible structure and has been designed to provide an insight into practical PR on a daily basis. During the internship, I have had plenty of opportunities and could really get involved in everything I found interesting. With a huge amount of independence and support given I was playing an active part in the agency’s operation and felt like a valued team member from day one.

To sum up, I had a fantastic year with The Scott Partnership! I am finishing my internship with a huge amount of confidence as I had a chance to contribute and work for one of the leading PR agencies in the industry.

Prism Ideas CEO Acknowledged Among the Top 100 Most Inspiring People in the Pharmaceutical Industry

2011-08-02T13:49:00.000+01:00

Cheshire, UK (August, 2, 2011) Prism Ideas, an independent global provider of medical communications and drug development consultancy services, today announced that Dr. James Sawyer, CEO, has been selected by PharmaVOICE magazine as one of the 100 most inspirational and influential people in the pharmaceutical industry. James has been recognised for his role in founding Prism Ideas and his sustained contribution to the advancement of pharmaceutical research, which has greatly enhanced the management and treatment options for debilitating illnesses. The PharmaVOICE 100 winners are nominated by the magazine’s readers based on the individual’s ability to inspire and positively impact on corporate leadership, research and development in the pharmaceutical industry.

“I am surprised and delighted to have been nominated to receive this prestigious award and to be listed alongside the other recipients,” James said, “At Prism Ideas we believe in putting patients and people first. The recognition represented by this award would not have been possible had I not been able to work with such innovative and pioneering individuals who share my vision of developing new strategies that advance processes within the industry to improve healthcare delivery.”

For almost 20 years, James has dedicated his efforts to the clinical application of pharmaceutical industry research. During his career, James has served the life sciences through a number of different roles, including clinical positions in general medicine and anaesthetics as well as in pharmaceutical clinical research. His experience as a specialist pharmaceutical physician spans all phases of clinical research and has resulted in more than 50 publications across a variety of therapeutic areas including migraine, bone metabolism, asthma and HIV.

As a leader in his field, James truly has a global vision that underpins the success he has driven in his early career and since forming Prism Ideas. The company provides its clients with a broad range of services from clinical program consultancy and clinical trial support to medical communications.
Its team is committed to developing a unique range of services that deliver real improvements to how pharmaceutical companies manage their drug development processes and the commercialisation of new therapies. Over the past 10 years, James has led Prism Ideas through an exceptional growth period, which has seen it expand into overseas markets including Switzerland and the U.S.

Nigel Brooksby, non-executive chairman, Prism Ideas, comments: “Throughout his career, James has demonstrated an ability to apply exceptional talent in pharmaceutical medicine across diverse subjects and therapy areas. Always at the forefront of innovation, he has led Prism Ideas to become a pharmaceutical medicine consultancy operating at a global level.” Nigel continues, “James possesses a rare combination of exceptional business acumen and whole-hearted devotion to medical science. I have worked with many physicians and have found his entrepreneurial skills and thorough understanding of the medical profession to be unique.”

For further information about Prism Ideas, please call +44 (0) 1270 621 724 or visit www.prismideas.com

About Prism Ideas
Prism Ideas is an independent company providing drug development consultancy and expert medical affairs support to the pharmaceutical industry. The company offers a full range of medical communications services including congress materials, journal articles, publication plans, advisory boards and advocacy development; drug development consultancy and expert medical support throughout the clinical evaluation drugs from medical monitoring of early stage clinical studies through to post-marketing activities.

Prism’s knowledge of industry, together with a thorough understanding of the science, ensures that clinical trials and medical communications maintain the highest scientific quality whilst meeting the needs of the pharmaceutical industry.

Prism currently has offices in the UK, Switzerland and the U.S.

Manchester-based Analytical Technology Achieves Record Turnover as Water Industry Thrives

2011-08-02T13:48:00.000+01:00

Manchester, UK (July 28, 2011) Specialist electrochemical sensor manufacturer Analytical Technology Inc. today announces that the company has gone from strength to strength since its inception in 1998, culminating in a record month for the business in June 2011. This spectacular achievement demonstrates the buoyancy of the current market for water monitoring instrumentation, despite the present economic recession. It is also a demonstration of the ongoing and imperative need for reliable water monitoring in the water utility industry to ensure a safe and continuous supply of water.

This year Manchester-based Analytical Technology has had its strongest first half ever and this culminated in June sales being the highest on record. A large component of the June sales, which peaked at £1.2 million for the month, can be credited to the recent contract signed by Analytical Technology with Severn Trent Water, involving the purchase of 250 Analytical Technology residual chlorine monitors in June alone. Analytical Technology is also supplying Yorkshire Water with more than 450 chlorine monitors and has enjoyed repeated success in recent years, providing instrumentation to other major utility companies such as United Utilities, Scottish Water, Thames Water, Anglian Water and South West Water.

Analytical Technology is a UK and European specialist electrochemical sensor manufacturer. The company was set up in 1998 and from then on has enjoyed increasing success. Analytical Technology provides both water and gas monitoring instrumentation, which help companies abide by strict regulations outlined by the Environment Agency, the Drinking Water Inspectorate and EU Directives. Analytical Technology’s wide range of water monitors include peracetic acid, hydrogen peroxide, residual sulphite and several chlorine monitors, along with various toxic gas detectors. The company’s products aim to provide simpler installation, easier operation and lower cost, all combined with first class customer service. Analytical Technology now supply instrumentation to 7 out of the 10 major utility companies in the UK, along with many food and beverage, industrial and pharmaceutical companies such as AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, Coca Cola and Britvic.

The increasing success of Analytical Technology can largely be attributed to the high standard of customer service delivered by the company. Specialist product-specific customer training is provided at the company’s head quarters in Saddleworth, Manchester. The extensive after-sales support also includes maintenance services and in-depth training workshops provided at customers’ premises and at councils. Analytical Technology are committed to providing superior analytical sensing systems combined with an industry leading standard of customer support, and will go the extra mile for their customers.

Dr. Michael Strahand, General Manager at Analytical Technology, comments:
“Our record turnover in June 2011 is testament to matching the needs of our customers with a team excelling at service. Top class customer service is essential in this industry, where rapid response times to situations such as water treatment issues are hugely important to maintain a safe supply of water in utility, food and beverage manufacturing and pharmaceutical plants. We have invested in a successful future by providing our team with industry leading customer service training, by Gustav Käser Training International. This, combined with our first-rate instrumentation means Analytical Technology is unique and a leader in the UK market.”

For more information on Analytical Technology’s water and gas monitoring instrumentation, please call +44(0)1457 873 318, e-mail sales@atiuk.com or visit www.analyticaltechnology.com.