Newsroom.

The AusBiotech 2018 annual national three-day conference has concluded today in Brisbane after attracting over 1,000 delegates from 20 countries, the largest international delegations from the United States, China, Korea, and New Zealand – to network, collaborate and discuss sector successes and issues. The buoyant sector heard from world-class speakers, congratulated the AusBiotech and Johnson & Johnson 2018 Industry Excellence Award winners, saw four new launches, and included an early stage investment presentation stream – a first for the AusBiotech conference.   

AusBiotech launched an interactive online platform for international science-funding matching, along with the output from two regenerative medicine projects at AusBiotech 2018, indicating the significance and potential growth available within Australia.

The BioExchange platform is the first major milestone of AusBiotech’s Australia-China Life Sciences Partnership Programme and aims to increase awareness, and thus, opportunities for communication, collaboration and commercialisation between the life sciences sector in Australia and China. BioExchange will become a power tool, connecting the best of Australia’s medtech, e-health, and life science projects to known Chinese fund and industry partners for optimal business matching. This will result in reduced risk and costs to Australian companies, and also provides companies a staged market-entry into China.

BioExchange is supported by MTPConnect, the Medical Technologies and Pharmaceuticals Industry Growth Centre, and consortium partners ChinaBluesky Partners, Therapeutic Innovation Australia, KPMG, King & Wood Mallesons, Asialink Business and FB Rice.

The second launch at the conference was the Regenerative Medicine: Opportunities for Australia report. The report maps out the Australian sub-sector in detail, identifying priority areas and goals to make Australia globally competitive. The project was initiated by AusBiotech’s Regenerative Medicine Advisory Committee, which is made up of member companies and research institutes, who will use the report to identify ways to improve and engage the national regenerative medicine sector and to address key advocacy areas.

MTPConnect’s Project Fund Program is a competitive, dollar-for-dollar matched funding program investing in big, bold ideas to improve the productivity, competitiveness and innovative capacity of Australia’s medical technology, biotechnology and pharmaceutical sector. MTPConnect is supported by the Australian Government’s Industry Growth Centres Initiative.

Addressing the global development of the regenerative medicine sector, AusBiotech also launched RMLink, a regenerative medicine directory, together with the Forum for Innovative Regenerative Medicine (FIRM). The directory lists all members in Japan and Australia who work within the sub-sector, enabling global access to talent, expertise, education and partnerships. RMLink is a member-only benefit and will be available on the respective websites.

Japan is a recognised leader in regenerative medicine, and FIRM was formed to quickly establish social systems and ensure access to the benefits of research. AusBiotech and FIRM signed a Memorandum of Understanding at AusBiotech 2017 and it is pleasing to see this directory launched, maximising on our international partnerships. 

The final regenerative medicine focused launch at the conference was for the Snapshot of Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine Companies in Australia 2018. Co-developed with the NSW Stem Cell Network, it is the fourth version of the directory. This directory compiles public information on Australian stem cell and regenerative medicine companies across Australia into one document. The first edition was printed in 2015, and this year expanded to include regenerative medicine organisations as well. The report can be found on our AusBiotech website.
The NSW Stem Cell Network is a professional community with an interest in all forms of stem cells.

AusBiotech 2019 will be held 30 October – 1 November 2019, at the Melbourne Convention Centre.

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The AusBiotech and Johnson & Johnson Innovation Industry Excellence Awards were announced and recognise innovative companies and individuals in Australia’s world-class biotechnology, medical technology and healthcare sectors:

• Industry Leadership Award: Dr Anna Lavelle
• Company of the Year Award: Medicines Development for Global Health
• Joint Emerging Company of the Year Award: Telix Pharmaceuticals and Microba

Australia’s largest life sciences gathering took place at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre and focussed on the achievements and future of the life sciences sector, linking business, science and government with research, to address the challenges and opportunities facing industry.

For more than 30 years, the annual AusBiotech national conference has brought the global community together to reflect on what has been achieved and to look at what Australia must do to further expand and promote its leading biotech sector. Featured speakers on the programme included:

• Professor Doug Hilton, Institute Director, Division Head of Molecular Medicine, Walter & Eliza Hall Institute announced as Millis Orator.
• Global life science investing & industry update, with Mr John Carroll, Endpoint’s Editor in Chief
• Dr Charmaine Gittleson, Chief Medical Officer, CSL Limited, Keeping the balance in your clinical portfolio - prioritisation versus doing it all
• Commercialising medicinal cannabis in Australia’s evolving regulatory environment, with Elaine Darby, Chief Executive Officer, AusCann
• Building regenerative medicine industries with international perspectives from Korea, Japan, Israel, Canada and Belgium
• Precision medicines: maintaining competitiveness in the post-human genome project era with Dr Anna Lavelle, Non-Executive Director, Medicines Australia
• Agtech & big data with Prof Bronwyn Harch, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), The University of Queensland
• Update on Innovation Science and Research (ISR) system review, with Dr Charlie Day, Office of Innovation and Science Australia.

In addition to presenting a vast and stimulating program of speakers, AusBiotech facilitated at least 1,300 meetings between participants from biotechnology, biopharmaceuticals, life sciences, business, investment, research and health – via the business partnering system.

AusBiotech 2019 will be held in Melbourne after the announcement that the Victorian Government will support the event next year.

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​​​​​​​AusBiotech’s national conference is the largest annual event for the biotechnology and life sciences industry in Australia and the Asia Pacific Region. For access to the full programme see www.ausbiotechnc.org

Media enquiries: Karen Parr, Communications Manager, AusBiotech,
kparr@ausbiotech.org / P: +61 (0) 3 9828 1414 / M: +61 (0) 409 117 287