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CONTENT

FEATURES

14 Cyberhealth, a new El Dorado for Western Switzerland After biotechnology and the neurosciences, health is becoming an area of expertise in which universities and schools of higher education are positioning themselves, creating an ecosystem which is favourable for spawning start-ups. BY PASCAL VERMOT

PHOTO LARGE VIEW

NEW & VIEWS FEATURES BIOALPS 4TO6 BUSINESS GUIDE 9 Campus Biotech: 19 “Big Data” boosts 36 AC Immune 50 Bioalps The Russian bioinformatics Business Guide doll of Innovation 37 Productec 20 Enabling stem 11 ObsEva targets cell therapies 38 PhytoArk preterm birth 39 Cremo prevention 23 Medtech for small investors 40 CSL Behring 11 SAV-IOL’s life CONTENT without glasses 24 Prostheses, 41 FRM the avatars 12 Endosense taken of personalised 42 FKG Dentaire 4 From the editor over by St. Jude medicine 5 From the President 43 regenHu of BioAlps 12 3 questions to 26 Adolphe Merkle 44 Ceramaret 6 Techno-image: Jacques Essinger Institute’s Bionic hand. (Symetis) bio-inspired 45 Valtronic 8 Guest editorial: materials ierry Mauvernay 13 Medtronic: 46 Covance 34 e Large View a bigger site for 28 A holy alliance 47 TRB Chemedica smaller devices between research and the industry 48 Baccinex 30 How WHO is 49 MPS

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Summer 2014 3 EDITORIAL

The cluster Integration effect and openness

     and medtech, the As an observer of the growth of the Health Valley, Switzerland seems to be a country of opportunity that has can count on skills that go way beyond biology and me- news fl ow has been extremely positive for Western Technology by Bilan can testify that the ecosystem has managed to create an enviable position when it comes dicine. Our expertise in micro- and nanotechnologies Switzerland in the recent past. On the research reached a size that allows it to absorb shocks such as to competitiveness between countries and regions. at as well as in chemistry, computer science and commu- side, the leadership of the Swiss Federal School of the departure from Geneva of Merck Serono two years might just be a result of the country’s openness and its nication is essential both to integrate knowledge and to Technology in Lausanne (EPFL) for the €1 billion pan- ago without adverse impacts on its general dynamic. talent for integration. Switzerland’s history is a tale of develop novel therapeutic approaches. European fl agship the Human Brain Project is attrac- e very same building that used to accommodate successful integrations. During the 16th century, lea- ting new major investment (see page 9). On the busi- Merck Serono is now the heart of a Campus Biotech, ding scholars – such as Paracelsus, Andreas Vesalius and To the lay person, the interdisciplinary approach is not ness side, local and international private companies thanks to private investment approaching the CHF Erasmus of Rotterdam – came to Basel to have their theses obvious, yet it is what drives change and opens new ave- such as Medtronic (see p. 13), CSL Behring (see p. 40) 500 mark from investors such as the Wyss Foundation or essays printed, thus making the town an integral part nues. Interdisciplinarity is one of the best assets we have and Celgene have continued to invest massively in the and the Bertarelli Foundation. And with its Medtech of the Renaissance humanist movement and its scienti- for supporting our leading position in many industrial region. And new medtech start-ups are springing up Village, the microtechnology trade fair EPHJ-EPMT- fi c progress. Closer to our time, one of Switzerland’s keys sectors. e innovation process needs more than the with the arrival of promising SMT is fast becoming a major meeting point for health to success has been its capacity for innovation. Indeed, classic environment that builds new fi elds such as bioinforma- professionals both locally and internationally. Moving our higher education institutes attract fi rst-class talent – on an organisation’s internal re- tics (see p.23 ), equipment for to less formal structures, the region is now home to both from Switzerland and abroad – in a globalised envi- sources by way of its idea ma- stem cell therapies (see p.20) the fi rst Do It Yourself Biology Labs (UniverCités) in ronment. Such openness is a valuable asset that can be nagement systems for its colla- and the emerging domain of Switzerland – places where would-be entrepreneurs measured by, among other things, Switzerland’s degree of borators, internal incubators or bio-inspired new materials can gather, tinker, work together on projects and bring international competitiveness in the fi eld of knowledge. its R&D. Rather, such a process (see p.27) as well as the fi rst together ideas that lead to new start-ups. has to develop in parallel, reac- applications of 3D bio-printing e expansion of our industry has been driven by gene- ting to the fact that the boun- (see p.43) All this means that the cluster eff ect long sought rations of entrepreneurs who crossed the Swiss bor- dary between an organisation by local actors, such as our partner BioAlps, is matu- der. Among the most signifi cant contributors were the and its ecosystem tends to blur. Epitomising the conver- ring. Private investors are very much aware of this. Huguenots, who introduced us to the worlds of chemistry e trend is towards openness – gence of micro, nano, cogni- International venture investment, particularly in med- and watchmaking. Having fl ed France after the revoca- or open innovation – a process tive-biological and informa- tech start-ups, is still on the rise in the region, while tion of the Edict of Nantes in 1685, weavers and silk mer- that consists of going to fetch the tion technologies and meeting trade sales of more mature companies ( see p. 12) have chants turned Basel into the ribbon capital of Europe. e knowledge or even the resources some of the toughest health become common news. And IPO rumours around need for dyes encouraged the chemical industry to take outside the organisation and, in challenges, such as personali- AC Immune (see p. 36), Symetis in Lausanne and root, leading later to diversifi cation into fi ne chemicals turn, providing resources and sation and cost-eff ectiveness, Novimmune in Geneva are becoming more insistent. and, fi nally, into pharmaceuticals. e history of watch- knowledge to the ecosystem. no fi eld looks more promising making followed a similar arc. than cyberhealth. For Western Of course, Western Switzerland’s Health Valley Companies, universities and Switzerland, with its long traditions in fi rst-class me- faces the same regulatory and cost-eff ectiveness Behind every great innovation there are human beings. technology transfer organisations have all deve- dical care, microtechnology and data security and hurdles as its competitors. In her analysis of medical Here, too, there are many examples of integration: Nestlé loped participatory ways of transferring knowledge. accuracy, this is a major opportunity – and one that technology policies, Adriana Velazquez Berumen, was founded by a chemist of German extraction, Henri UniverCité, based in Renens, for instance, following the is beginning to be embraced by a wave of new players the Coordinator for Diagnostic Imaging and Medical Nestlé; Xavier Givaudan was French; and Charles Eugene global DIYbio trend, is positioning itself at the interface (see p. 14). Devices at the World Health Organization in Geneva, Lancelot Brown, who had dual Swiss-British nationality, between industrial design and life sciences. It will be suggests that academic and industrial actors can in- founded Brown, Boveri & Cie with the German-born off ering almost 1000 square metres of open lab space It is also a fi eld where the region’s strong links novate not only to introduce disruptive technologies Walter Boveri. On a more contemporary note, indus- and will be open to the public at large. between industry and academia – bolstered in the but also to adapt medtech to the heterogeneity of na- trialists such as the Bertarelli and Mauvernay families Without the ecosystem it has nurtured, neither recent past to transfer knowledge and technology to tional markets – an opportunity now clearly identi- settled in our country to create and develop their own Switzerland nor any of its industrial, academic and en- the marketplace – are proving to be a major advan- fi ed in the Health Valley. businesses…and the story continues, constantly adding trepreneurial actors could imagine surviving in an in- tage. is process is now functioning at full speed entrepreneurial dynamism to Switzerland. terconnected environment. Nor do they believe that in the Health Valley between Bern and Geneva. For FABRICE DELAYE they are the sole bearers of knowledge: knowledge is to example, a new funding instrument launched in Editor of Technology by Bilan As early as 1761, in the introduction of his famous be found everywhere, and collaboration and exchange 2001, the National Centre of Competence Encyclopaedia, Denis Diderot wrote: “ ere enrich it continuously. Switzerland unders- in Research (NCCR), has given birth to no THE HEALTH VALLEY HAS are two ways of developing Science: one is INTERDISCIPLINARITY tood this long before anyone, by advocating fewer than 79 start-ups, creating more than to increase the mass of knowledge through integration and openness. And this is the 400 jobs. Now a new round of eight NCCRs, REACHED A SIZE THAT discoveries; the other is to bring discoveries IS ONE OF THE BEST spirit that nurtures not only BioAlps but also three of them oriented to the life sciences ALLOWS IT TO ABSORB together, and organise them…” Bringing the ASSETS WE HAVE FOR the actors of our community, whom you will as with the Centre for Bio-Inspired Stimuli- SHOCKS WITHOUT mass of knowledge together is what began in SUPPORTING OUR LEA- discover in this issue. Responsive Materials centred around the ADVERSE IMPACTS ON the 18th century, and has become a necessity DING POSITION IN MANY University of Fribourg, suggests that there in the 21st. Take the life sciences, for example. BENOIT DUBUIS might be many more to come. ITS GENERAL DYNAMIC One of the hallmarks of our region is that it INDUSTRIAL SECTORS President of BioAlps

4 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 5 TECHNO IMAGE

Amputee feels with bionic hand Nine years after losing his left hand in an accident, Dennis Aabo Sørensen from Denmark became the first amputee in the world to feel – in real-time – with a senso- ry-enhanced prosthetic hand surgically wired to nerves in his upper arm. Silvestro Micera and his team at the Center for Neuroprosthetics of the Swiss Federal Institute of Lausanne (EPFL) and the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna in Italy developed the revolutionary sensory feedback that allowed Sørensen to feel again while handling objects. A prototype of this bionic technology was tested in February 2013 during a clinical trial in Rome under the supervision of Paolo Maria Rossini at Gemelli Hospital (Italy). “The sensory feedback was incredible,” reports the 36-year-old Danish amputee. Micera and his team enhanced the artificial hand with sensors that detect information about touch, measuring the tension in artificial tendons that control finger movement and turning this measurement into an electrical current. Because this electrical signal is too coarse to be understood by the nervous system, the scientists used computer algorithms to transform the signal into an impulse that sensory nerves can interpret. The sense of touch was achieved by sending the digitally refined signal through wires into four electrodes that were surgically implanted into what remains of Sørensen’s upper arm nerves. FD PHOTOS: DR GUEST EDITORIAL NEWS & VIEWS

Wyss and Bertarelli Foundations, the University of Geneva and the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) decided to buy the complex, with the mildly mad idea of developing the Health Valley, odd 58,000 square metres at their dispo- sal into a new cluster dedicated to neural and bioengineering. Goodbye Merck a huge Swiss asset Serono. Hello Campus Biotech. Could Campus Biotech have imagined Health Valley in Western Switzerland has no reason global industry expenditure, Switzerland’s pharmaceu- a fi ner crown for the jewel it wished to to be jealous of the Boston area, which has earned tical industry is a heavyweight player in R&D. become? “Usually, when you start a worldwide respect as the North American center of project, you begin with the content and excellence for medical and pharmaceutical research. Bringing new products and treatments arising from then you look for a place to locate it. With Indeed, Western Switzerland has a higher employment basic research to market saves lives. e pharmaceu- Campus Biotech, the exact opposite level per capita in life sciences, biotechnology, medical tical industry does not simply access academic resear- occurred. We had to imagine how to technology, and medicine than Boston. chers’ work for free. If a product is successful, then the occupy a huge space”, remembers Benoît industry pays signifi cant royalties to universities and Dubuis, the project’s Operations Director. Between Geneva and Viège - a region with a popula- their scientists. e creation of new employment lin- Dubuis, who is also President of BioAlps tion of 2 million - the BioAlps cluster brings together ked to this also contributes to the economy. and Director of the life sciences incubator 750 companies and over 25,000 employees, including Eclosion, admits that everything is still 5,000 highly qualifi ed scien- e Swiss pharmaceutical industry provides highly left to play for. “Our key advantage is that tists*, working in life sciences. skilled jobs with a higher value added than those of we adopted a cluster dynamic from the is compares favorably to the other sectors. In 2012, a pharmaceutical worker’s pro- very start, seeing to integrate fi nancial, 56,000 employees** in the same ductivity in Switzerland reached 277 Swiss francs per scientifi c and academic partners.” fi eld in the Greater Boston Area, working hour, twice as much as in fi nancial services with its population of about 6 (114 francs), and three times more than the Swiss ave- Translational medicine million. rage in all sectors (72 francs).**** Such a vision is at the heart of the Campus Biotech model, with its three e EPFL (Ecole Polytechnique e second condition needed to increase the dyna- objectives. Firts, to promote Fédérale de Lausanne) has just mism of Health Valley is to create a center of compe- breakthrough innovation by inviting attracted funding from the tence that can attract and keep both the headquarters Légende légende research groups in fi elds for which the European Commission for its and the operational activities of large pharmaceutical légende légende Lake Geneva Region presents both speci- Human Brain Project, which companies. To ensure the long-term presence of com- légende lég légende fi c needs and strong skills. Also, to will bring together over 1,000 panies, these two aspects have to go hand in hand – lég légende. concentrate on institutional collabora- researchers and contribute which unfortunately is not always the case. tions, not only with universities but also to the development of a new A close-knit, high-level professional cluster with a with hospitals – the Geneva Hospitals, in Campus Biotech in Geneva. talented employment pool and leading companies fos- particular – and industry. And fi nally, to Tomorrow’s drug will include a diagnostic test – which ters interaction between the players. But fi scal factors focus on translational aspects with an eye is another asset for Switzerland’s Health Valley, whose alone are not enough to encourage companies into a The Russian Doll of to the emergence of products and thera- numerous medtech companies benefi t today from cut- long-term commitment to the region. e aim should pies. By providing shared infrastructure, ting-edge research in microtechnology and nanotech- be to bring together decision-making and operational Innovation researchers who are off ered accommo- nology carried out by the Swiss watch industry. centers in the same place. Western Switzerland could dation are urged to collaborate with also further integrate multinational employees by en- teams in diff erent scientifi c fi elds, using Switzerland’s Health Valley has all the conditions nee- couraging them to settle permanently and create local When Merck Serono left Geneva, Campus Biotech developed a new platforms formed around specifi c the- ded for its research and industry to thrive – with the ties. Such an approach would probably prevent com- cluster model on the Sécheron site, bringing together academic, mes, such as neuroprosthetics, animal exception of two essential aspects. e fi rst one is a lack panies closing or moving their headquarters, which research or computational research. of public-private partnerships. Scientifi c discoveries can weaken the region and hinder its development hospital and industrial partners. BY PASCAL VERMOT Because of its particular layout, the fi nanced by public funds should not stay on the shelf potential. Indeed, without a strong public-private par- Sécheron site is ideal for such collabora- unnoticed: research has to fi nd an application. In the US tnership and without the creation of an attractive cen- rom the outside, nothing seems have appreciated this architectural tion. During the Merck Serono years, and UK, academia and industry have developed fruit- ter of competence for big pharma, the development of to have changed in Sécheron. contrast as an illustration of the compa- almost 80% of the available space was ful collaborations, partly due to their world leadership Health Valley could be slowed down. Let’s bring down e site continues to be one of ny’s glorious pharmacological heritage shared. Open fl oors were linked by glazed in pharmaceutical research and in the discovery of these barriers to boost its development. modern edifi ces with large and what would be its outstanding future passageways and passages between the novel drugs. glass-fronted façades, and three performance in the fi eld of diff erent buildings also en- Sources: Fred-bricked buildings that are reminders biotechnology. couraged mobility. ough THE PRIVATE-SECTOR TEXTE CITATION TEXTE People sometimes have the feeling that *BioAlps of Geneva’s 19th-century industrial When the pharmaceutical many interior conversions pharmaceutical research is mainly funded INDUSTRY COVERED **US Bureau of Labor Statistics, QCEW, Massbio fl agship. Visitors enter the complex by group announced the site’s CITATION TEXTE were necessary, the philoso- by the state. In fact, nearly 70% of the cost of ALMOST 70% OF THE *** The Swiss Federal Statistical Office way of an atrium whose interior bounda- closure in April 2012, it left it CITATION TEXTE phy has remained the same. R&D in all sectors was covered by industry COST OF RESEARCH ****Interpharma ries seem to touch the sky, so huge that devoid of occupants and CITATION TEXTE CITA “For any research carried out in Switzerland in 2008.*** In 2014, industry AND DEVELOPMENT the human eye has trouble focusing on purpose but not for long. TION TEXTE CITATION in bioengineering for example, funding in the pharmaceutical arena is ex- THIERRY MAUVERNAY anything. Long before its fusion with Within a year, a consortium human, animal and computa- IN SWITZERLAND IN 2008 TEXTE CITATION TEXTE pected to exceed 80%. With over 30% of Delegate of the Board, Debiopharm Group Merck, the Geneva-based Serono would formed by Hansjörg Wyss, the tional research are indeed PHOTOS: DR

