| RELEASE: Immediate | CONTACT: Susan Seymour, Norman Smit |
| DATE: November 19, 2004 | PHONE: (919) 807-7155 or 807-7181 |
NCCCS BioNetwork Inaugural Industry Advisory Board Meeting
Raleigh - The North Carolina Community College BioNetwork held it's inaugural Industry Advisory Board meeting this morning (Tuesday), when several announcements were made that underline the strategic importance of BioNetwork to the North Carolina's biotech hopes for the future as an economic catalyst. The heavyweight board, which comprises senior management of top biotech companies, Department of Commerce Secretary Jim Fain, the North Carolina Biotechnology Center, President Martin Lancaster, community colleges and university partners, listened with keen interest to the latest developments.
Topping the list was the BioNetwork Validation Academy. The academy is a partnership between BioNetwork, ISPE (the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering) and the Department of Commerce. The academy will be a major drawcard for new companies wishing to open pharmaceutical or biomanufacturing facilities in North Carolina, and for growing companies such as Novo Nordisk, which is planning a $100 million facility expansion.
ISPE Education Vice President Jerry Roth said during his address to the BioNetwork Board, "it is ISPE's 25th anniversary and in our 25 years, this has been the first time we have ever developed a partnership with an educational institution such as BioNetwork."
NCCCS President Martin Lancaster said he had been told that when the BioNetwork Validation Academy proposal was discussed at ISPE's international board meeting in Berlin, the pace-setting nature of this initiative was recognized.
Validation is a regulatory requirement for biopharmaceutical facilities. The shortage of vaccines as a result of what happened at the Chiron plant in the UK could have been prevented by proper validation. Validation is the written proof a pharmaceutical or biomanufacturer must be able to provide to demonstrate with a high degree of assurance that a process or system will consistently produce their medicine to safe standards. When a new facility is being commissioned, its processes, equipment, instruments, practices, records, computer software, utilities, etc. all come under the microscope.
Validation expert Jeff Odum says, "validation typically costs between 5 and 9 per cent of the capital cost of a facility. For plant managers commissioning a 100 to 150 million dollar plant, the savings that the BioNetwork Validation Academy can produce are already a significant incentive to locating in North Carolina." BioNetwork Director Susan Seymour concurred, "even setting aside the millions of dollars of savings on a facility startup, the Validation Academy will create savings in operational costs and efficiencies. This academy gives North Carolina a competitive advantage when negotiating with companies to locate in the state."
Department of Commerce Secretary Jim Fain said that Governor Easley spoke frequently about developing North Carolina's economy through education so that North Carolina can take advantage of the technological jobs of the future." He went on to say that "no institution has been more deeply committed to the development of the economic future of North Carolina than Community Colleges have."
Two other updates were provided.
One dealt with the implementation of National Center for the Biotechnology Workforce, which is at Forsyth Technical Community College. A US Department of Labor funds this Center. Forsyth Tech has in a very short space of time enrolled the greatest number of biotechnology student majors. The college has also taken the lead to collaborate with other community colleges and local universities to give biotech a regional footprint in the Triad. The BioNetwork Pharmaceutical Center is also located in the Triad with Forsyth Technical Community College and Guilford Technical Community College collaborating on this center. Forsyth Technical Community College President Gary Green said that the national center would play a key role in defining workers standards for the biotechnology industry.
The other announcement dealt with a $1 million dollar incentive grant to North Carolina to develop biotechnology as a career path at schools. Rebecca Payne, the Section Chief for Industrial Technology and Human Services said that the funding would be used to provide awareness, education and training in biotechnology to high school students, youth dropouts, dislocated workers and other adults. "We will make biotechnology education real for these students," she said. Speaking to industry representatives of the BioNetwork Board, she said that for students to be successful future employees in their companies, they need to discover while at school what the jobs entailed and what skills and coursework were needed. "This will make the algebra and biology mean something."
For further information, contact:
Norman Smit
NCCCS BioNetwork Marketing Director
Smitn@nccommunitycolleges.edu
200 West Jones Street
5018 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-5018
(919) 807-7181
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