8 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 9 NEWS & VIEWS

United States alone they are valued at Merck Serono ObsEva targets preterm some USD 27 billion a year,” says Ernest spin-offs flying solo Loumaye. e need is real, and ObsEva intends to provide solutions. MOT CLE The “Entrepreneur Partnership birth prevention Launched in Geneva in 2012, the start-up Program” (EPP) set up by Merck Serono as has recently raised CHF 32 million from compensation for closing down the ObsEva has raised CHF 32 million to develop two molecules that venture-capital funds including Sécheron site has led to a total of seven Sofi nnova and Nova A/S to further deve- spin-offs, which represent 50 jobs created. minimise the risks of premature delivery. BY LEILA UEBERSCHLAG lop drug candidates. ese molecules are Three of the spin-offs are pure biotechs, long lasting and to be taken orally – two and develop therapeutic molecules: remature delivery, the leading advantages over existing drugs, which are Calypso Biotech (intestinal autoimmune cause of neonatal death, in- injected intravenously or subcutaneously diseases), Prexton Therapeutics (Parkin- creases the risk of illness and and may not be taken for a period excee- son’s disease) and Asceneuron (Alzheimer’s can lead to severe neurological ding 48 hours. A fi rst treatment is being disease and neurodegenerative diseases and lung damage as well as tested in Phase I, on healthy women, and linked to the build-up of tau protein in the Pdigestive problems. But there are only a second one is already in Phase II trials, brain tauopathies). Quartz Bio offers two treatments to prevent it – and they on pregnant patients with increased risks bioinformatics services for analysing are very controversial and can be admi- of premature birth. “ e funds we re- biomarkers. Esparare is a non-profit nistered only for two days. “It’s a serious cently raised will allow us to fi nance our foundation that repositions existing issue, especially if the woman has only research spending until mid-2016. By molecules in the treatment of rare and reached the sixth month of her pregnan- then, the trial results will be available and orphan diseases. Finally, TQM Insight and cy,” explains Dr Ernest Loumaye, a if the drug now in Phase II proves to be Ondaco are companies that specialise in gynaecology specialist and cofounder of eff ective and well tolerated, we will be computer services. Though each of these ObsEva. “ ese treatments have been able to progress into Phase III trials prior companies received support from Merck withdrawn from the American market. It States. “Women continue to work during to receive market approval,” Loumaye Serono, either by funding, a transfer of means that the U.S. has no approved pregnancy which causes both physical says. Meanwhile, the start-up fourteen intellectual ownership or the guarantee of suitable drug on its market.” and psychological stress. ey usually researchers are assessing new molecules business volume during the first months of Preterm birth rates have been rising have their children 10 years later,” says for to treat problems related to human operation, they have all gained inde- steadily over the past 20 years, to reach Ernest Loumaye. Premature deliveries reproduction such as endometriosis or pendence from their parent company and 8% in Europe and 12% in the United also create signifi cant costs. “In the sterility. now live off the revenue generated from Légende légende their own customers. légende légende légende lég légende SAV-IOL’s SAV-IOL lenses lég légende. As a whole, the project is founded in adjust focus to near academia. Led by both the University of and far vision. Geneva and the EPFL, it is supported by a life without based in diff erent buildings but are all on another. In November 2013, Campus strategic steering committee – which the same fl oor. As a result, moving from Biotech accommodated its fi rst residents discusses the scientifi c issues, essentially glasses one zone to another is very easy and – some sixty researchers from the Centre – and an operational steering committee. fast,” explains Benoît Dubuis. interfacultaire en sciences aff ectives Each of these two organisms is repre- at said, the distribution of premises (CISA) of the University of Geneva. e sented in equal parts by each university. In Neuchâtel, intraocular lens still has to ensure that the precise location University of Geneva and the EPFL will As for the rest, the Wyss and Bertarelli manufacturer SAV-IOL is of each research group guarantees key eventually occupy the best part of 15,000 Foundations preside mainly over the synergies. If you want to develop high- square metres of the site, half of which is site’s destiny; they own the ground and moving into larger premises and performance neuroprosthetics for ins- reserved for the Wyss Centre for bio- and the buildings, and rent out the space to recruiting a new staff member tance, then neurobiologists, microtech- neuro-engineering. e remaining space Campus Biotech Geneva. Campus Biotech every week. BY LEILA UEBERSCHLAG nology engineers and specialists in is intended for enterprises – either start- then allocates the premises to researchers market for prosthesis. “All elderly people pany we should be also modest.” Apart rehabilitation medicine have to be able to ups, or large industrial and commercial who remain attached to their respective suff er from cataract, and 25 million from selling in Switzerland, SAV-IOL is communicate and work together if the companies. academic institutions. r Robert Apter, founder and lenses are implanted each year,” says exporting its lenses to Russia. “We are in best solution for patients is to be found. anks to its underground infrastruc- ough Campus Biotech has been CEO of SAV-IOL (Swiss Robert Apter. So SAV-IOL is now compe- touch with several European retailers. And, somewhere downstream, an indus- ture, either already built or planned, the inspired by a model that already exists in Advanced Vision - Intraocular ting with the giants in eye care like Alcon, Until now, sales have been made through trial component will be necessary to site allows for the rapid setup of new a collaboration between the Wyss Lens) designed an intraocular a Novartis subsidiary, and Abbot Medical word of mouth alone.” commercialise the fi nished product. at installations. “ e development of the Foundation and Harvard University, it multifocal lens used in cataract Optics. Despite fi erce competition and a What next? Tap into the U.S. market in should not be a problem since one part of campus will occur in diff erent phases. For does benefi t from its ecosystem. “Campus surgery.D “ is lens allows you to adjust rather low penetration rate, the outlook 2015. To achieve that, SAV-IOL needs the campus has already been planned to the time being, we are still in the fi rst Biotech is both a location and a brand. focus to near-, far- and mid-range vi- for the 5-year-old company is promising. around CHF 5 million. “ e FDA [Food accommodate future partners, who will phase. 40,000 square metres are still Under this label, our aim is to bring sion,” he explains. at is a major and Drug Administration] has a specifi c be housed in buildings that still need to available in the north wing. Potentially, together not only players on the health breakthrough in ophthalmology, where Heading to the US regulation: very expensive test protocols be built. the whole south wing could still host new scene and the life sciences but also any the existing products can only give pa- “We sold 1,000 lenses in 2013 and expect in the U.S. are mandatory. If everything is Campus Biotech is like a gigantic constructions. Likewise, the old Sécheron given entity which is able to sustain the tients either near- or near- and far-range to sell between 5,000 and 10,000 in going according to plan, we will be able to Russian doll into which the diff erent hall could be used for industrial Lake Geneva Region dynamics in these vision. is revolutionary innovation has 2014,” says Robert Apter. “We need to be pay for those costs with the proceeds of

components fi t and complement one purposes,” says Dubuis. fi elds,” underlines Benoît Dubuis. As an not gone unnoticed in what is the biggest bold and ambitious but as a young com- our sales,” says Robert Apter. PHOTOS: DR

10 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 11 NEWS & VIEWS Endosense taken over by St. Jude Medical In August 2013, St. Jude Medical purchased Geneva-based Endosense for CHF 309 million. A year later, the prospects of the new Swiss affiliate look promising. BY LEILA UEBERSCHLAG 3 QUESTIONS À n August 2013 the American giant St. tion of the inside of the heart chamber.” Jacques Essinger Jude Medical, a world leader in Currently, only three are available. “ e Co-founder and CEO of Symetis rhythm management, atrial fi brilla- one from St. Jude is very well established. BY FABRICE DELAYE tion, cardiovascular diseases and It is competing with one from Johnson & neuromodulation, took over the Johnson and a second one fresh on the ounded in Lausanne in 2006 ISwiss-based company Endosense, now market.” Symetis develops and commercia- known as St. Jude Medical GVA. “We are e cardiovascular treatment device Flises transcatheter aortic valve now fully integrated in St. Jude and are developed by Endosense is already used implantation (TAVI) systems. Its fi rst providing expertise in several of their in Europe, Australia and Canada. It is product, the self-expanding, self-seating projects; we are no longer limited to our currently undergoing regulatory approval and self-sealing ACURATE TA valve has a own products,” General Manager in the United States. St. Jude has already unique design that is gaining momentum One of five pacemakers is manufactured in the François Salmon explains. He says that paid CHF 159 million to Endosense’s among surgeons thanks to its ease of use Lake Geneva region. apart from these new research opportu- shareholders. e remainder of the CHF features. It is about to commercialised a nities, almost nothing has changed in 309 million will be due as soon as the new transfemoral system, ACURATE TF, senior business director at Medtronic. Meyrin, Geneva, for the group of about 40 device is approved and marketed in the based on comparable design and ease of Medtronic: a bigger site Tests have reached their fi nal phase for employees, who all kept their jobs. United States. use concepts. Linq and Micro, and both devices could be introduced onto the market by 2015, Contact-force measurement How does a small company compete for smaller devices embodying two strategic goals for In 2009, Endosense launched a revolu- against formidable giants such as Medtronic: “Miniaturisation and connecti- tionary cardiovascular treatment device Medtronic or Edwards? Located in Tolochenaz since 1996, the world leader for medical device vity are key players in the company’s that attracted a great deal of attention With 80 people in Lausanne and about future,” says Rob ten Hoedt. “On the one from specialists. “ is force-sensing 100 in Brazil for manufacturing, it is true technology has progressively developed its Vaud site. In March this hand, miniaturisation is an essential factor radiofrequency catheter, called TactiCath, we are the David against the Goliath. But year, the number of devices manufactured on Medtronic’s site if our wish is to reach procedures and treats cardiac arrhythmias. It is equipped we are on a growing market with innova- treatments that are less invasive, and can BY MATTHIEU HOFFSTETTER with a pressure sensor able to give sur- tive products that off er strong diff erentia- crossed the five million threshold. be combined with drug therapies. geons real-time measurements of the tion. erefore size is less important than Connectivity, on the other hand, paves force they apply to the heart wall throu- clinical based evidences. Our very posi- f someone is carrying a pacemaker device that is placed just under the skin the way to the era of telemedicine, with ghout a procedure,” says François tive clinical performance is our best today, there is one chance in fi ve that of a person suff ering from abnormal refi ned personalised treatments”. Salmon. e device minimises the risks marketing. Add to that no compromise the device was manufactured in the heart rhythms, and sends signals via a ese two novel devices will emerge of perforation, which could lead to se- for top quality products and you’ll ex- Lake Geneva region. Medtronic is smartphone either to the patient or a from the Vaud production lines, just as rious procedure-related complications plain our fast growth. world leader in its sector, and the medical service. Besides saving a patient fi ve million others have done since 1996. and possibly to a second or a third surge- ITolochenaz site is a reference point for from having to carry an inconvenient Currently, 400,000 devices a year are ry. at has the potential to improve How fast? this type of equipment. “We have begun monitor, the device no longer requires assembled in Tolochenaz, and then sent all safety and effi cacy as well as allow Last year we have doubled our sales to a process to ensure that Tolochenaz is surgery and can be implanted by a nurse over the world via 11 diff erent distribution shorter procedures. CHF 16 million and everything indicate recognised as a centre for excellence in in three minutes. channels. In earlier years, the organisation “TactiCath is probably the best avai- we are on a durable fast growth track. As the fi eld of cardiac stimulation devices. of production was revised to be more lable technology in the fi eld, and that a whole, our market is growing 10%/year. e production lines developed here The smallest pacemaker eff ective. As a result, while in 2004 explains St. Jude’s interest in Endosense Because we are in Europe and have have been used as models for other Micra, the smallest pacemaker in the it took 20 days to manufacture one device, in the fi rst place; it was a strategic expand in some other geography but not production sites all over the world, in world, is just as innovative. e size of a today, on an average, it only takes nine. choice,” François Salmon says. Being part yet in the US, we have a lot of potential to Singapore and Puerto Rico,” explains revolver’s cartridge, this pacemaker can “ ese increasingly eff ective produc- of the American group also brings many exploit for our fi rst product and more for Rob ten Hoedt, President of Medtronic be implanted directly in a patient’s heart tion lines are steered by two teams fi ve opportunities to the Swiss company, our second product that will be launched International for Europe, Asia, Africa through the femoral vein. Until recently, days a week, while other teams do three which was founded in 2003 by a cardio- later this year. and Canada. pacemakers were bulky eight-hour shifts to meet logist together with two engineers. “We With almost 800 staff on the Vaud devices that were grafted at strong demand: our site has now have access to signifi cant tech There have been rumours of a coming IPO site (and 1,200 in total in Switzerland), shoulder level and linked to 400 000 DEVICES acquired a key role within expertise. By becoming St. Jude Medical of Symetis. What about it? Medtronic hopes to build upon skills the heart by a probe. “With A YEAR ARE PRODUCED Medtronic’s global network,” GVA, we may reach a market-leading François Salmon For the moment, we are well fi nanced but developed over the past years to reinforce Micra, procedures are less BY MEDTRONIC concludes Patrick Rosset, position,” he says. “Furthermore, it gives is General Manager it is true we are looking toward every its position as world leader. And just two invasive and in the event of MANUFACTURE director of Swiss Medtronic us access to a very effi cient mapping of St Jude Medical GVA. options to secure the growth of the of its devices could revolutionise the an emergency, reactions are Operation (SMO) IN SWITZERLAND. system that allows a virtual reconstruc- company. e IPO is one among others. PHOTOS: DR sector: Linq and Micra. Linq is a small faster,” argues Katja Kreuzer, in Tolochenaz. PHOTOS: DR

12 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 13 FEATURES MEDTECH

Cyberhealth, a new El Dorado for Western Switzerland After biotechnology and the neurosciences, health is becoming an area of expertise in which universities and schools of higher education are positioning themselves, creating an ecosystem which is favourable for spawning start-ups. BY PASCAL VERMOT

ccording to the results of a a group created at the Faculty of Medicine survey carried out in February of the University of Geneva – to the this year by the research Institute of Information Systems of the institute GFS Berne, on behalf HES-SO in Valais. Henning Müller joined of InfoSocietyDays, “cy- another professor, Michael Ignaz Aberhealth” means nothing whatsoever to Schumacher, who came from the 81% of the Swiss population. Yet three Laboratory of Artifi cial Intelligence at years ago, the federal authorities designa- EPFL, the Swiss Federal Institute of ted the fi eld as a priority, a move empha- Technology in Lausanne. Two years later, sised by the approval of a report entitled Professor Schumacher created the “Santé 2020”. Although the public autho- Applied Intelligent Systems Lab (AISLab). rities, like health professionals, are Together, the two professors have brought concentrating mainly on electronic many cyberhealth projects into being, patient records and vaccinations – two notably an “e-health” unit within the notions that will not be spreading throu- Institute of Information Systems. ghout Switzerland before 2016, at best – “Henning is a pure medical computer cyberhealth has become a real scientifi c scientist. As full professor at the University and economic challenge for Western of Geneva, he is an expert in extracting and Switzerland. interpreting data, two disciplines of great signifi cance today with the arrival of cloud A scientific and economic computing and big data. As far as I’m The interfaces challenge concerned, the health fi eld has always been between patients A pioneer in the fi eld, the University of of great interest. And today, 90% of my and practitioners Applied Sciences (HES) of the Valais had projects deal with this issue,” reveals are now a field of already paved the way about seven years Michael Ignaz Schumacher. Almost thirty study for Western ago. At the time, Professor Henning people now work on cyberhealth at the Switzerland’s

Müller decided to transfer MedGIFT – University of Applied Sciences in the Valais. PHOTOS: DR institutions

14 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 15 FEATURES MEDTECH

G-Demande is a good example of a up patients with diabetes types I and II. the Jura, the development of the Swiss company rooted in information techno- Using diff erent Bluetooth sensors to Centre for Electronics and logy that leads to medical applications, monitor a patient’s physiological para- Microtechnology (CSEM) and the science launching an Android application in 2010 meters, this solution will look out for park Neode, as well as the establishment as part of the national Nano-Tera initia- symptoms associated with the illness, of EPFL’s Institute of Microtechnology tive. e app consists of an expert system such as cardiac arrhythmia, hypoglycae- (IMT) in the Neuchâtel region – consoli- that can warn medical teams when the mia or sleep apnoea. Professor dated by the recent inauguration of the blood glucose level of a woman with Schumacher’s team has particular res- Microcity building – have also contributed gestational diabetes – a particular resis- ponsibility for interoperability between to helping laboratory-led research fi nd a tance to insulin that occurs during pre- the various technologies that will be marketable application. gnancy – exceeds the critical threshold. used, as well as for the expert system that e proximity of the IMT and, hence, “With this application, the patient enters establishes the patients’ health check. of Professor Nico de Rooij, led the One data about her own blood glucose level Drop Diagnostics start-up settled on the and the medication she is taking. e data From diagnostics to data storage Neode site. Based on a doctoral graduate is then stored on a server and the alarm is Diagnostics, personalised medicine, from EPFL, the Neuchâtel-based fi rm is triggered the moment the situation remote data storage… e interfaces developing a portable device to detect becomes problematic,” explains the between patients and practitioners are biomarkers – in particular proteins –spe- researcher. Last year, the application was now a fi eld of study for Western cifi c to certain pathologies, such as EPFL’s spin-off tested by about ten patients in the CHUV Switzerland’s institutions. “Cyberhealth cardiac arrests, infections or allergies, Abionic has (Centre Hospitalier Universitaire demands perfect management informa- and all from a single drop of blood placed developed a system Vaudois), and the medical follow-up tion between the diff erent players in the on a microfl uidic chip. e fi rm will be to detect allergies. results were very conclusive. health system. Patients want to know carrying out clinical trials in 2015 and Research led in the Valais’ University what their precise state of health is, and hopes to enter the market the following of Applied Sciences is inherently directed as quickly as possible. As for the physi- year, with a licence approved by the towards application, and the school is cian, he or she needs a level of informa- European health authorities. One Drop sis can be established within minutes. phones into interfaces for collecting and encouraged to work with industrial and tion that is more and more refi ned to be Diagnostics has close bonds with the Nowadays, there is no longer any sense in sending data, such as measuring glucose academic partners, especially hospitals. able to look after patients,” says Sébastien Geneva’s University Hospital and, as a completely outsourcing the analysis of and cholesterol levels, even if the phone Professor Schumacher’s team has been Mabillard, who is in charge of e-health result, has direct access to a panel of medical results and leaving doctors as is not a medical device per se. “We are collaborating with EPFL, the HEIG-VD projects at the Ark Foundation in Sion. physicians and patients. frustrated as mechanics who have been trying to narrow down the frontier (Haute Ecole d’Ingénierie et de Gestion e Ark Foundation has helped nume- Abionic system given bolts for which they doesn’t have between applications that capture simple du Canton de Vaud) and the CHUV to rous active e-health start-ups to blossom. Quintessential medtech involves an optical the right screwdriver. biological data, like measuring your heart develop a device about the size of a Logival is one such company, and in 2007 is is quintessential medtech, and this reader similar to e young fi rm Qloudlab has chosen a rate for instance, and the more complex printer that can analyse the concentra- was among the fi rst to launch an applica- kind of product is a response to a very those used in CDs. more radical line of attack by superimpo- applications that are entering the medical tion of medication in the metabolism of tion for electronic patient records for strong e-health trend. “Until very recent- sing biofi lm onto the tactile screens of fi eld. e problem is that the organisa- people with serious illnesses such as physicians in private practice. ly, diagnostics tools were exclusive to today’s commonly used smartphones. tions in charge of health licences, both in cancer or AIDS. With only one drop of Start-ups specialising in cyberhealth analytical laboratories. Now, with the ned to turn the physician-patient rela- ere, too, only one drop of blood, drawn Europe and the United States, are slow blood, and the prior knowledge of the (e-health) and its mobile variant (m- development of both compact and aff or- tionship around. Before even targeting by the patients themselves and applied to when it comes to accepting novel dia- patient’s medical history and biological health) have been sprouting everywhere dable devices that can guarantee high-le- the end user directly, these start-ups the biofi lm, yields data that is sent to the gnostics solutions.” parameters (such as age and weight), the in Western Switzerland, and particularly vel performance, practitioners and intend to place their technology in the person in charge of its analysis. e “Cyberhealth really made its appea- device should be able to calculate the best in three zones: the Lake Geneva and pharmacists have the technology they hands of professionals. development of such technology, which rance in the application fi eld about three dosage for prescription, taking into Neuchâtel regions, and in the Valais on need to take charge of this step in a is is Abionic’s challenge, an EPFL Qloudlab intends to pre-industrialise to four years ago, both in mobile phones account the patient’s current health. the Monthey-Sion-Sierre axis. None of patient’s medical care,” says Luc Gervais, spin-off that has developed a system for towards the end of 2015, means close and the medical environment,” stresses Software linked to a remote databank will this happened by accident: three impor- founder and CEO at One Drop detecting allergies. e system involves a collaboration with research teams, Sébastien Mabillard at the Ark catalogue each patient’s historical data. tant academic research Diagnostics. e system is device based on an optical reader, similar among them Professor Philippe Renaud’s Foundation. For some companies, sports e system will initially act as a diagnos- centres active in information CYBERHEALTH designed to transmit the to those used for CDs and DVDs, and from EPFL. applications have become an easier entry tic tool but will progressively become a technology and medtech are results directly to the doctor, disks formatted with biosensors specifi c point to the cyberhealth market. is is predictive tool, which should allow the also located in there. DEMANDS PERFECT or even to the patient, on their to certain types of allergen. “A doctor’s State-of-the-art infrastructures because wellness solutions are not ne- dosage to be fi ne-tuned. In the Lake Geneva region, MANAGEMENT smartphone for example. appointment is not a health stroll,” “Developing technology such as ours cessarily subject to licence constraints, In diabetes, the School of Applied the EPFL and the University INFORMATION BETWEEN Diagnostics is indeed stresses Nicolas Durand, founder and needs a lot of state-of-the-art infrastruc- while it takes a medical device at least Sciences has integrated the European Hospitals of Geneva and THE DIFFERENT PLAYERS becoming the speciality of executive director of Abionic. When they ture,” points out Arthur Queval, three to four years to obtain the precious project Commodity12 with the CHUV, to Lausanne are driving innova- young enterprises in Western leave their doctor, patients want to know Qloudlab’s founder. He admits to subscri- document it needs to go onto the market. develop a computerised system to follow tion in the fi eld. At the foot of IN THE HEALTH SYSTEM Switzerland that are determi- what they have, especially if the diagno- bing to the trend for transforming smart- is is how SensorCore, a start-up now

16 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 17 FEATURES MEDTECH

Qloudlab’s founders Maxime Ettori (CTO), left and Arthur Queval (CEO)

Thanks to its biofilm Qloudlab turns smartphones’ screens into blood analytic devices.

located in Zurich, made its mark in sports plethora of watches and wrist-band sive visits to the hospital will be avoided, monitoring. Based on two 17 gramme contacts that continuously monitor and citizens will be able to take care of sensors that can be directly integrated biological signals goes to show how small their own health and wellbeing; the into clothes, the technology is designed to the barrier between wellbeing and medi- palliative approach will progressively measure continuously the heart and cal applications is becoming. replace the curative approach,” explains respiratory rate, or even the body tempe- Neelie Kroes, vice-president of the rature, of both confi rmed athletes and The quantified self’s momentum Commission and in charge of the digital beginners. is solution arose from Dedicated applications are pouring onto agenda. Neelie Kroes says that she herself research led in laboratories of the Swiss personal electronic devices. Podometers, is “a huge supporter of mobile healthcare, Centre for Electronics and heart rate monitor watches, pulsome- as shown by the electronic wrist-band I Microtechnology (CSEM) in Neuchâtel. It ters… e giants of leisure electronics are wear to measure my daily physical was initially conceived to measure the leading the way. A huge survey on mobile activity level”. vital parameters of astronauts for the health was launched last April by the is window of opportunity did not go European Space Agency in the event of European Commission. According to the unnoticed by CSEM. After having colla- colonising planet Mars. study, about 100,000 apps that indivi- borated with the Swiss fi rm Limmex in It has not taken long for mobile phone duals can use to monitor their health are 2011 on a watch-mounted alarm system, manufacturers to see that there is a already available via iTunes, Google Play the Neuchâtel-based research centre has market within their reach. Apple has and the download platforms for Windows just announced a partnership with announced that its next iOS, or mobile Phones and Blackberry. e most popular PulseOn, a Nokia group spin-off , to operating system, will include twenty sports applications for develop a wrist-band for monitoring a Healthbook, an app for trac- BY 2017, 3.4 BILLION fi tness and health have not- person’s heart rate “while training or king health and fi tness data. ched up more than 200 mil- not”, using a wireless connection to iOS During its World Mobile PEOPLE IN THE WORLD lion downloads worldwide. and Android mobile apps. “By launching Congress last February, WILL OWN A “By 2017, 3.4 billion people this, we are showing that Switzerland has Samsung presented the SMARTPHONE, HALF OF in the world will own a smart- all it needs to play an important role on Galaxy S5 smartphone, with THEM WILL BE USING phone and half of them will be this emerging market,” adds Jens Krauss, an integrated sensor for using mobile phone health vice-president of CSEM and in charge of measuring heart rate. And the M- HEALTH APPS apps. is means that expen- the systems division. A word to the wise…

18 Summer 2014 and cell-based drug development. However, it has proved diffi cult to control how stem cells specialise, while the risks of tumour development have limited the hopes of transplanting tissues derived from embryonic stem cells. is emerging and promising fi eld of research needs new tools. And those are exactly what some western Switzerland SMEs and start-ups have recently deve- loped. A pioneer in cell therapy at Harvard Medical School, where he parti- cipated in the world’s fi rst transplants of epidermal stem cells in the early 1980s, and now the head of the Stem Cell Dynamics Laboratory at both EPFL and Lausanne’s University Hospital, Professor Yann Barrandon co-founded Gymetrics Nanolive allows in 2011 to solve problems he was facing. direct imaging of “In our labs there is a need to control and unstained living monitor stem cell culture. And with the cells in 3D. development of new cell therapies the regulator will also ask for more and more information about and traceability of cell cultures.”

Enabling stem Non-invasive culture control Within 24 months the company has been cell therapies able to work up its fi rst product, thanks to engineering development driven by biological requirements. It has developed In the innovation Park of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology a wireless, battery-less temperature and in Lausanne (EPFL) start-ups are building the tools to make stem pH sensor for cell culture measurement that can be used in shaker fl asks, Petri BY FABRICE DELAYE cell therapies a reality. dishes or bioreactors (environments where cells grow). Named cytOsens, this ecause of their unique regene- have been harvested and re-implanted system eliminates the need for calibra- rative capacity, stem cells have (in the same patient). But adult stem cells tion. It communicates data on a conti- generated worldwide enthu- have also a limited potential for prolifera- nuous basis from the incubator or bio- siasm as a new tool for biome- tion and may progressively lose their reactor to a smartphone, tablet or PC. dical research and therapeutic functionality. at limits their use for But the key feature of this system lies Bapplications. On the one hand, they play research and clinical applications. e elsewhere. “Not only does cytOSens a critical role in the understanding of the discovery in 1998 of human embryonic respect culture protocols but it preserves molecular mechanisms regulating tissue stem cells and their potential cells by reducing the need for development and regeneration, opening for unlimited proliferation WITH THE DEVELOPMENT disturbance to measure the up possibilities to develop new drugs. On and specialisation has given environment,” explains the other, they may allow the engineering hope that the disadvantages of OF NEW CELL THERAPIES Eric Meurville, co-founder of of functional tissues for replacement adult stem cells might be THE REGULATOR Gymetrics and head of the therapies. circumvented. is has trigge- WILL ASK FOR MORE R&D team. “For example, the Since the 1960s, the discovery of red worldwide research TRACEABILITY system is single-use, calibra- haematopoietic and stromal stem cells in eff orts to develop a second ted and sterilized, therefore OF CELL CULTURES the bone marrow, various adult stem cells generation of cell therapies ready to use.” PHOTOS: DR

Summer 2014 19 FEATURES MEDTECH

Prof.Yann Barrandon head of the Stem Cell Dynamics Laboratory.

scans of cells in real time. It performs a continuous rotational scan around the “Big Data” boosts Western sample, and displays quasi instanta- neously the cell in 3D and in colors on any device. Moreover, users will be able Switzerland’s bioinformatics companies to share their results and images through Nanolive’s Cloud that will make of the 3D The daunting amount of data generated by the life sciences is diagnostics. Novel enterprises, such as Cell-Explorer the fi rst cloud microscope. SimplicityBio in Monthey for instance, “It used to be impossible to observe creating a new economic niche – one that a number of companies are now off ering methods that can detect inside a living cell without damaging it,” based in Western Switzerland are investing in. BY PASCAL VERMOT complex pathologies such as cancer explains Yann Cotte, the CEO and co- by tracking down specifi c biomarkers. founder of Nanolive. “Because the cell is at is also Quartz Bio’s speciality. is the basis of all life on Earth, this is a major f there is a sector in which Swiss additional possibility of data visualisation. Geneva-based spin-off from Merck milestone in the history of microscopy. economy excels, it is services. e fi rm has about fi fteen employees, and Serono allows larger pharma and biotech It may change the rules in the fi elds of Research on living organisms, com- has managed to raise 3.8 million francs companies to outsource the analysis of education, biology, pharmaceutics and pounded by the increasingly meticu- following two successful funding rounds. the expression of particular genes and the cosmetics. For example, it will enable lous study of genetic variants at the presence of particular proteins in clinical researchers to monitor the impact of Iheart of diseases such as cancer, is under- Focus is on diagnostics trials. drugs directly on living cells in order to going a small industrial revolution on the Companies that specialise in bioinforma- “Not only do you need time to trans- determine the right therapeutic dosages. banks of Lake Geneva. Here bioinforma- tics services have set their sights on form the volume of data into useful Together, those markets represent hun- tics is spawning small fi rms that specia- results, but you also need qualifi ed dreds of thousands of devices, which we lise in outsourcing services such as personnel with particular skills, will address in connection with our sequencing or prospecting for disease- both in fundamental and clinical re- For Nanolive, another spin-off from Cloud Biotech Apps and Communities.” specifi c biomarkers. search,” says Jérôme Wojcik, the fi rm’s the EPFL, the ability to observe cells Further out, one can also envision the “Research on living organisms gene- CEO and founder. In fi elds as diverse or stem cells while not interfering with potential of such technology for cell rates a huge amount of complex data,” as oncology, cardiology, neurological or them was also crucial. Due to the limita- fertilization, cell culture monitoring and underlines Jurgi Camblong, CEO of Sophia degenerative diseases, Quartz Bio uses tions of light, it was until now impossible cell diff erentiation… Genetics, based in Ecublens’ Science and samples drawn from patients to track to look inside a living cell without dama- Before reaching such markets Nanolive Technology Park. Jurgi Camblong – the down biomarkers that are associated ging it, even using the most expensive wants to build its credibility in the uni- fi rm’s co-founder – knows this only too with known pathologies or that were top-notch devices. Traditional microsco- versity and research markets. Gymetrics well: three years ago, Sophia Genetics set discovered while administering thera- py techniques rely on complicated proce- will follow a similar path, but envisions out to provide high-throughput DNA peutic molecules. “ ese data must be dures (risk of errors), which require a fi rst commercial opportunity with the sequencing services to hospital and made available at diff erent stages of cumbersome and time-consuming more mature market of cell culture for clinical laboratories, off ering the simulta- a clinical study. You have to be able to preparation (1-72 hours), are invasive to the production of monoclonal antibodies neous sequencing of thousands of DNA analyse them, and then stock them the cells (risk of damaging & falsifi ca- and vaccines. “Cell therapies are still in fragments. “Our job is to supply the tools to be able to refer to them at any given tion), and still give rather limited results their infancy,” explains Barrandon. “ ey needed to simplify, stock and process data, moment.” Quartz Bio can use the (2D image with no contrast or chemically have been through a hectic development, while their interpretation is carried out by experience it has gathered on various dyed of few colors). Other technologies with promising clinical trials stopped. the doctors in charge of the patients. On diseases to turn its analysis service such as electron microscopy also inter- Now a new generation of stem cell-based the basis of patient samples, we amplify into a predictive tool. fere too much with a living sample, and products are emerging that require a parts of the genome that are of interest. While each of these companies could are limited to the cells’ surface. better understanding of what is happe- We then sequence the genes that are easily have seen the light of day in ning. Some recent work has, for example, subsequently analysed for diagnostic Boston or Cambridge, Western Beyond the optical diffraction limit demonstrated that it is possible to in- or predictive Switzerland seems to have off ered them Nanolive has developed a disruptive fl uence stem cell specialisation by a pH purposes.” THE LAKE GENEVA fertile soil. “ e Lake Geneva cluster is microscopic technology that determines modifi cation.” anks to already favourable for the life sciences, optical properties beyond the optical With cell therapy making a comeback software specifi - CLUSTER IS ALREADY and excels in the fi eld of bioinformatics. diff raction limit, allowing direct imaging rather like what happened with gene cally developed by FAVOURABLE FOR THE Being active in this part of Switzerland of unstained living cells in 3D. As with therapy, the opportunities for start-ups to the company and LIFE SCIENCES, AND Jurgi Camblong CEO guarantees a reliable image, besides MRI in hospitals but using light instead of bring innovative solutions to enable this known as EXCELS IN THE FIELD of fast growing having qualifi ed and well trained magnetic resonance, its microscope, the Gymetrics’wireless, battery-less temperature emerging technology have never been DropGen, Sophia Sophia Genetics. personnel at our disposal,” concludes OF BIOINFORMATICS 3D Cell-Explorer, uses laser light to make and pH sensor for cell culture measurement. so huge. Genetics off ers the Jérôme Wojcik. PHOTOS: DR

20 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 21 FEATURES MEDTECH

Exabone is commercialising an injectable paste that can activate bone regeneration.

e development of ever-evolving products is always an active collaboration between manufacturers, schools of higher education and university research centres. Valtronic, for instance, says it has close ties with academic institutions, in particular with regards to projects invol- ving the CTI, Switzerland’s Commission for Technology and Innovation. Symbios, Valtronic is a classic for its part, has undertaken numerous model for the transfer development programmes with surgeons of century-old at the Hospital for Orthopaedics in skills into the field Western Switzerland, and is also taking of medical technology. part in an ambitious research programme led by the EPFL, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, in partnership with the CHUV. Termed fi nished product: washing, coating, SimOS, this programme involves inser- Prostheses, the avatars packaging… Everything is managed in the ting sensors in knee and hip prostheses to Vallée de Joux,” says Virginie Ledru, allow continuous in vivo monitoring and communication manager. Less than two patient care. Such collaboration is very of personalised medicine years ago, Valtronic celebrated the instal- much upstream of the manufacturing lation of a 1,500 square metre production procedure but is of particular interest for Orthopaedic prostheses are becoming more and more customised unit dedicated to surgical implants and Valtronic Symbios, says Jean Plé, “since it will show complex mechanical parts for medical manufactures how prostheses behave once they have and effective, thanks in part to the manufacturers of Western devices. implantable PEEK, been implanted”. Switzerland. Meanwhile, in the lab, novel procedures are shaping One of the main reasons Symbios a biocompatible polymer Partnerships between the industry and Orthopédie set up in Yverdon-les-Bains, used for prostheses. academia are the future of orthopaedics. BY PASCAL VERMOT their future. in 1989, was to benefi t from the presence A few weeks ago, for example, after of numerous subcontractors – mainly having developed the prototype of an housands of prostheses – in engineering – a legacy of the region’s SMEs – that specialise in microtechno- past few decades,” explains Alain Farron, individual profi le occurred gradually, artifi cial hand with an improved grip, particular for hip and knee watchmaking tradition. logy. And microtechnology has turned chief of the Orthopaedics and prompted by expertise acquired in sol- researchers at the EPFL and the Scuola joints – are implanted in out to be essential for the sector in which Traumatology Division at the CHUV ving complex cases for which standard Superiore Sant’Anna of Pisa successfully Switzerland every year. e The Valtronic model the fi rm has become one of the world (Centre Hospitalier Universitaire models were useless. Not only are demonstrated a bionic hand linked to number of implants has grown Valtronic is a classic model for the trans- leaders: custom-made prostheses, espe- Vaudois) and Professor at the Faculty of prostheses becoming more and more peripheral nerves, giving amputated Tcontinuously in the past decade, and fer of century-old skills into the very cially hips. “No one has the same anato- Biology and Medicine at the University of adapted to the unique anatomy of those patients the opportunity to recover their continues to do so. According to the Swiss particular fi eld of medical technology. my. Many patients are close to the norm, Lausanne. Such an evolution is due not who carry them, but this adaptation is sense of touch. Federal Statistics Offi ce, 11,000 artifi cial Launched in 1982, the family business in but it only takes a small diff erence – like only to novel materials or, in other words, also expressed in the functions the ough greatly aided by research in knee joints were implanted in 2006. Now precision mechanics entered the the length of the femoral neck or a diff e- the alloys that are used, but also to the prostheses help the patients recover,” engineering and the life sciences, classi- the fi gure is double that. Such growth is prosthetic market when it merged with rence in its orientation – for the implant mechanical aspects, such as friction adds Alain Farron. cal orthopaedics is not the only path not simply a refl ection of technological AP Technologies, one of watchmaking of a standard prosthesis to become im- torque or the design of the prosthesis Patient profi ling is proving to be a being explored to help patients recover progress facilitating surgical interven- group Audemars Piguet’s spin-off s. Ever possible, or cause the patient to limp,” itself.” obligatory step. You would not equip an lost movements. Very promising thera- tions that people had hardly dared to since, they have been manufacturing says Jean Plé, director of Symbios elderly man whose greatest wish is to peutic alternatives are beginning to seep hope for. It also bodes well for some implantable PEEK, a biocom- Orthopédie. Partnering with academia remain independent at home with the out of labs. At the EPFL, for example, fi rst-rate manufacturers fi rmly rooted in patible polymer used for WESTERN e biggest concern for an Technical progress has spurred manufac- same model you would give to a middle- researchers have managed to develop a Western Switzerland’s soil. prostheses, on behalf of other implant remains the pain felt turers to develop customised products for aged person, whose desires are usually hydrogel that can release medication into Valtronic, Stryker, Symbios, DePuy companies. SWITZERLAND by a patient. But as prostheses the comfort and needs of patients, using more demanding. “Today’s patients the knee joint to prompt cartilage regene- Spine… Western Switzerland is home to a “As a subcontractor, we IS HOME TO RENOWNED become ever more sophistica- very fi ne scanner 3D imaging techniques expect far more than patients did twenty ration. And Nyon-based start-up several renowned names in the fi eld of manage the whole of the NAMES IN THE FIELD ted, surgery is becoming more and sophisticated software tools, al- years ago. Back then, you only hoped to Exabone is commercialising an injectable orthopaedic prostheses. at is hardly manufacturing process, from OF ORTHOPAEDIC and more of an option. “All lowing orthopaedics to move decisively recuperate basic locomotion, whereas paste that can activate bone regeneration surprising, given the huge concentration its conception and enginee- types of prostheses have towards personalised medicine, nowadays patients want to be able to ski in patients with fractures or who had PROSTHESES of knowhow in microtechnology and ring to the development of the evolved considerably in the PHOTOS: DR “Modelling prostheses to a patient’s and ride a bike,” says Jean Plé. sections of bone removed.

22 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 23 FEATURES MEDTECH

Bio-inspired engineering uses new materials to mimic the effects of a natural structure.

to an impressive donation of CHF 100 wing to improve its fi lms. Biomorphing lus. Enough to become bulletproof? “It million by Adolphe Merkle, a notorious involves modifying a natural object for will take years,” replies Christoph Weder. local entrepreneur. For the time being a new purpose while keeping some of its “But the fact that cellulose nanofi bres are housed in the former building of Ilford properties. Finally, bio-inspired enginee- biocompatible as well as 100 times Switzerland Imaging GmbH in Marly, it ring uses new materials to mimic the cheaper than the famous carbon nano- plans to move this year into brand-new eff ects of a natural structure, such as the tubes paves the way for breakthroughs. premises near the Botanical Garden of skin colour change of an octopus or the Together with university hospitals, we Fribourg. Since 2008, the institute, which sticky properties of a snail.” are even working on an application for also relies on research partnerships for at is why Professor Christoph Weder, brain implants.” As the brain doesn’t 60% for funding, has been developing the director of AMI, has developed a easily tolerate a rigid device for longer soft materials inspired by all kinds of passionate interest in the sea cucumber periods, it could be possible to soften the biological mechanisms created by Mother during the past ten years. An encounter implant after placing it, to diminish or Nature to assemble, heal, protect, repli- and then research with a marine biologist avoid rejection risks. A medical device cate, etc. living organisms. in the US allowed him to gain a better supplier is also contemplating using this Christoph Weder e scope of application of these highly understanding of how this unappealing technology to develop new infusion and Barbara miniaturised technologies is wide, as it echinoderm can turn a soft epidermis into needles that will prevent the inconve- Rothen-Rutishauser. concerns the nanoscale (1 nanometre = a tough shell. “Its skin is a nanocomposite niences caused by metal needles. 1 billionth of a metre) and more specifi - made of soft material with some unorga- is approach is typical of the work cally molecules. AMI has been focusing nised rigid nanofi bres,” the chemistry carried out by the 65 researchers of the magine a fabric designed to self-re- on a niche that draws on the never-en- professor explains. “When the marine institute – a workforce that is set to Adolphe Merkle Institute’s pair, shift colour on request or even ding story of natural evolution. animal is undergoing stress, it generates a double by 2016. Currently organised into become bulletproof at the moment molecular glue that hooks up all its nano- diff erent research groups focusing on a shot rings out. It reminds you of an Inspired by Mother Nature fi bres. It allows it to harden its macromolecular and polymer bioinspired materials action hero costume, and it more or On his slides, Marc Pauchard, the associate skin by a factor of 10 in order THE AMI HAS BEEN chemistry, material science, Iless is – except that we aren’t in Bruce director at AMI, is showing a butterfl y to keep safe.” biology and soon to be ex- FOCUSING ON “Batman” Wayne’s secret laboratory but wing, a shellfi sh, an octopus and even a As part of AMI’s research, tended on physics, the funda- The latest among the research institutes established in Western in Fribourg, at the Adolphe Merkle sea cucumber. “Nature provides an inesti- Christoph Weder developed a A NICHE THAT DRAWS mental research is based on Switzerland, the AMI is putting all of nature’s secrets to work Institute (AMI). mable source of inspiration,” he says. similar composite based on a ON THE NEVER-ENDING interdisciplinarity as well as e institute is a centre of competence “Biomimetics is the imitation of Nature’s polymer matrix and cellulose STORY OF NATURAL bio-inspiration. Its mission: in the development of nanotechnologies. A new national research focusing on research around nanotech- systems. For instance, Ilford copied the nanofi bres. It stiff ens when to develop next-generation EVOLUTION programme has made it a leader in this field. BY FABRICE DELAYE nologies. It was founded in 2008 thanks PHOTOS: DR structure of the pigment on a butterfl y exposed to a chemical stimu- materials with new functions.

24 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 25 FEATURES MEDTECH

“We remain isolated from the market logical one for us. ese companies have because as researchers we do not know shorter growth cycles than those in the what the market is willing to accept. But «Medtech is accessible biotech industry, as well as a faster return fortunately we are updated by our indus- on investment. In the medtech industry, trial partners for applications,” says to small investors» the business model is – more often than Christoph Weder. not – based on a specifi c type of techno- e research group concentrating on logy that will allow the development of biological studies is led jointly by Professor Emmanuel de Watteville, partner and co-founder of the venture an identifi ed product, such as a diagnos- Barbara Rothen-Rutishauser and capital company Blue Ocean Ventures, explains why medtech tic device for someone suff ering from Professor Alke Fink – who leads the diabetes or gluten intolerance. A proof of BY PASCAL VERMOT materials science aspect of the research. values are exciting to all types of investors. concept has already been demonstrated. Barbara Rothen-Rutishauser focuses on In the biotech industry, return on invest- the lung, the only internal human organ eneva- based, Blue Ocean ment is longer and unreliable. that is in constant interaction with the Ventures is an investment external environment. Its surface area in The institute company that aims at placing Can small investors position themselves contact with the environment is about 140 is house a new the ventures in which it invests in medtech values or is that only open to square metres (for comparison, the diges- National Centre in untapped markets where professionals? tive system has a surface area of around of Competence “theG water is fresh and blue”. Its approach It’s diffi cult to get into medtech if you 120 square metres and the skin more or in Research. is comprehensive from deal sourcing to have just 100,000 francs to invest, but it is less 2 square metres). “It is essential to following up and exiting. feasible via a club of business angels or a create in vitro models to replace animal venture capital fi rm. We have investors of testing for research on particles breathed sealed liposomal vesicles to carry drugs. bio-inspired and stimuli-responsive Why is the medtech industry in this kind among our customers. But I in and medication delivered through A membrane coated with nanoparticles nanomaterials. e centre will receive a Switzerland so interesting? would highly recommend not surrende- inhalers,” explains Barbara Rothen- enables the drug carrier to react to ma- total of CHF 12 million in federal funding It is a dynamic industry because it is at ring to a “coup de coeur” investment in Rutishauser. Her group has already suc- gnetic fi eld to enable controlled drug over the initial four-year operating period the crossroads of skills that feature only one or two projects. It is really cessfully replicated the blood–air barrier release. at means it can deliver the drug and is poised to become an international strongly here: micro- and nanotechno- important to diversify, investing in 8 to 10 in Petri dishes. Now she is experimenting to a cancer tumour more eff ectively and hub for research, education and innova- logy on the one hand, and pharmaceutics projects to ensure a satisfactory return on with 3D printing of the lung model. more locally, thus avoiding serious side tion in one of the most promising re- on the other. One of Blue Ocean Ventures’ investment. And remember that fi nan- eff ects. search domains of materials science. principles is to invest in companies that cing a start-up is done in several rounds. Batman technologies Since AMI was founded, bio-inspiration e overarching research theme of the are top of the class. In Switzerland, the Small investors don’t have the suffi cient Nature didn’t simply create materials to has defi ned the institute. It is now streng- new NCCR is to take inspiration from ecosystem is so developed that it is fairly means to invest beyond the initial round. be used in various ways but also deve- thening its activity in two ways. First, nature to design artifi cial materials which easy to benchmark one company against ey can always fi nd a project in which to loped complex mechanisms to activate Ullrich Steiner, currently Professor of can change their properties “on com- another. It is hardly coincidental that all invest but they will probably not get a them: just consider the structure of Physics of Materials at the Cavendish mand”. Such materials, sometimes the large fi rms active in the medtech higher return than investing in venture cartilage tissues; the on-demand release Laboratory of the University of referred to as “smart” or “intelligent”, are industry are either based in Switzerland capital funds such as ours. of fragrance managed by fl owers to Cambridge, is joining the institute to lead a of fundamental scientifi c interest and or have their European headquarters attract insect pollinators essential to their new soft materials research group. He potentially useful in countless applica- here. All these companies, such as Sulzer What are the top qualities you look out for reproduction; or, in the inner ear, the became famous for developing nanopoly- tions, ranging from climate control Medica or Straumann, bring with them in medtech companies? ability of sensory hair cells to transduce mers mimicking the adhesive properties elements for buildings to drug delivery numerous scientifi c and managerial Number one would be the team. at is to sound waves into neural impulses trans- of gecko feet. Almost half a million hairs systems. e national competence centre talents, which can then spawn start-ups. say, a team’s capacity to adapt to a market mitted to the brain. e AMI researchers (setae) cover the toes of the feet of this will unite 14 research groups based at Naturally, this gives rise to new invest- that evolves in an unexpected fashion. are learning from these mechanisms to reptile, and each gecko hair splits multiple AMI and the University of Fribourg’s ment opportunities. ough the risk linked to technology is control and activate the nanomaterials times with, at their ends. ese spatula- departments of chemistry, medicine, and weak for Swiss companies, it’s not rare to they create. For instance, the like structures (spatulae) allow the lizard physics, as well as leading research Your portfolio includes several medtech see teams disintegrate in full fl ight. Nanoparticles Self-Assembly group, led to adhere to most surfaces – even the groups at the University of Geneva, the companies – Sensimed, Augurix, Spreading out the responsibilities by Professor Marco Lattuada, uses exter- smoothest ones. Physical understanding Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Myopowers – and very little between the technical manager who nal magnetic fi elds to adjust the structure of comparable mechanisms should en- Zurich (ETHZ), and the Swiss Federal biotechnology. Why such a choice? invents the technology and a CEO who is of silica gels layer by layer – a procedure hance the biological and chemical Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL). Our strategy is to invest in companies at a responsible for market development is that may help to develop artifi cial articu- knowledge of the other research groups. is should be a guarantee of new sustai- very early stage, to help them develop generally a good approach. Also, the lar replacement tissues that mimic Next, the institute is house a new nable fi nancial resources – and eventual- and then to sell them before they reach ability to protect your own technology natural joint cartilage. Professor Alke National Centre of Competence in ly lead the AMI to create Batman-like the stage of mass production. Our choice Emmanuel de Watteville co-founder of Blue and to know how to develop your own

Fink is working on smart biocompatible Research (NCCR), focusing on smart technologies. of the medtech industry was a perfectly Ocean Ventures. sales network is just as crucial. PHOTOS: DR

26 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 27 FEATURES MEDTECH

and the real economy. e partners deve- knew each other and had already worked to help patients with impaired hearing to The Bioindenter – loped a navigation system that helps together on another project,” explains locate their speaker spatially. And it is an innovative device surgeons locate metastatic tumours with Gilles Weder, the engineer in charge of thanks to the University of Geneva that for measuring great precision. With this device, practi- the project. one of the heavyweights in the biophar- the elasticity tioners can intervene on an organ with SMEs are not the only companies to maceutical industry, UCB Farchim, was of biological tissues. a very complex vascular system – such approach Western Switzerland’s institutes. able to master a technical obstacle in the as the liver, the brain or the kidneys – In the medtech sector, CSEM boasts manufacturing process of an anti-allergic by building a virtual model that uses data famous names within its network of agent. supplied by a scanner, while being able industrial partners: Phonak, Johnson & Academic institutions do not seek the to consult real-time ultrasound images Johnson, Roche and Medtronic for ins- industry’s interest merely to boost inno- of the inside of the organ. “ e technical tance, with which the Neuchâtel-based vation within laboratories. In 2005 for challenge consisted in the integration of research institute led a CTI project for an instance, EPFL set up the Innogrants the diff erent images,” notes Stefan Weber, alarm system to warn of cardiac-induced programme, providing fi nancial support director of Artorg and project manager. blackouts. in the form of non-repayable subsidies to Now that the procedure has been deve- Many fi rms have been established for allow students and employees to launch loped, CAScination, as the industrial several decades and are now looking for their own start-ups. It has become one of partner, is responsible for transforming ways to boost their innovative strength. the elements contributing to the vitality it into a marketable product. Produits Dentaires SA, a family business of the medtech sector in Western For the procedure to reach this point, based in Vevey and founded in 1940, has Switzerland. two factors played an important role: discovered novel instruments to clean “ e Lake Geneva region off ers extre- the project was fi nancially supported by dental root canals by collaborating with mely fertile soil in the fi eld of medical the CTI; and the two partners knew each the “Industrial Microtechnology Institute technology, which itself stems from the other well – the CEO of CAScination, of University of applied sciences HE-Arc”. fi elds of microtechnology and robotics. Matthias Peterhans, was Stefan Weber’s Hearing aid manufacturer Phonak has Young companies like Endoart, Sensimed doctoral student. turned to the expertise of the Laboratory and Aleva Neurotherapeutics have been Among the university’s latest achieve- of Electromagnetics and Acoustics at EPFL able to raise important capital. A few A holy alliance between ments are the development of a proce- Public private partnerships to develop a new generation of prostheses companies, like DistalMotion, were fi rst dure that uses lasers for surgery on the Do successful medtech colla- launched with the support of abdominal cavity and which requires no borations always depend on their laboratory before bene- research and industry incision – the fruit of a collaboration with the two same ingredients? fi ting from fi nancial aid. One Schaff hausen-based SME Storz Endoskop ey do seem to be found in of DistalMotion’s characteris- When it comes to innovation, SMEs and large enterprises are Produktions – and simulation software many successful public-pri- tics is to use high-precision for cataract surgery launched by the vate partnerships. And this is mechanics to increase the counting on the intellectual capital generated in the laboratories Biel-based company ISS. how the Swiss Centre for performance of delicate and institutes of Western Switzerland. BY PASCAL VERMOT is performance can be explained, Electronics and surgical interventions,” in part, by the University of Bern’s invest- Microtechnology (CSEM) explains Hervé Lebret, ment in an ad hoc structure, the succeeded in designing the in charge of Innogrants. s Western Switzerland about to reinvent themselves. Biomedical Imaging Research Centre, Bioindenter – an innovative Engaging in the medtech become a “Medtech Valley”? In the otherwise known as Artorg. e centre device for measuring the sector, however, is not a shadow of the big university hospi- The academic gold mine makes no secret of its hopes to “integrate elasticity of biological tissues guarantee of success. tals such as the CHUV (Centre roughout the whole of Western training, discoveries, innovation and – with CSM Instruments, a e young EPFL spin-off Hospitalier Universitaire Vaudois) Switzerland, new procedures or devices entrepreneurship” by “encouraging new company also based in Stereotools had to close down Iand the HUG (Hôpitaux Universitaires de are seeping out of academic medical partnerships between clinicians, funda- Neuchâtel and now a subsi- a few months ago because Genève) and the corporate giants, such as technology and fi nding mental researchers and diary of the Austrian group of a lack of fi nance, despite a Medtronic and Johnson & Johnson, new industrial outlets. For several THROUGHOUT WESTERN engineers” through technolo- Anton Paar. “ e fi rst impor- revolutionary innovation for generations of young medtech companies years now, the University of gy transfer. tant element was the geogra- guiding surgical procedures are emerging from Western Switzerland’s Bern has monopolised the CTI SWITZERLAND, NEW e collaboration between phical and historical proximi- on the brain. Missed opportu- laboratories and research institutes every Swiss Medtech Award – one of PROCEDURES OR Artorg and a young Bernese ty between CSEM and CSM nities can also occur on the year. So much so that the companies, the sector’s most prominent DEVICES ARE SEEPING company, CAScination, is a Instruments. CSM innovation front – but this especially SMEs, are turning to the acade- prizes –which is awarded by OUT OF ACADEMIC good example of the kind of Instruments is a CSEM spin- may be the price to be paid mic world for the know-how they lack the Commission for bonds that can be established off that was launched about when a technology cluster MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY or the innovation potential they need to Technology and Innovation. between academic institutions PHOTOS: DR twelve years ago. e teams InSphero offers 3D cell-based screening services. scales up.

28 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 29 FEATURES MEDTECH

How the World Health Organization is betting on medtech innovation Since 2007, Geneva-based WHO is guiding the medtech network of health technology contacts within health ministries - usually will policies of member countries to improve access to biomedical engineers with knowledge of life-critical technologies. We are seeing a paradigm shift medical devices. We provide them with technical guidelines. We have documents for the developing world. BY FABRICE DELAYE describing policies on medical devices, with guidance for assessment and procu- s Coordinator, Diagnostic is competent not only for drugs but also rement. We also hold a lot of workshops Imaging and Medical Devices for medical devices – that is still not the at country, region and global levels. We at the World Health case in 35% of the member countries. e collect and promote best practices from Organization in Geneva, third one is assessment: we want to check diff erent countries for others to emulate Adriana Velazquez Berumen whether the technologies are really cost them. For example, the second Global hasA been leading the WHO’s recent eff orts eff ective and match existing social needs Forum for Medical Devices here in to orient health technologies and innova- and infrastructures. e fourth compo- Geneva last November drew more than tion toward low-resource settings requi- nent is technology management: this 600 people from 110 countries. We held rements, as is already the case for drugs involves several things, from selection, the fi rst forum in 2010 in Bangkok and and vaccines. Technology by Bilan talks needs assessment, procurement, dona- will hold them every three years. In to her to understand why and how these tion and installation to maintenance, Geneva, we had 200 papers submitted, technologies have recently emerged as safe use and decommissioning 150 presentations and 38 workshops. a major topic for the leading health au- I believe that refl ects a deep need for thority in the world. Interview. Are there specific challenges in information. implementing this strategy? How does WHO sees its role in medical Progress in medical technology is ama- Why that need and why now? technologies? zing. Innovation happens every day. And e WHO’s resolution on medical tech- One of WHO’s six objectives is to increase with medical devices, unlike with drugs nology was approved in 2007, thanks to access to aff ordable, quality and safe or vaccines, you have upgrades or maybe funding from the Gates foundation. is medical products. is includes medical add a new function to a given technology, Global Initiative on Health Technology devices. One way to improve access in the creating de facto a new product. And it triggered a lot of awareness. ere was member states is to implement the right can be done in six months. So everything also a key publication about priorities in policies to favour access to these techno- changes very quickly and the spectrum is medical technology, thanks to support for logies. Currently, only 34% of the 145 wide. WHO considers as medical devices WHO from the government of member countries have a national health any health-related items, apparatus or Netherlands. e conclusion emphasised technology policy that is part of the technologies that do not have a pharma- a mismatch: there is a boom in medtech, national health programme, while only cological aspect. So they can apply in but also confusion and a lack of informa- 9% have an independent national health diagnostic treatment, rehabilitation and tion because the industry is doing a lot of technology policy. palliative care. If we put that together market push instead of being driven by there are more than 20,000 market needs. And there was What guidelines do these policies have? types of medical devices. So THE SECOND GLOBAL a lack of proper nomenclature ey have four components. One is making the right selection is as well as of standard regula- Adriana Velazquez FORUM FOR MEDICAL innovation: WHO favours innovation if it a very complicated matter. tory processes. at is when Berumen, matches the needs of the population and Often people do not know DEVICES HERE IN GENEVA WHO stepped in. Coordinator, focuses on prioritised diseases such as what to choose among so LAST NOVEMBER DREW Diagnostic Imaging malaria. e second thing we focus a lot many brands. MORE THAN 600 PEOPLE It seems late… and Medical Devices on is regulation: we want to make sure How do you help them? e need was there before but at the WHO. FROM 110 COUNTRIES that countries have a regulatory body that WHO has established a WHO had no tools. Now we get PHOTOS: DR

30 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 31 FEATURES MEDTECH

EssentialTech redesigns medical technologies to make them affordable, robust and adapted to the local context of low-income countries.

a lot of requests from member states used in a low-resource environment in at home, but the fl ash in their cameras because they know there is a unit for World’s first digital the industrial countries – such as an may alter the quality of the image and medical devices inside WHO. Industry, radiography for low-income emergency vehicle – that might be ap- therefore induce a wrong telediagnostic. too, wants to engage. Companies ask what plied in the context of low-income devices are needed now and which RESEARCH Launched by the Cooperation countries. When it comes to health, the issue of cost diseases we want to target. And acade- and Development Center of EPFL, control is not one for developing economies mics are asking the same. ey want to do EssentialTech aims to contribute to Could WHO commission specific research only. How does WHO see it for medtech? research on things that have an impact, so reducing poverty by developing essential to match the medtech needs of low-income Since the economic crisis of 2008, and they are asking us. We go back to the technologies, particularly in the field of countries? because all countries want to achieve countries and try to fi nd out their exact healthcare. The approach relies on No, because we do not have an inde- universal health coverage, medtech’s needs. On the other hand, the health completely redesigning technology to make pendent R&D budget. We use our network costs have become much more signifi - ministries are asking us to recommend it affordable, robust and adapted to the of stakeholders, NGOs, academia and cant. Countries are not purchasing like which devices they should buy.. local context of low-income countries. It other organisations to multiply the activi- they did before. e selections are more We list the medical devices that should be also involves the development of business ties. For example, we know pneumonia rational. Even high-income countries are in a hospital but we do not recommend models ensuring that technologies will be diagnostics are really poor in low-income requesting the help of WHO when selec- specifi c brands. For example, we are deployed in sustainable ways. countries. So we bring experts together to ting new technologies. Regulatory proce- releasing a book now about all the mate- Project GlobalDiagnostiX, EssentialTech’s spark research in this fi eld. e only dures are also converging to accelerate rial you need in a maternal unit. e current flagship, is developing the world’s exception is for tuberculosis, HIV and the market reach of innovations. at is problem we have noticed is that hospitals first digital X-ray imaging system entirely malaria, where there is funding thanks to rather new: the International Medical or community points of care often part of designed for low-income countries. the Gates Foundation and UNITAID. Devices Regulators Forum, which is the system. And we are dealing with the “Access to radiographic [X-ray] imaging is leading this harmonisation process, specifi c issue of donations. to 300% for exactly the same product. at addressing the specific needs and contexts still unavailable to an estimated two-thirds In developed economies, eHealth is now all started only two years ago means the poor are paying a high price. We of low-resources countries instead of of humanity today. This lack of access is the rage, with promises of better and How donations could be a problem? are now trying to identify the origins of the adapting medical technologies developed especially dramatic given the high burden of cheaper healthcare. Won’t it make sense The WHO is based in Western Switzerland, ey are a huge problem. Too often, problem. Is it taxes? Transport? for high-income economies? Why don’t road traffic accidents in developing for low-income countries to leapfrog health right in a middle of a major medtech hub. developed countries are giving their Corruption? Or, at it appears to be often the medtech companies see the opportunity countries: WHO estimates that there are up development by adopting eHealth How do you interact with it? garbage, really. Some get tax refunds, case, does it result from a cascade of there? to 50 million victims annually worldwide, technologies directly? e industrial companies used to make others do big PR operations to announce distributors? We hope fi nd evidence to First, there is the funding issue. And 90% of them living in developing countries,” eHealth is one of the medical technologies their own visits or send their own that they are donating equipment. In tackle the problem later this year. medtech companies are used to reques- explains Klaus Schönenberger, co-founder we are following. We are very well aware requests. So we asked them to group reality, what they are giving are problems. ting marketing authorisations for the of EssentialTech. that the digitisation of health is happening together in trade organisations. One is call Where they arrive there are no parts or If you say some donations are nothing but most sophisticated products. It is in their The goal is to develop a device at a tenth of right now. Our main concern there is that GMTA (Global Medical Technologies consumables. Manufacturers often have garbage, doesn’t it raise the issue of culture. Still, things are changing. During the cost of any system on the market today, if you want to use things like smartphones Alliance) and the other is the Global no local distributors, and nobody does decommissioning? the past three to fi ve years, some compa- taking into account the initial purchase and or other connected devices to do diagnos- Diagnostic Imaging, Healthcare IT, and maintenance. We did workshops to Sure. It could be that donations are in fact nies have started to open offi ces in deve- a minimum of 10 years of operating costs. tics, you need to have a medical-grade Radiation erapy Trade Association or empower people, explaining to them a cheap way to decommission. at’s not loping economies. Manufacturers are The system will be designed for use in product. Does that mean such devices DITTA, which is more IT-oriented. We it is better to say no to a donation than to the general case – often not having the getting interested in the base of the pyra- district hospitals where electrical supply is have to be regulated and approved in the meet with them and provide information, receive a problem. And we wrote gui- right electricity or even adaptors is the fi rst mid. Some are doing “reverse innovation”. erratic, where the climate is harsh and same way as other medical devices? e an ethical code, etc. With academia, we dance on donations. problem. 75% of health centres in Africa GE, for example, is making an electrocar- where most existing systems fail within a question is still open: How could we make normally interact a lot through internatio- have no electricity, or no stable electricity. diograph with just one channel. few months. Little to no maintenance will be the best use of these mobile health tech- nal expertise. Still, major universities such What principles are behind the guidance? But what really worries us is that in some required, and use by incompletely trained nologies to diagnose, monitor and send as MIT, Northwestern, Rice or Stanford What matters is not the equipment but the cases medical technologies have been And what can WHO do to help this sort of personnel will be facilitated. Teleradiology, medical messages to the patient? have now global health programmes. ey operating costs. With medtech, you need donated without even being cleaned. at innovation? which allows images to be sent to remotely send their students to places like Malawi, the skills, the training, the electricity, the has driven us to write a new book about We have just launched a compendium of located experts, will be integrated using the And what about the opportunity for low- Tanzania and so on. to see what is needed. consumables, the maintenance, and so on. decommissioning medical new and emerging technolo- existing cellphone network. income countries? When they come back they do a project It is really expensive, and most countries technologies, with detailed HOW COULD WE MAKE gies. e idea is to get from Under the leadership of the EssentialTech Telemedicine has much more power and within their university to develop an do not see that. We are trying to raise procedures both for developed companies and academia the team, an alliance has been created that acceptance in low-income countries, adapted technology. At EPFL (the Swiss awareness about the total costs of and developing countries. THE BEST USE OF MOBILE products they have or are includes around 40 researchers, specialists because they do not have specialists. And Federal Institute of Technology in ownership. It has driven us to launch a HEALTH TECHNOLOGIES currently developing that and engineers across Switzerland and the cost of bandwidth has decreased, Lausanne) they have a remarkable pro- massive survey to understand a specifi c Considering the infrastructure TO DIAGNOSE, MONITOR would meet the needs of Africa. The project began in 2012, and while smartphones are getting more gramme called Essential Tech. ere they problem beyond donations – namely, we problems in developing AND SEND MEDICAL low-income and emerging elements of the first prototype are already powerful. But there are issues. For develop technology specifi cally for low- have noticed price diff erences between countries, won’t it make sense countries. For example, they available, such as a robust X-ray generator. example, remote patients may be asked to income countries, such as simplifi ed developed and low-income countries of up to innovate with products MESSAGES TO PATIENTS? may have technologies that are take a picture of an X-ray image they keep X-ray machines. at is truly visionary.

32 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 33 THE LARGE VIEW

Western Switzerland, a conducive business environment for medtech Switzerland is among the global medical technology Switzerland still values the spirit of the 16th-century (medtech) hotspots, with Western Switzerland a stri- watchmakers, through the nurturing and continued kingly active and strong player. Switzerland has higher growth of its high-quality, high-precision medtech relative medtech shares of employment, gross do- sector, focusing on innovation and cutting-edge tech- mestic product (GDP) and exports than Germany, the nologies as the cornerstone for its competitive edge. United Kingdom, the European Union, and the United e more recent development of microelectronics has States. Today, 1.1% of all employment and 4.8% of all enabled the region to build deep insights and bring industrial employment in Switzerland is in the med- disruptive technologies to the market. For example, tech sector; medical devices represent 2.1% of GDP cardiac stents and cardiac stimulation were fi rst de- and 5.5% of all export goods from Switzerland. Some veloped in Western Switzerland, opening lucrative 1,600 companies throughout Switzerland span manu- worldwide markets. ese technologies have evolved facturing, service provision, trade and distribution in directly from the knowhow in the region, giving pa- non-metabolic products, instruments and equipment, tients a new lease of life. and diagnostics. A second source of success is that Western Switzerland Like the rest of the healthcare industry, medtech is comprises a unique medtech ecosystem. A whole in- facing major challenges: changing regulatory environ- frastructure exists for medtech companies, ranging from ments, increased pressure on pricing, patient demand R&D to production and commercialisation, including for quality, increased patient co-payment with less subcontractors. Every step in the value chain can be individual purchasing power for many people, and fully achieved within close geographic proximity. ere strong global competition. Despite this, the medtech is a high density of institutions, small and large medtech community in Western Switzerland is thriving, thanks companies, and service companies. Effi cient technolo- to the political will to support medtech and the palette gy transfer enables scientifi c and technological research of institutions, companies and research facilities which and innovation to be translated into marketable pro- all contribute to this growth sector. ducts. Experts assist companies to interna- HERE, EVERY STEP tionalise their products. Collaboration, de- ere are many reasons for Western dication to quality, business consistency and Switzerland’s presence and success in the IN THE VALUE CHAIN a long-term perspective are characteristic of global medtech market. e fi rst is that the CAN BE FULLY Western Switzerland. industry has grown out of the knowhow ACHIEVED WITHIN of centuries that the region has in micro- CLOSE GEOGRAPHIC e tightly knit community also has access technology, mechanical engineering and to some of the top research and teaching the watch-making industry. Western PROXIMITY facilities in the world, as well as a highly

34 Summer 2014 Western Switzerland, a conducive business environment for medtech qualifi ed workforce of some 50,000 people. Such pres- cluster organises, alone or with others, events to pro- tigious institutions as the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale mote business opportunities. Whether it is the an- de Lausanne (EPFL), and the Universities of Bern, nual spring medtech investing event in Lausanne or Geneva and Lausanne have close links with the tea- the autumn BioAlps Networking Day, BioAlps off ers a ching hospitals, which provide the infrastructure and platform to investors, innovators, researchers and the expertise for clinical trials, while CSEM and technical many other players to create opportunities for growth. high schools are perfect partners for designing n very high-precision devices and improved manufacturing  e 2014 BioAlps Networking Day will take place in processes.  e region hosts state-of-the-art core faci- October in the canton of Neuchâtel to showcase com- lities to carry out basic research, applied research and petences and opportunities in the medtech industry. product development. It will be a perfect occasion to demonstrate just how attractive a region Western Switzerland is.  e unique combination of an attractive geographic location nestled in the heart of Europe, stable econo- mic conditions and fl exible labour laws has led major multinationals such as Medtronic, Stryker, Johnson & Johnson, Beckman Coulter and Edwards Lifesciences to locate their European headquarters within Western Switzerland.  is has, in turn, attracted medium-sized companies and promoted the creation of many start- ups spanning the whole range of the medtech industry. An additional attraction is the fi nancing of young tech- nologies and life science companies through coordi- nated activity supported by multiple institutions and funding pools.  e cantons of Western Switzerland are more dedicated than ever to promoting conditions conducive to business development and R&D. MR PHILIPPE LEUBA MR JEAN-NATH KARAKASH Minister of Economy and Minister of Economy  e cantons in Western Switzerland, namely Bern, Sport, Canton of Vaud and Social Affairs Fribourg, Vaud, Neuchâtel, Geneva, Valais and Jura, President of the Conference Canton of Neuchâtel support the BioAlps cluster, together with the Swiss of Economic Departments State Councilor State Secretariat for Economic Aff airs (SECO) and the of Western Switzerland key research institutions in the region.  e life science Cantons (CDEP-SO)

Summer 2014 35 BIOALPS 4TO6 COMPANY PROFILE

nezumab completed Phase II clinical trials software solutions adapted to needs, AC Immune is creating in July 2014 showing encouraging cogni- while meeting the strict standards tion data in mild Alzheimer’s patients. It required by the various fi elds. was also chosen by the US National a cure for Alzheimer’s Institute of Health (NIH) and international Experts for customer service health authorities for the fi rst-ever With its twenty-odd employees, Alzheimer’s preventative trial. We believe Productec is one of GibbCAM’s most through excellent science its binding profi le and very favorable important retailers. Besides acting as safety profi le were major drivers in its retailer, the company also works AC Immune builds leadership and makes good progress selection. With Tau as the second target, shoulder to shoulder with the software AC Immune developed the ACI-35 vaccine manufacturer in the USA, where it in Alzheimer’s disease drug development and beyond… and started the fi rst ever pTau vaccine co-develops modules specifi cally EVA SCHIER, CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER, AC IMMUNE Phase I trial early in 2014. A pre-clinical adapted to Swiss and European needs anti-Tau antibody for the treat- in micro-technology. iseases where mis- ment of AD has been out-licen- With its multiple skill sets, Productec folded proteins play a SupraAntigen sed to Genentech in 2012. can off er high-quality user support, major role represent a technology  e early diagnosis of programming skills and the guarantee of signifi cant portion of is the basis Alzheimer’s disease is becoming targeted training programs. the world’s most se- of a strong more important. So far there are Apprentices, technicians and engi- Drious health problems.  ese drug pipeline. no approved imaging technolo- neers are given GibbsCAM training in diseases include Alzheimer’s gies to detect Tau protein in The company secondary and tertiary education, but Disease (AD), Parkinson’s patients, presenting a challenge develops software over 350 machining professionals are Disease, Amyothrophic Lateral in AD diagnosis and the deve- to enable design, also trained every year on GibbsCAM Sclerosis and other Tauopathies, lopment of disease modifying creation and use software within the premises of and Glaucoma among others. AC treatments. In 2014, AC of CNC machines. Productec. Because GibbsCAM’s Immune focuses on AD as a Immune has agreed an exclusive software is easily accessible, managers primary indication. AD is reco- worldwide license agreement have collaborators at their disposal who gnized as one of the most signifi - with Piramal for the research, can manage their own production. cant health challenges of this development and commerciali- Productec: Such almost immediate operability century with an enormous zation of AC Immune’s Tau makes for rapid and effi cient Return personal, social and economic protein positron emission On Investment (ROI). impact. tomography (PET) tracers watchmaking precision Forty-four million patients supporting the diagnosis and Services that evolve are currently suff ering from clinical management of With the continuous aim of meeting its dementia, a number that is Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and for the medical field customers’ demands, Productec also growing due to increased life potential Tau-related disorders. off ers solutions in keeping with needs in expectancy. To date, there is no A Jura-based company is optimising the production processes the medical fi eld. Quality and traceability known cure. Scientists still do Significant opportunities of components, or indeed machine not fully understand what to leverage drug molecule for machined medical parts thanks to state-of the-art software. performance calculation within the causes AD, but it has become and diagnostic platforms FRANÇOIS STEULET, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PRODUCTEC SA framework of important series, are daily increasingly clear that the Misfolded proteins being in- requirements in the medical fi eld. disease develops over a long volved in multiple diff erent roductec is a Swiss leader in For the past few years, GibbsCAM has To ensure the best production possible, period of time starting well before the and two diagnostics encompassing anti- disease areas opens a big opportunity for programming complex parts been renowned for its complex milling Productec off ers all the skills needed to disease actually manifests. Two proteins body therapeutics, therapeutic vaccines, AC Immune in leverage existing drug for the medical and food in- and turning applications in watchmaking deploy both its production surveillance – Tau and Abeta - are considered the small molecules, diagnostic imaging molecules. Also the two technology plat- dustry sectors. In the past and the medical fi elds. Productec is an system and its OEE (Overall Equipment major hallmarks in people with agents and in vitro diagnostics. forms can be used to target misfolded 25 years, following its success established company in Swiss turning, Eff ectiveness) computing surveillance Alzheimer’s disease: tangles and other  e three clinical products and nume- proteins to rapidly develop new drugs and Pin the fi elds of microtechnology and and has developed comprehensive system via its DNC solution. In an age abnormal forms of Tau protein accumu- rous pre-clinical candidates were deve- diagnostics in multiple disease areas watchmaking, the Jura-based fi rm has capabilities in the procedures of this when every second counts and quality late inside the brain cells, while plaques loped using two unique, innovative and underlining the signifi cant potential of the developed all the tools necessary to particular fi eld. A number of procedures cannot be minimised, Productec stands and oligomers formed by Abeta occur proprietary technology platforms: company for future growth. develop software for machined medical have been conserved and can be applied apart from its competitors by off ering a outside the brain cells. SupraAntigen Technology and parts, as well as their management and to new parts, resulting in a drastic de- complete digital chain adapted to the Morphomer Technology. Both technolo- traceability. crease in programming time. relevant sector. Best-in-Class Therapies and gies enable AC Immune to specifi cally AC IMMUNE IN NUMBERS Currently, Productec is able to supply Productec has transposed this produc- A new off er for 2014 within Diagnostics target only the misfolded versions of 135 MILLION Alzheimer’s patients complete CAM (Computer Aided tivity growth into other fi elds of applica- Productec’s new range of services is robot Since 2003, AC Immune has created one of normal proteins and leave their normal worlwide in 2050 Manufacturing) programming solutions tion – most notably the food industry. steering for an optimised toolpath. the world’s most promising Alzheimer’s function intact. 50 Highly skilled employees dedicated to thanks to GibbsCAM and a DNC (Direct Working with other renowned  e speed and complexity of disease drug pipelines thanks to the high First, the SupraAntigen technology find a cure Numerical Control) software solution global food industry brands medical components deserve productivity of the company’s 50-em- targeted misfolded Abeta, resulting in an 7 Disease modifying therapeutics which ensures the traceability of the – including a world leader PRODUCTEC OFFERS specifi c safety systems and ployee team at the Innovation Park of the anti-Abeta vaccine that is in Phase I/IIa 3 Out-licensing deals for products components produced. based in Uzwil, St Gallen, that A COMPLETE DIGITAL round-the-clock operation. EPFL campus in Lausanne and the unique clinical development for AD, and crenezu- 2 Unique and proprietary technology produces machines for the CHAIN ADAPTED TO Naturally, this implies resor- and innovative research approach.  e mab which was out-licensed to Genentech platforms From watchmaking production to grain, pasta and fl our indus- ting to robots to ensure both THE RELEVANT SECTOR. pipeline consists of seven therapeutics in 2006.  e monoclonal antibody cre- PHOTOS: DR medical components and food items tries – Productec has off ered repeatability and precision.

36 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 37 BIOALPS 4TO6 COMPANY PROFILE

rements of the food and cosmetics indus- preparation of bio-active peptides.  e tries for more professional raw material At Cremo, milk is the use of membrane fi ltration and other sourcing. techniques such as electrodialysis or In 2013, the PhytoArk Sion-Conthey adsorption chromatography will permit technology park was launched with the first biotech product further separation of the components. aim of developing and turning natural Temperature control of the size of globu- ingredients into high-value-added pro- lar proteins is another method that is ducts for the cosmetics, health-nutrition A major dairy processor in Switzerland, Cremo is strengthening being evaluated to “trick” the mem- and phytopharmacy markets. its ties with the biotech community to build a portfolio branes and separate sub-types within a protein class. Gathering competences of new products that will contribute to the wellbeing of society. Bio-peptides that are isolated in this for innovation BY DR. BERNARD L. ROY, CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER, CREMO SA way can be screened in standard high-  e technological park, occupying throughput assays to identify potential 1,500 square metres and dedicated to rom its inception in 1927, Cremo healthy products while being at the disease areas where they can be used the extraction and purifi cation of natural has always drawn on traditions forefront of scientifi c and technological as leads or considered as additives for Alpine plant extracts ingredients, is focused on the needs of and quality to meet the challenge developments. Proteins and peptides are chronic, prophylactic use in food. Protein are used to develop companies, start-ups and researchers of new technologies. Cremo has perfectly suitable substances for delive- properties can also be modifi ed by shear new care products. for product innovation.  e PhytoArk 800 employees in fi ve main sites ring a benefi t to people of all ages. Milk stress or temperature-induced denatura- platform will allow the development of Fand processes around 600 million kg of has always been known for its “goodness” tion.  is has eff ects on gel strength, brand-new natural ingredients, from the milk per year.  e headquarters are in and Cremo is going to translate among other properties. R&D to the industrial process, going Villars-sur-Glâne Switzerland. Cremo that quality into healthy Microencapsulation of ingre- “CREMO TAKES PART PhytoArk: innovations through a fi rst pilot batch. PhytoArk also is a major dairy processor in the Swiss ingredients. dients such as vitamins or off ers fully equipped offi ces and laborato- landscape and an important partner in a IN THE WORLDWIDE probiotics using whey pro- ries, plus an open-space for young com- series of international strategic alliances. The “whey” forward EFFORT TO FIGHT THE teins creates a protective are in Alpine plants panies and start-ups. While not forgetting its roots, Cremo has Whey is a by-product from SCOURGE OF OBESITY” matrix that may overcome PhytoArk is also a network of specia- decided to move forward and strengthen cheese production and has problems associated with oral Through its technological platform and network of competences, lists in the fi eld of natural ingredients, its ties with the biotech community. been used as animal feed, but administration. As ubiquitous comprising outstanding competences its nutritional and pharmaceutical poten- foodstuff s, dairy products are an ex- PhytoArk revisits the ancestral traditions of harvesting Alpine from the raw materials to the market From grass to proteins tial have long been overlooked. Change cellent vector for distributing ingredients plants by bringing their qualities into in high-added-value launch. PhytoArk has established several Cremo’s strategic vision for the future as started with the use of membrane fi ltra- to the body. close collaborations with three key par- a “new-style” dairy research company is tion methods to separate protein types BY KARINE BOURGEOIS, PHYTOARK SION-CONTHEY innovative products. tners.  e fi rst, Mediplant, the Swiss based on the following points. Sustainable and to remove lactose without the use of Food and healthcare SITE MANAGER, AND MASSIMO NOBILE, BIOARK MONTHEY SITE MANAGER Research Centre on Medicinal and development based on a natural re- enzymes.  is has opened the door to Cremo has started to take part in the Aromatic Plants, deals with plant biopros- newable resource that is milk from cows. several product improvements and new worldwide eff ort to fi ght the scourge of he harvest of the so-called R&D activities. For example, Indian pecting, upscaling and pilot crops, espe- Invest in projects and alliances such as the uses for dairy ingredients. Enzymes are obesity and furnish healthy foods that «les simples» was a traditional Himalaya Drug Company has developed a cially alpine plants. Second, through technology of “milk cracking” and process not new to the dairy industry, but choo- promote satiety. Whether through fi bres practice of the mountains full line of products derived from Agroscope IPV, the PhytoArk network automation. Combine our knowledge and sing the right one for selective hydrolysis or the right type of proteins, it is possible populations in Valais. Plants Ayurvedic traditional medicine as thera- uses state-of-the-art fi elds, greenhouses expertise to develop innovative and is becoming a standard method for the to have some level of control on the were collected for their food peutics, food supplements and cosmetics. and laboratory facilities adapted for glycaemic index, which is an important usagesT and medicinal benefi ts, and prepa- Closer to us in Europe, Clarins develops research, domestication, breeding and factor for diabetes management. An red as teas or liqueurs. PhytoArk, through cosmetics inspired from local populations cultivation of MAPs. Finally, the University important aspect in dairy protein re- its technological platform, network of uses, such as Sabline’s extract incorpora- of Applied Sciences off ers R&D activities search is the involvement of branched competences and modern technological ted into the “Capital Lumière” product related to natural products such as the chain amino acids (BCAAs) in muscle assets, intends to renew these ancestral line. isolation and characterisation of active repair. BCAAs are abundant in whey traditions by incorporating the qualities substances from plants. proteins. With increasing numbers of of the alpine plants into high-added-value A story of investment on local aged people, loss of muscle mass (sar- products in strong-growth markets. resources The PhytoArk network copenia) is a condition that cannot be  erapeutic uses of plants are pretty well ignored. Dairy proteins or derived bio- The value of plants used in described in Valais. Indeed, one of the fi rst As an example, the two companies below peptides have shown activity in fi elds traditional pharmacopoeias texts highlighting the use of aromatic and illustrate the competences and activities on as varied as apoptosis and immunology. According to the World Health medicinal plants (MAPs) goes back to the the site of PhytoArk and in its network: Cremo is a partner in research collabora- Organization (WHO), between 70 to 80% beginning of the 20th century: in 1906, ALCHILAB SA Alchilab is a company with tions looking into several of these topics. of the population in developing countries Ferdinand Wolf wrote a book on the local full facilities and expertise for the industrial  e research model for Cremo is a depend on traditional medicines and medicinal plants in Valais. Later, alpine production of cosmetics, food supplements dynamic one that identifi es global needs pharmacopoeias for primary health care. medicinal plants harvested in the wild by and herbal remedies based on local and and searches the top world players. We In China, for example, traditional herbal the mountain dwellers continued to meet regional raw materials, essentially alpine then initiate collaboration, when pos- drugs still represent 50% of the total the needs of herbalists and pharmacists, plants. sible, that will satisfy all our stakeholders. “consumption” of medicines (WHO, and even for pharmaceutical companies PHARMALP SA Pharmalp develops and Cremo is a company that wants to add 2013). such as Zeller and Bioforce. markets food supplements and women’s Cremo processes value to its traditional pipeline and build  e growing interest in traditional drugs In the 1980s, driven by Ricola and health products whose scientific and 600 million kg a portfolio of new products that will and ingredients is opening new business Agroscope, the cooperative MAP grower clinical effectiveness have been proven. of milk each year. contribute to the wellbeing of all age

opportunities distinguished by intensive Valplantes was created to meet the requi- PHOTOS: DR groups. Milk is more than a drink!

38 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 39 BIOALPS 4TO6 COMPANY PROFILE

Biotherapies are also used in critical care company started in a small offi ce at La CSL Behring selects settings to treat shock, sepsis and severe Tulipe with a single staff member. It left burns, during cardiac surgery and for the FRM having grown to over 30 staff wound healing. In addition, biotherapies and is now the largest medical biotech the canton of Bern for are used to prevent haemolytic disease in company in Geneva. newborn babies resulting from Rh factor incompatibilities. The Fondation Eclosion its new manufacture CSL Behring’s presence in Switzerland  e FRM is complementary to the dates back to 1949 when the «ZLB Eclosion incubator. Start-up companies A global leader in the plasma protein therapeutics industry, Zentrallaboratorium Blutspendedienst hosted by the FRM are not looking for the SRK», a department of the Swiss Red intensive guidance provided by an incu- CSL Behring will produce recombinant haemophilia Cross, was founded.  is central labora- bator, either because their staff are expe- therapies in Switzerland. UWE E. JOCHAM, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT tory (ZLB) in Bern was designed to pro- rienced or because they are still in a very duce and supply blood products to early phase, searching proof of concept. AND GENERAL MANAGER, CSL BEHRING AG Switzerland. After it’s acquisition by CSL  e FRM provides adequate and adap- in 2000, a few name changes, and many table laboratory space at reasonable and fter two-and-a-half years From then, CSL Behring has evolved into important health care breakthroughs, fl exible cost, as well as access to animal of intense negotiations, a world leader in biotherapies, competing that location is now known as CSL facilities and common equipment. the Australian company CSL directly with Baxter. Behring AG. Today, the Bern site is a fully In summary, the Fondation pour Behring has fi nally chosen the integrated fractionation and manufactu- FRM housed Recherches Médicales aims to accelerate city of Lengnau, in the canton A leader in biotherapies ring facility specialising in the production biomedical start-up progress in medicine by providing infras- Aof Bern, to build a new state-of-the-art Biotherapies diff er from conventional of immunoglobulins. Due to the tremen- since the late 90’s. tructure, services and contacts at two production unit.  e choice was made chemical-derived pharmaceuticals in dous demand for immunoglobulin crucial interfaces: fi rst, between clinical at the expense of Singapore in the fi nal many ways, but the main one is that they therapies, it has experienced signifi cant and laboratory research; and second, bidding round. But early in the process, are derived from human plasma, or growth in recent years. between academic institutions (HUG; no fewer than 45 sites were competing. produced as their recombinant equiva- medical faculty of Geneva University) 300 new jobs From bedside to bench  e life-saving therapies of CSL Behring lents, instead of from chemicals. and the private sector, where biomedical trace its beginnings to the 1904 founding  erefore, the group also operates CSL In Switzerland, the biotechnology com- start-ups are a key element in innovation of Behringwerke, a company established Plasma, one of the world’s largest plasma pany CSL Behring already employs more and back at the FRM in modern diagnostics and novel by Emil von Behring, the fi rst recipient collection networks, throughout the than 1,250 people on its site in the city of therapies. of the Nobel Prize in Medicine. In 1916 CSL United States and Germany.  e Bern. It plans to invest between 300 and Behring’s parent company, CSL Limited, Australian company researches, deve- 400 million francs in its new location in The Fondation pour Recherches Médicales (FRM), a Geneva-based was founded to supply vaccines to the lops, manufactures and markets biothe- Lengnau, where it will manufacture three institution, specialises in translational medicine research. Home for spin-offs people of Australia. In 1946, Behringwerke rapies that are used to treat serious and new products for patients with haemo- Currently, five start-up companies operate BY WERNER SCHLEGEL, CONSULTANT FOR START-UP COMPANIES AT THE FRM, FORMER became the fi rst company in Europe to rare conditions.  ese conditions include philia A or B. Some 300 new jobs will be at “La Tulipe” or are housed at the FRM. begin fractionating plasma proteins from coagulation (bleeding) disorders such as created. It could also be the start of more DIRECTOR OF THE FRM, COFOUNDER AND BOARD MEMBER OF THE FONDATION ECLOSION. TRANSCURE (http://www.transcure- human plasma on an industrial scale. haemophilia and von Willebrand disease, development to come.  e company will biosciences.com/). This platform company During the 20th century, leading compa- immune defi ciencies and genetic em- utilise 145,000 square metres of land in he Fondation pour Recherches academic institutes and private research provides access to humanised immune nies came together to form CSL Behring. physema (inherited respiratory disease). total. And at its fi ve other global produc- Médicales or FRM (Foundation and development.  is was re-empha- system (HIS), HIV, and many other mouse tion sites the group (with 12,500 em- for Medical Research) was sised in the late 1990s when the FRM models for studying infectious and ployees in total), employs no fewer than created in the late 1960s, housed its fi rst biomedical start-up non-infectious diseases. 700 people at each site. a period when medical research company, Europroteome. Founded by STEMERGIE (http://www.stemergie.com/).  e proposed investment in the canton wasT expanding rapidly. At the time, the Marc Reymond, Europroteome analysed Stemergie develops treatments and of Bern will complement recently com- medical faculty as well as the university cancer proteomics to fi nd drug targets diagnostics for cancers by targeting pleted manufacturing expansion projects hospital lacked laboratory space; private and markers that would allow an optimal cancer-initiating cells (CIC, “cancer stem at CSL Behring sites in Germany, Australia sponsorship of a research building was choice of individualised anticancer cells”), the roots of cancer. and the USA.  is investment is part of an thus extremely welcome.  e FRM was therapy. Based fi nally near Berlin, AMAL THERAPEUTICS (http://www. ongoing global capacity expansion stra- founded to facilitate research which Europroteome operated with over 35 staff amaltherapeutics.com/). Amal uses its tegy and plays an important role in the would take issues from the “bedside to for two years, but had to close due to proprietary cell-penetrating peptide company’s long-term growth plans.  e the bench” and back.  e FRM thus mostly insuffi cient funding. platform to develop and progress new products that will be manufactured hosts research groups from Geneva In 2001, the University of Geneva therapeutic vaccines in oncology. in Lengnau have been developed jointly University Hospital (HUG), directed by started to create incubators where start- MAXIVAX This company aims to boost by CSL employees in Germany and clinicians.  e FRM is housed in a very up companies would be housed, guided anticancer vaccination by the implantation Australia. distinctive building, La Tulipe, a glass- and co-fi nanced during the early phase of encapsulated cells which release With Celgene, which has announced concrete “sculpture” ideally situated close of their development.  e FRM was very immune-stimulating growth factors. the construction of a new production site to the HUG. Research groups at La Tulipe active during the creation of Eclosion, Maxivax is currently conducting a phase 1 in the canton of Neuchâtel, and the also benefi t from the proximity of the Geneva’s incubator for life sciences clinical study. opening of the Europe Middle-East Africa CMU (Centre Medical Universitaire). companies, which opened in 2004. WEZENBIO (http://www.wezenbio.com/). CSL Behring will add headquarters of radiation oncology During the same time, the FRM was This business development company a new manufacturing site company Accuray in Morges, Western Incubating NovImmune hosting several small start-up companies, specialises in building bridges between to its existing one in Bern. Switzerland’s Health Valley is attracting Right from the start, a major objective of among them NovImmune SA (http:// human and veterinary medicine.

major new international investment. PHOTOS: DR the FRM was to create a bridge between www.novimmune.com/). In 1999, this

40 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 41 BIOALPS 4TO6 COMPANY PROFILE

engine running at a speed directly marketing this discovery, deve- of 600 revolutions per minute. The first 3D-printed loped with the University of Geneva, the company created a spin-off , VIVOS Innovation in its DNA Dental. With European CE marking FKG has invested heavily in innovation, organ is Swiss-made expected this year, the 3D-printed living opening a new production site in 2007 implants should be marketed shortly.  is and bringing a host of new products to will allow regenHU to supply VIVOS market. Indeed, over the years the R&D Based in Fribourg, regenHU is introducing 3D printing Dental with its 3D printers, leaving it free team has submitted several patents: one into R&D, paving the way for it to become a standard technology to focus on developing other applications, for Race instruments, developed to avoid from which new spin-off s may emerge. BY FABRICE DELAYE blocking and screwing-in eff ect (the in tomorrow’s clinics. cause of breakage); another for the Safety 3D-Printable organs Memory Disc, which allows the practitio- hat could Dr Jing Yang, a human spare parts. regenHU is a world Instead of focusing on 3D printers for ner to have better control of instrument researcher from leader in this new generation of medical design or manufacturing, regenHU is fatigue; and one for the S-Apex, an Nottingham University, technology.  e Swiss company has been betting on biology. It’s a fast-growing inverted cone drill designed in such possibly be looking for in developing 3D bio-printers for seven years niche, with a backlog of orders. Two years FKG installed a clean a way as to eliminate all risks of breakage Villaz St-Pierre, a peaceful now, and may be the fi rst to off er com- ago the company delivered one 3D prin- room to deliver at the tip. villageW in the canton of Fribourg? He is mercial 3D-printed living implants. ter a year. Currently it provides around sterile single As the production of these instruments visiting regenHU, a young Swiss biome- Standing behind one of the cafeteria 20 printers a year, costing between CHF used products. grows ever more complex and sales dical company, part of CPA Group Ltd and tables, Marc  urner, co-founder of 80,000 and CHF 500,000. Some buyers, numbers increase, FKG has stepped up a fl agship of its private technology park, regenHU, unwraps from its packaging such as the National University of design and development of its own Le Vivier. Pointing to a rotating 3D nose a small white block that looks very much Singapore, have ordered its high-end 3D machines. At the same time, the compa- model on a display, he explains: like a sugar cube. On closer inspection, printer, the BioFactory, while other Asian FKG Dentaire, always ny regularly undergoes a certifi cation “Scanners allows accurate pictures of an one can see tiny channels in the piece. universities have bought the 3DDiscovery process in accordance with the principal organ such as a nose that has to be remo- “ ey are intended to allow the jawbone systems. regenHU is taking orders from quality management systems and medi- ved from a patient. Today, it is already cells to fi ll up the space left by the loss of US universities that fi gure among the top one innovation ahead! cal norms of the industry. possible to print a 3D implant derived a tooth to provide a new ‘root’ to insert 10 in Shanghai University’s Academic In 2013, FKG installed a clean room in from the scanned image. Soon enough an implant,” explains the young CEO. Ranking of World Universities. order to deliver sterile, single-use pro- we believe we will be able to print In order to fi nd success in the dental  ese universities need the printers to In 20 years, FKG Dentaire has seen a six-fold increase in turnover. ducts that minimise the risks of cross- 3D transplantable living tissues.” implant market, regenHU came up with assay which organs could be printed with It is focusing on innovation in order to be a key player in the world contamination for the patient. In an eff ort Welcome to the world of 3D-printed an original business model. Instead of a combination of biocompatible mate- to reduce production costs, the company rials and tissue engineering. When you BY PATRICIA BORLOZ, MARKETING DIRECTOR OF FKG DENTAIRE of endodontics. also automated several steps of the talk to Dr Jing Yang, it is easy to fi gure out manufacturing process and set up auto- why. He is trying to print 3D matrixes that lexible, quick to react and above watch-making supplies expert, the mated packaging equipment. are biocompatible and functionalised all, innovative: FKG Dentaire is a company initially produced parts for (with growth factors) to grow stem cells mid-sized company that re- dentures as well as dials for watches. International reach that will become cartilage cells. He does mains close to its markets and  en, when Jean-Claude Rouiller, who To market its products worldwide, FKG admit that it will require extensive re- plays in the big leagues. had joined the company a few years attends the biggest international trade search, but also says that 3D printers are FCompany owner, Jean-Claude Rouiller, a earlier, took over the reins of the dental fairs, where it off ers product demonstra- becoming essential in life sciences visionary with a knack for anticipating the branch in 1994, he changed its focus to tions. But the company is also involved in researches. needs of dental practitioners, surrounded endodontics (treatment of the dental training local dentists at three training “ e range of possible applications is himself with a highly qualifi ed and moti- pulp) and gave it the name of FKG centres (La Chaux-de-Fonds, Oslo and wide and enables researchers to be vated team and built partnerships with the Dentaire. Dubai), as part of its belief in transferring creative,” explains Mark  urner. regen- best universities in the world. Back then, dental reaming instruments knowledge on the optimal use of these HU is planning a spin-off specialising in In just 20 years, FKG Dentaire has seen were made of stainless steel. But because ultra-sophisticated tools. Furthermore, 3D-printed parts for maxillofacial plastic a six-fold increase in turnover, the num- the root of the tooth can sometimes be FKG has in place a network of distributors surgery. It is even working with a physi- ber of staff quadruple and an average very narrow or have strong curvatures, that are carefully selected on the basis of cian from Zurich on 3D-printed tissue annual growth rate of between 15 and the steel tools were simply too rigid and their structure and compatibility with its models for liver transplants. 20%. It manufactures around 15 million could lead to breakage inside the root own strategies. Learning from past experience in the products each year, 95% of which are canal. In an eff ort to simplify the work “Our goal is to save the dentist time, history of regenerative medicine, Marc exported to over 80 countries. No sur- of practitioners, Mr. Rouiller turned to an provide more comfort to the patient and  urner is wary about making promises prise, then, that in 2012 the enterprise, alloy of nickel and titanium (NiTi) and thus off er greater work safety, quality and that he cannot to fulfi ll in the short term based in the Neuchâtel mountains, was exploited its exceptional qualities: na- ease of use,” says Jean-Claude Rouiller’s and that might leave patients disappoin- named by the Swiss Venture Club as mely, its shape-memory son,  ierry Rouiller who has ted. “3D printing generates a trend to our Western Switzerland company of the eff ect and superior fl exibility been leading the company benefi t. However, we don’t want to play year! and elasticity.  e instru- “OUR GOAL IS TO SAVE since 2012. “As for the future, Bioprinters generate the same game as some of our competi- ments would also undergo an THE DENTIST TIME the way is already clear,” he 3D constructs of tors, with PR stunts at events such as Fusing watch-making precision electro-chemical treatment to AND PROVIDE adds. “FKG intends to conti- cells, proteins and TED. 3D-printed organs still require years with materials science improve the surface condition MORE COMFORT TO nue to” focus on innovation in extracellular matrix of development and there are risks Founded in La Chaux-de-Fonds in 1931 and resistance to torsion.  ey order to be a key player in the components. related to the outcome of clinical trials THE PATIENTS” by a dental engineer with ties to a can thus be used with an world of endodontics.” PHOTOS: DR as well as of regulation.”

42 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 43 BIOALPS 4TO6 COMPANY PROFILE

kets, Valtronic focuses on fi ve selected market segments:

- Active implants High-performance liquid - Sensor assembly chromatography’s - Medical equipment pumping systems use - Orthopaedics parts made of advanced - Industrial ceramics. Each location hosts a modern cleanroom with temperature, humidity and contami- nation controls, giving Valtronic the ability to package electronic and mechanical assemblies in a sterile environment. As various medical endoscopes.  e specifi c microelectronics is a core competency, the Ceramaret: small parts ceramic material for these particular focus is on diff erent technologies: Chip-on- insulators is an yttria-stabilised zirconia Chip, Ultra-fi ne pitch wire-bonding and (YTZP).  is material is very hard and heavy wire-bonding, Chip-on-Board with in advanced ceramics resistant, capable of withstanding shocks Al & Au wires, Flip-Chip (soldered, glued, and strong mechanical abuse. All insula- ultrasonic, with thermo-compression). tors are machined to tolerances of a few Together with the high-precision Surface Ceramaret has achieved leadership in precision parts made from micrometres according to specifi c custo- Mount Technology (SMT) and manual advanced ceramics for analytical and medical components, mer requirements. Valtronic helped assembly, this enables Valtronic to provide hundreds of companies product miniaturisation on 01005-sized among others. BY HUGUES LEUZINGER, VP MARKETING & SALES, CERAMARET SA Continuous growth to launch thousands surface-mounted components. Ceramaret has enjoyed continuous of Class II & III Valtronic regularly acquires new ased in the Canton of systems, for instance in precision biome- growth and recently opened two new medical devices. technologies to stay current with chan- Neuchâtel, Switzerland, dical liquid dispenser systems. production buildings on its site in Bôle, ging business needs and ensure that its Ceramaret has developed near Neuchâtel.  ese new additions customers receive both quality and tremendous experience in the Key fluidic components have increased the available manufactu- dependable products. Already proven in manufacture of precision parts Other important components of the ring area to 8,000 square metres. Besides other industries, Valtronic’s latest tech- Bmade from advanced ceramics.  e HPLC pumping system are the high-pre- a growing interest in ceramic parts, this At Valtronic, implants nology is Glass Encapsulation. It provides outstanding qualities of advanced cera- cision fl ow valves mounted at the head of continued success is due to the compa- a reliable sealing process, a high-density mics make them ideal for use in high- the cylinder to coordinate and direct the ny’s basic attention to customer expecta- become smart feed-through and an extended lifetime tech applications such as analytical and solvent fl ow, e.g. an inlet valve to let the tions throughout all the steps of the value for active implants. Due to its competen- medical instrumentation. Besides being liquid into the cylinder during the suction chain.  is starts with the strong involve- cies in this fi eld, Valtronic was awarded very hard, ceramic materials are inert, travel of the plunger and the discharge ment of an engineering team to help Valtronic is a full-service global provider of engineering, the Golden Mousetrap Award in the resistant to aggressive solvents, biocom- valve allowing the fl uid out to the chro- customers identify the best design to industrialization and manufacturing for medical devices. Materials and Assembly Category during patible, insulating and resistant to both matographic columns during the forward allow full expression of the basic ceramic the MD&M West Show in Anaheim 2014. BY JIM OHNECK, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, VALTRONIC SA high temperatures and highly abrasive stroke of the plunger. Ceramaret manu- properties for the particular customer Valtronic Switzerland has also opened fl uids. factures high-precision check valves assembly, and all at a minimal cost. a new state-of-the-art building in July One of Ceramaret’s areas of expertise either as separate elements (seats & balls) Quality and traceability are priorities at altronic has been headquarte- blies from its facilities worldwide. Among 2012 dedicated to precision mechanics is the manufacture of complex high-pre- or pre-mounted in cartridges.  e com- Ceramaret, and the company is certifi ed red in Switzerland, in the Valley Valtronic’s customers are the leading and orthopaedic implants.  e facility cision parts used in high-performance pany manufactures both single- and to ISO-9001, ISO-14001, ISO-13485 and of Joux, since 1982. With 400 global suppliers of medical devices and specialises in the industrialisation and liquid chromatography (HPLC) instru- double-valve cartridges, depending on OHSAS-18001. It also works closely with employees worldwide, the 130 implants, and diagnostic equipment, as manufacture of surgical implants and mentation. Cylinders and plungers made the application. All check valves can customers on specifi c quality aspects and employees of the Swiss site well as sensitive aerospace and industrial ancillaries, as well as mechanical parts from advanced ceramics are used in the undergo a standard leak test according to requirements. Last but not least, strong Vprovide group competencies in enginee- companies. for the assembly of medical and indus- pumping systems of HPLC units, which specifi c customer requirements. emphasis is placed on the logistics ser- ring and manufacturing specialized in Valtronic off ers diff erent solutions in trial devices. A complete supply chain must be able to reach very high pressure, Another key fl uidic component in vice provided to customers, to simplify electronic miniaturization and mechatro- three main domains: management structure is in place for the mainly to overcome the fl ow resistance HPLC instrumentation is the high-pres- and optimise their complete sourcing nics to grow ideas and take innovations to manufacture of products, which permits up to the chromatographic column.  ese sure distribution valve, which also re- process. the next level. Its two subsidiaries in Solon, - Engineering consulting better reactivity and logistics planning. parts are fi rst pressed from high-grade quires high-precision ceramic parts. Additional growth is expected in other Ohio, USA, and in Casablanca, Morocco, - Design & development For all customers in the medical fi eld, ceramic powders and sintered into Once again, the distribution rotor and important strategic fi elds (sensor techno- also specialize in electronics and assem- - Manufacturing services the company profi ts of its worldwide near-net-shape blanks, which are then stator are machined to outs- logy, automotive industry, blies. All production sites are registered . presence: adding innovation, develop- machined to customer specifi cations, tanding geometric tolerances “CERAMARET HAS avionics, oil and gas, etc.) under ISO 90001 and ISO 13485 (the Valtronic develops partnership based ment and production capacities to the within micrometres of geometric tole- (fl atness) to guarantee the and Ceramaret is also actively facility in Casablanca was the fi rst on the creation of innovative ideas, Swiss headquarter, the Moroccan and rance and with outstanding surface tightness of the valve and ENJOYED CONTINUOUS promoting the substitution Moroccan company to achieve registra- technology and positives outcomes for American subsidiaries provide high fi nishes. In some applications, sapphire precise fl uid distribution. GROWTH AND market for advanced technical tion).  e Swiss site is FDA inspected. all. So it is not rare that Valtronic adapts to volume and preferential cost production can be specifi ed for the plunger of the With regard to medical RECENTLY OPENED ceramics, an area where this For over 30 years, the company has customer’s needs, by reviewing all steps to a Swiss quality. pumping system, which is also manufac- instrumentation, Ceramaret TWO NEW PRODUCTION exceptional materials could helped hundreds of companies to launch of the product lifecycle. With about 60% Valtronic really positioned as a unique tured by Ceramaret. Sapphire or ceramic manufactures high-quality improve the performance and Class II & III medical devices and ad- of its business in the medical industry innovative solutions provider of technolo- BUILDINGS” plungers are also used in other fl uidic ceramic insulator tips for durability of many products. PHOTOS: DR vanced miniaturised electronic assem- and 40% in high-level industrial mar- gical advance.

44 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 45 BIOALPS 4TO6 COMPANY PROFILE

the use of existing therapies.  e value as a drug development partner is evidenced TRB Chemedica’s by the company’s relationship with small and mid-sized biotech companies as well as multi-billion-dollar, long-term re- innovative search and development partnerships with company’s such as Lilly, Sanofi , Bayer, Takeda and Merck. market strategy Covance presence in Geneva Its successful response to unmet medical needs explains the rapid Present in Geneva since 1992, Covance growth of the Geneva-based pharma company. BY MARCO J. BETANCOURT, A leader in toxicology, provides central laboratory services to Covance is a top more than 120 biotechnology and phar- BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER AT TRB CHEMEDICA INTERNATIONAL SA provider of Central maceutical customers and contributes Nested in the mountains of Switzerland TRB Laboratory Servicews over 16% to the overall company revenue. eadquartered in Geneva, TRB its research and business development Vouvry’s plant general view. and phase I-IV clinical  e lab for European clinical trials specia- Chemedica International SA activities. development services. lized in services like clinical chemistry, has since its foundation in tical companies (in- and out-licensing Genomics, Hematology, Microbiology, 1982 been at the forefront of Network of subsidiaries activities)in more than 70 countries. Immunology and Histology. In continuous bringing to patients, doctors TRB remains anchored to its core values TRB has a well diversifi ed income base development, Covance in Geneva now Hand society top-quality, highly innovative and principles: integrity, respect, collabo- thanks to its business coverage in the Covance provides critical runs its operations in using the 18’000 and effi cacious medicines in the rheu- ration, excellence, resilience and lea- international markets. TRB Chemedica sqm of the building. matology, ophthalmology and neurology dership – qualities applied on a world- is a growing organisation, currently em- Since its opening in 1992 the Geneva fi elds. wide basis by all TRB employees, and ploying more than 700 people worldwide. central lab services site has grown from 20 employees to Every day at TRB we make it our refl ected all the way from the initial drug 620 employees. business to bring disruptive and innova- creation process to the actual treatment Addressing unmet medical needs Covance is committed to science and its promise of a healthier Covance is one of the world’s most tive thinking to the challenge of discove- delivered to the patient. TRB’s product lines address a range of experienced providers of clinical trial ring and developing new medicines. TRB’s core strength lies in developing ailments including orthopedic/rheumatic, world helping pharma and biotech companies to bring their central laboratory services with a market TRB’s aim has one outstanding motiva- and manufacturing various pharmaceu- ophthalmological and neurological di- products to market more quickly and cost effectively. share of over 40%. Over the last fi ve tion: to improve therapeutic outcomes tical products in-house, with production seases (soft tissues and joints disorders, years, the Company’s laboratories have for patients. units in Vouvry, Switzerland, Argentina osteoarthritis, dry eye syndrome, blepha- BY JEAN-MARC LEROUX, GENERAL MANAGER, CENTRAL LABORATORIES, MEYRIN/GENEVA conducted over 183 million laboratory  is forward-looking philosophy, and Brazil. TRB commercialises its pro- ritis and disorders of the central nervous tests for more than 4,200 clinical trial combined with the company’s family ducts through its own marketing infras- system). eadquartered in Princeton, tive therapies helps to improve the lives protocols in over 95 countries working size, has always allowed TRB to tructure across territories (TRB’s own  e company aims to improve people’s New Jersey, Covance is one of of millions of patients across the world. with more than 125,000 investigator sites. think locally while moving globally, subsidiaries) and through relationships quality of life with its products. To achieve the world’s largest and most Testing kits are sent to the multiple keeping the patient at the centre of with local, regional or global pharmaceu- this target, TRB concentrates on the comprehensive drug develop- Taking cost out the process investigator sites, where patient samples research and development of innovative ment services companies, Committed to science and its promise from clinical trials (e.g. blood, urine, drugs and novel therapeutic approaches. Hwith revenues of $2.4 billion, more than of a healthier world, Covance collabo- tissue, etc.) are quickly collected and And at the same time, TRB is continuously 12,000 employees and a presence in 60 rates with pharmaceutical and biotech returned to one of the Company’s fi ve improving its established products. countries.  e Company is the world’s companies of all sizes to help bring their central laboratory sites and tested within Challenging the unmet medical needs largest provider of Central Laboratory products to market more quickly and cost 24 hours. Using its proprietary clinical of society and patients has been second services with labs in Geneva, Tokyo, eff ectively. Covance has deep expertise trial management system, which enables nature to TRB from its beginnings: its Singapore, Shanghai and Indianapolis in all areas of drug development, from it to input the exact study protocols hyaluronic acid-based eye drops, sold and is generating more safety and effi ca- discovery through clinical and post-mar- directly into a central database, Covance under the trademark VISMED, have cy data for regulatory submissions than keting safety studies. It is the market can provide its partners with a custo- become the benchmark for the ophthal- any other organization in the world. leader in toxicology and central laborato- mised data report within 24 hours of test mic industry when talking about treating It takes about 10-15 years to develop ries services and is a top fi ve provider of completion.  e data base allows labora- the dry eye syndrome. one new medicine from the time it is Phase I-IV clinical development services. tory data to be audited at any stage during Another example of TRB’s creative discovered to when it becomes available  e trend towards outsourcing re- the study. expertise and knowledge in the use of for treating patients.  e average cost search and development activities among Clients are able to review and query hyaluronic acid is the treatment of os- to research and develop each successful pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and laboratory data on a near real-time basis, teoarthritis (in the knee, the hip, shoulder drug is estimated to be $800 million to medical device industries will continue using LabLink, Covance’s internet-based and small joints). TRB’s OSTENIL brand $1 billion.  is number doesn’t include to increase due to growing pressure to client access program. was recognised as a breakthrough at the the cost of the thousands of failures: contain costs and the need for faster  e Company’s central laboratory time of its launch. For every 5,000- 10,000 compounds development time for new service also off ers pharmaco- A lot of pressure is coming from local that enter the research and development drugs. Covance helps compa- genomics microarray testing as and regional regulatory and other related « SINCE 1992, (R&D) pipeline, only one will get to nies make the process of drug an integral part of its clinical government bodies today. In this ever market. Success requires immense development more effi cient THE GENEVA SITE OF trial service, allowing pharma- TRB chemedica’s more complex environment, TRB strives resources - the best scientifi c minds, by providing services that COVANCE HAS GROWN ceutical and biotechnology dedicated fi rst to maintain its niche market ap- highly sophisticated technology and generate high-quality and FROM 20 TO MORE fi rms to conduct genomic hyaluronic acid proach and second to deliver to its pa- complex project management. Ultimately, timely data to support new microarray testing for patients processing line. tients worldwide the best Swiss-quality THAN 620 EMPLOYEES.” though, the development of new, innova- drug approvals and expand anywhere in the world. PHOTOS: DR healthcare products.

46 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 47 BIOALPS 4TO6 COMPANY PROFILE

tation of new process in compliance with Baccinex: excellence in regulatory requirements (GMP…). We have the expertise for rapid and successful completion for scale-up of a new process. contract manufacturing  anks to its expertise in lyophilisation fi eld, Baccinex can propose complemen- Founded in 1999, Baccinex is a recognized fill & finish tary activities like: - Development or optimization of partner for the sterile supply of clinical material lyophilisation cycles and commercial batches. BY URSULA BAUSCH, CEO BACCINEX - Consultancy for transition from re- search laboratory to GMP environment accinex is a privately owned commercial manufacturing, packaging, - Scale-up and optimisation of produc- Swiss company founded in analytical services, stability studies and tion processes 1999 at Courroux (Switzerland). logistics. Over the years, we have deve- - Compatibility / adsorption studies Baccinex obtained in 2004 its loped special competences in aseptic fi ll / with filter / medical devices At MPS, operators Good Manufacturing Practice fi nish and lyophilisation of small mole- - Stability studies according to ICH pair components to B(GMP) certifi cate and its manufacturing cules and biological products in vials and a precision of less license to produce sterile lyophilized and ampoules. Baccinex has developed a cutting-edge than 0.2 micrometres liquid products from Swissmedic (Swiss Our mission is to provide customized know-how in order to fi t onto each in series production. Regulatory Authorities). Since then, product manufacturing and support process and to manufacture in the best Baccinex releases commercial batches services in combining customer require- conditions for both clinical trials mate- and development batches for clinical trials ments, fl exibility and compliance with rials (Investigational medicinal products boxes with the competences of their performed in Switzerland. high quality standards. (IMP) or non-IMP for Phase I to III) and MPS: customised electronic partner to develop and manu- Baccinex emphasis to be a “one-stop- commercial batches: 70% of the batches facture implantable, intelligent microsys- From pharmaceutical development shop” for fi ll and fi nishing activities: we produced are clinical material and 30% tems featuring low energy consumption. to drug product provide a wide range of support services are for commercial purposes. solutions in microspace Very precise components are at the Baccinex is a full-service pharmaceutical from development steps (process deve- Our clients are mainly located in heart of MPS’ microsystems.  ese com- contract manufacturing organization lopment, scale-up…) to GMP manufactu- Europe. 40% of our batches produced last ponents are manufactured at MPS’s own (CMO) specialized in fi ll and fi nishing of ring (production of clinical or commercial year were for Swiss clients.  en 23% Biel-based MPS engineers and manufactures implantable workshops in Biel/Bienne: Swiss turning, sterile lyophilized or liquid batches). were exported to France, 21% to UK and products and high-precision kinetic microsystems. fl at, round and centreless grinding as dosage forms. BACCINEX EMPHASIS Due to the high amount of 12% to the Netherlands. But these statis- well as polishing yield components with BY GREGOIRE BAGNOUD, DIRECTOR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT Our fi eld of expertise TO BE A “ONE-STOP development batches manu- tics are changing each year: as we mainly tolerances lower than 1 micrometre spreads from pharmaceutical SHOP” FOR FILL AND factured in our site, Baccinex produce clinical material, the amount and to a surface roughness of less than development and manufactu- has a thorough knowledge in of batches for our clients can completely ith headquarters located in Spine surgery is a very delicate opera- 0.1 micrometre (roughness average). ring of clinical trial material, to FINISHING ACTIVITIES industrial scale-up and adap- change from one year to the next. Biel, Switzerland, MPS tion, with success depending on the MPS is also well equipped for heat treat- Micro Precision Systems individual performance of the surgeon. ment and component cleaning. Growth strategy in Europe AG develops and manu- MPS manufactures a small and very Particularly impressive are MPS’s Our growth strategy is defi ned by two factures highly complex precisely adjustable robotic spine surgery microsystem assembly capabilities: the major goals: Wand very precise mechanical and elec- tool (accurate to 1 micrometre), making company has developed its own processes Visual inspection - First, to continuously increase our tromechanical microsystems for the the accuracy of the surgical procedure less that keep the system stiff enough to reach of injectable visibility as a reliable partner able to medtech, automation and watch indus- dependent on the surgeon’s performance. the required repeatable precision and the products provide high-quality and customized tries. In spacious and modern architec- lowest possible friction. Using MPS-made services either as contract manufactu- ture the 420 employees of MPS transform Biocompatible actuators assembly benches and jigs, operators pair rer or in terms of complete project customer requirements and specifi ca- MPS’s biocompatible actuator technology components to a precision of less than management for clinical trial material. tions into robust and reliable products consists of an encapsulated motor, elec- 0.2 micrometres in series production. - Secondary, to increase the percentage and systems. tronics and power element, as well as Depending on the requirements, system of commercial routine productions in a gearbox and leadscrew made of bio- assembly takes place either in a dust-free long term client relationships for small- High precision, low friction and low compatible materials.  e actuators and room or in an ISO-standard clean room. size batches such as necessary for energy consumption electronics are designed for long-term MPS projects and product documentation orphan drugs or drugs for specific MPS supplies the dosing system for a implantation and for wireless data and conform to CE standards, and meet the indications. programmable implantable infusion energy transfer.  is technology has standards of the US FDA’s 510k pathway Today, we are confronted during half of pump to a blue-chip medtech company a wide range of applications in the and PMA premarketing processes. MPS our productions with APIs such as pro- in the US.  e pump’s main requirement orthopaedic, spine, urology markets, customers may use this documentation teins and peptides. During several years, is to deliver a specifi c amount of medica- among others. to complete their submission dossier. we have developed an excellent expertise tion using the energy stored in an em- Integrating as much functionality as In December 2012 MPS created a new in dealing with these molecules all along bedded battery. To guarantee this requi- possible into the smallest available space subsidiary, MPS Precimed, at Corgémont the development and manufacturing rement over the entire lifetime of the is a key competence of MPS and a market in the Bern Jura. With its 90 employees process. We are convinced that good product (7 years), MPS has optimised a requirement for active implants. MPS MPS Precimed develops and manufac- opportunities will keep coming up as a very precise implantable microsystem engineers are combining their own tures innovative orthopaedics instru- majority of the biotech compounds needs which performs the function with almost knowhow in micro-bearing technologies ments for blue-chip orthopaedic compa- to be developed as sterile liquid or freeze- no friction and therefore with minimal and that of their parent company nies. Its product portfolio includes

dried injectables. PHOTOS: DR energy consumption. Faulhaber in micro-motors and gear- reamers, impactors and drills.

48 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 49 a vibrant life science cluster

a vibrant life science cluster

a vibrant life science cluster

Bern FribourgFribourg Vaud Vaud Neuchâtel Neuchâtel Geneva Geneva Valais Valais Jura Jura

Bern Fribourg Vaud Neuchâtel Geneva Valais Jura

50 Summer 2014 BUSINESS GUIDE A Guide to life science companies The Health Valley of Western Switzerland hosts a large number of biotech, medtech and pharma companies. The following business guide lists all the member companies of the BioAlps network.

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

Aardex Group SA Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.aardex.ch AB2 Bio SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Discovery www.ab2bio.com ABC Orthodontics SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.abc-orthodontics.ch Abionic SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.abionic.com ABL Analytics SA Neuchâtel R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.abl-analytics.com Abrema Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.abrema.com AC Immune SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Vaccines www.acimmune.com AC Solutions Sàrl Jura Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents Accuratus AG Bern Medical Technology www.accuratus.ch Achronis Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services; Human Resources Services - Investor www.achronis.ch Acrostak International Distribution Sàrl Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.acrostak.com Actidot Valais Nutrition www.actidot.ch Actigenomics SA Vaud Nutrition www.actigenomics.com Actimed SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.actimed.ch ADC Therapeutics SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.adctherapeutics.com Addex Pharma SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.addexpharma.com Adima AG Bern Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.galenica.com Administrative Management Concept Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.amc-b.com Adolf Merkle Institute Fribourg Academic Institutions www.am-institute.ch Adoptics SA Bern Medical Technology - Implants www.riptiderealtime.com Aerni-Leuch AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.aerni-leuch.ch AFE Partners SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services www.afepartners.com Agilent Technologies SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.agilent.com Akenco Pharma SA Geneva Pharmaceutical supplier www.akenco-pharma.com Akka Switzerland SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.akka.eu Albedis SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.albedis.com Alchilab Valais Phyto; Nutrition www.alchilab.ch Alchimie Forever Sàrl Geneva Cosmetics www.alchimie-forever.com Alcimed Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.alcimed.com Alcon Management SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.alcon.com Alcon Pharmaceuticals Ltd Fribourg Medical Technology - Devices www.alcon.com Aleva Neurotherapeutics SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.aleva-neuro.com Alexion Pharma International Sàrl Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.alxn.com Alkopharma SA Valais Pharmaceutical supplier Allergan Medical Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.allergan.com Almedica AG Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.almedica.ch Alpes Lasers SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology www.alpeslasers.com Alphacos SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.alphacos.ch Alro Engineering SA Valais Supplier & Engineering www.alro.ch ALS - Anti-Ageing Laboratories Switzerland SA Fribourg Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.als-als.com Altacare Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.altacare.fr Bern Fribourg Vaud Neuchâtel Geneva Valais Jura Altran AG Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Quality; Other www.altran.ch ALYS Technologies SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.alys-technologies.com Amal Therapeutics SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides; Vaccines www.amaltherapeutics.com Amazentis SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.amazentis.com American Orthodontics Switzerland Sàrl Valais Medical Technology - Devices www.americanortho.de Amires Sàrl Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Financial Services www.amires.eu Amotec Technique de montage SA Bern Medical Technology www.amotec.ch Amsonic SA Bern Medical Technology www.amsonic.ch Analytecon SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering Bern Fribourg Vaud Neuchâtel Geneva Valais Jura Andre Roland SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.andreroland.com Andrew Alliance SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices; R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Technology Platforms; Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.andrewalliance.com Andromis SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.andromis.ch Anecova SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.anecova.com Anergis SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Vaccines www.anergis.ch

Summer 2014 51 BUSINESS GUIDE

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

Angiotech Switzerland SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.angiotech.com Bernafon AG Bern Medical Technology - Implants; Biomaterials / Coatings www.bernafon.com Anteis SA Geneva Medical Technology www.anteis.com Berney Précision SA Vaud Medical Technology www.berney-precision.ch Antero Partners Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.anteropartners.com Biar SA Valais Chemical Industry Equipments www.biar.com Anti-Ageing, Diagnostics & Stem Cell Bien-Air Dental SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.bien-air.ch Laboratories Switzerland SA Fribourg Cosmetics Bien-Air Surgery SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.bien-air.ch Antlia SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.ithetis.com BioAGM Vaud Medical Technology Anton Meyer & Co AG Bern Medical Technology www.meyco.ch BioAlliance Pharma Switzerland SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.bioalliancepharma.com A-PackTechnologies SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.bausch-group.com BioArk SA Valais Incubator and seed fund www.bioark.ch Apidel Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.apidel.com Biocartis SA Vaud Medical Technology www.biocartis.com Apimec SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.apimec.ch BioCell Interface SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.biocell-interface.com Applimed SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.applimed.ch Biofield SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.biofield.com Aptissen Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Delivery www.aptissen.com Biofluid Systems SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.biofluidsystems.com Arachnova Pharma SA Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics Biokaizen Lab SA Valais Therapeutics and Diagnostics; Medical Technolgy www.biokaizen.com Argenius Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.argenius.com Biokema SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.biokema.ch Ariad Pharmaceuticals SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Delivery www.ariad.com Biolabo Scientific Instruments SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.biolabo.ch ArisGen SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Delivery www.arisgen.com Biomedix SA Fribourg Medical Technology www.thegard.com Arnold Deppeler SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.deppeler.ch BioMérieux (Suisse) SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.biomerieux.com Arpasan Switzerland Geneva Nutrition; Cosmetics www.arpasan.com BionActis SA Vaud Cosmetics www.bionactis.com Arrayon Biotechnology SA Neuchâtel R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.arrayon.com BioPack Medical Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.biopack.ch Artefact SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services Biopôle SA Vaud Science & Technology Park / Incubator and seed fund www.biopole.ch Asceneuron Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.asceneuron.com Biosafe SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.biosafe.ch ASSCO Engineering Monthey SA Valais Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.assco.ch Biosensors Europe SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.biosensorsintl.com Assut Medical Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology www.assutsutures.com Biosideral SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Cell Therapy / Stem Cells Aston Life Sciences Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services www.astongroup.ch Biosite International Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology www.biosite.com Astral Technologies Sàrl Jura Supplier & Engineering Biosmart GmbH Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.biosmart.ch Asulab SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.asulab.ch Biotech SA Jura Supplier & Engineering Asyril SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.asyril.ch Biotelligences Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.biotelligences.com Atelier Mécanique René de Siebenthal & Fils SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.desiebenthal.ch Bio-Ur SA Jura R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug delivery www.bio-ur.ch Atheris Laboratories SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services; Technology Platforms www.atheris.ch Bioway GmbH Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.bioway.eu.com/ Atokalpa SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.atokalpa.ch BioWebSpin Valais Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.biowebspin.com Atracsys Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.atracsys.com BioXPress Therapeutics Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.bioxpress.com Attolight SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.attolight.com Bista Consulting Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Gene Therapy www.bista-consulting.com Augurix SA Valais Medical Technology www.augurix.com BM Laser, Broquet et Monin Jura Supplier & Engineering Auxyme SA Valais Phyto; Nutrition; Cosmetics www.auxyme.ch Boiron SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.boiron.com Aximed SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents Bordier Affinity Products SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.bordier.ch Axis biodental SA Jura Medical Technology - Implants www.axis-biodental.ch Botta Orthopädie AG Bern Medical Technology www.bottaweb.ch AXPharma Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services www.axpharma.com Bracco Suisse SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.bracco.com Ayanda Biosystems SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.ayanda-biosys.com Bredam SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.bredam.ch AZAD Pharma AG Bern Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Generics / Biosimilars www.azadpharma.com Bricad Associates Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.bricad.com B Braun Medical SA Vaud Medical Technology www.bbraun.ch Bridgehead International Ltd Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Patents & Trademarks www.bridgeheadinternational.com B.C. Development SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents Brook Automation AG Bern Medical Technology www.brooks.com Baccinex SA Jura R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.baccinex.com BT Bienne Special Tools Sàrl Bern Medical Technology www.btbienne.ch/ Bachem SA Valais Fine Chemicals; Biotechnology www.bachem.com Büchi Optik AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.buechioptik.ch Baldelli SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.baldelliautomation.com Bumotec SA Fribourg Medical Technology www.bumotec.ch Balluff HyTech AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.hytech.ch Business & Decision (Suisse) SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms; Professional Services & Consulting - CRO (Contract Bangerter Microtechnik AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.ba-micro.com Research Organization); Technology Platforms; Quality; Regulatory & Clinical Services; www.businessdecision-lifesciences.com BASF Pharma (Evionnaz) SA Valais Supplier & Engineering www.pharma-ingredients.basf.com Câlinesse Valais Cosmetics www.calinesse.com BASF Suisse SA Valais Fine Chemicals www.basf.ch Calypso Biotech SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.calypsobiotech.com Battelle Memorial Institute Geneva Research Center Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO www.battelle.org Calypte Biomedical Corporation Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.calypte.com Bausch Advanced Technology Group Jura Supplier & Engineering www.bausch-group.com Capesal SA Vaud Medical Technology www.capesal.ch Baxter BioScience Manufacturing Sàrl Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.baxter.ch Capsant Neurotechnologies SA Geneva Medical Technology - Tissue Engineering / Regenerative Medicine Baxter Recombinant Sàrl Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.baxter.ch Carbagas Bern Supplier & Engineering www.carbagas.ch Bayer International SA Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.bayer.com Cardinal Health Switzerland Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology www.cardinal.com/europe BC Consulting & Solutions Sàrl Geneva Medical Technology - Devices; Implants - Professional Services & Consulting - Other; CareFusion Switzerland 317 Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices; Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.carefusion.com Regulatory & Clinical Services www.bcconsulting.eu.com Carestream Health Suisse SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.carestreamhealth.com BCCC Avocats Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.bccc.ch CCS Schweiz AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.ccsholding.com Be Ceuticals Valais Cosmetics www.be-ceuticals.com CCV (Centre Chimie Vouvry) Sàrl Valais Fine Chemicals www.ccv-chimie.ch Beckman Coulter Eurocenter SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.beckmancoulter.ch Cdm Centre de diagnostic moléculaire SA Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.labocdm.ch Belidis Natural Product Laboratory SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents Celgene International Sàrl Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.celgene.com Bellus Health (International) Limited Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.bellushealth.com CELLnTEC Advanced Cell Systems Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Technology Platforms www.cellntec.com Bench International Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Human Ressources Services www.benchinternational.com Cendres + Métaux SA Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.cmsa.ch Berdat Charles Jura Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.charlesberdat.ch Centredoc Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.centredoc.ch

52 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 53 BUSINESS GUIDE

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

Ceramaret SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices; Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.ceramaret.ch DePuy Ace Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.depuy.com/ Cerebel SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics DePuy Mitek Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.depuy.com/ Ceres Heilmittel AG Valais Nutrition www.ceresheilmittel.ch DePuy Motion Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.depuy.com/ Chemsis SA Valais Supplier & Engineering www.chemsis.com Detech SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.detech.ch Chirmat Sàrl Valais Medical Technology - Devices www.chirmat.ch DFB Pharmaceuticals Inc. Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.healthpoint.com Chord Therapeutics Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.chordtherapeutics.com Diacosa AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.diacosa.ch CHUV Vaud Academic Institutions www.chuv.ch Diagnoplex Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.diagnoplex.com Ciba Vision Europe AG Fribourg Medical Technology - Devices www.alcon.com DiagnoSwiss SA Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services; CRO www.diagnoswiss.com CimArk Valais Incubator and seed fund www.cimark.ch Diamed AG (Bio-Rad Laboratories) Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.diamed.ch Cimo Compagnie Industrielle de Monthey SA Valais Fine Chemicals www.cimo.ch Diepharmex SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.audispray.com Ciposa SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.ciposa.com Digmesa AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.digmesa.com CLA Clinical Laboratory Automation SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.cla.ch Dineras International SA Geneva Nutrition Claude Ammann Consulting Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Quality www.claudeammann.com Discretio Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.discretio.ch Clinical Research Consultant Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services Disetronic Medical Systems AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.disetronic.com Clinopsis SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Regulatory & Clinical Services www.clinopsis.com DM2TC Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Quality; Regulatory & Clinical Services; Other www.dm2tc.ch Codan Argus AG Bern Medical Technology - Diagnostic and therapeutic devices www.cordanargus.com Dompé International SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.dompe.com Codman Neuro Sciences Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.codman.com Donawa Consulting Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services www.donawa.com Comelec SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.comelec.ch Dorix SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.dorix.ch/ Comet AG Fribourg Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.comet.ch Dorphan Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Discovery www.dorphan.com Compex Médical SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.compex.info Dr E Gräub AG Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.graeub.com Composites Busch SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.compositesbusch.ch Dr WiiCARE SA Fribourg Professional Services & Consulting Confrérie Clinique SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Technology Platforms www.confrerie-clinique.com Drug Design Technologies Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.drugdesigntech.com Contelec AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.contelec.ch Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi) Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platorms - Drug Discovery www.dndi.org CoPexis SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.drdcpharma.com DSM Nutritional Products AG Valais Supplier & Engineering www.dsmnutritionalproducts.com Coraflo Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology www.smartcanula.com D-Target Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services www.premier-research.com CordSavings Valais Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Cell Therapy / Stem Cells www.cordsavings.ch DuPont de Nemours Holding SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.dupont.com Cosmotec SA Valais Cosmetics; R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.cosmotec.ch Dynamics Group SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Communication / PR / Market research / Events www.dynamicsgroup.ch Covance Central Laboratory Services SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO www.covance.com Dynatec SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.dynatec.ch CPAutomation SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.cpautomation.ch EasyMed Services SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Information Provider www.easymedmobile.com Creaholic SA Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.creaholic.com Eclosion SA Geneva Incubator and seed fund www.eclosion.ch Créapôle Jura Incubator and seed fund www.creapole.ch Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne - EPFL Vaud Academic Institutions / Incubator and seed fund www.epfl.ch Createch AG Bern Medical Technology www.createch.ch Ecosafe SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.ecosafesa.com Cremo Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.cremo.ch Edel-for-Life SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.edeltherapeutics.com Crisalix SA Vaud Medical Technology - Implants www.crisalix.com Edwards Lifesciences SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.edwards.com Crucell Switzerland AG Bern Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Vaccines www.bernabiotech.com Effik SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.effik.ch/ Crystal Vision Microsystems SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.crystalvision-microsystems.com Egatec SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering egatecsa.gelbeseiten.ch/home.aspx CSEM - Centre Suisse d’Electronique Electro Medical Systems SA Vaud Medical Technology www.ems-company.com et de Microtechnique SA Neuchâtel R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO; Technology Platforms www.csem.ch Electro Müller AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.electro-mueller.ch CSL Behring SA Bern Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.cslbehring.ch Electromag SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.electromag.ch CSSR SA - Centre de Stérilisation Eli Lilly (Suisse) SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.lilly.ch de Suisse Romande Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.cssr.ch encreTpixel Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Communication www.encretpixel.com Cukierman & Co. Life Sciences Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Financial Services www.cukiermanlifesciences.com Endeavour Vision SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services www.endeavourvision.com Cyrex Sàrl Fribourg Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.cyrex.ch Engqvist Consulting Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.engqvistconsulting.com DAA Pharma SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Generics / Biosimilars www.daapharma.ch EP Solutions SA Vaud Medical technology www.ep-solutions.ch DAC-Ortho SA Geneva Medical Technology - Dental Devices Epithelix Sàrl Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.epithelix.com Dade Behring Diagnostics Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.dadebehring.com Eqval SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices; Implants www.eqval.ch Dassym SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering Erib Corp SA Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.eribch.com Dassym SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering Espace Création Valais Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.espacec.ch Data Mining Int Inc Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.datamining-international.com EspeRare Foundation Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Discovery www.esperare.org Debio Research & Manufacturing SA Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug delivery www.debiopharm.com Estalin SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.estalin.ch Debiopharm Diagnostic SA Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.debiopharm.com Estoppey-Addor SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.estoppey-addor.ch Debiopharm Investment SA Vaud Investor - Corporate / Institutional / Private investors www.debiopharm.com Estoppey-Reber AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.estoppey.ch Debiopharm SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.debiopharm.com Etameca SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.etameca.ch Debiotech SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.debiotech.ch ETAVIS TSA SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.etavis.ch Décovi SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.decovi.ch Ethicon Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.ethiconinc.com Degonda-Rehab SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.degonda.ch Ethimedix SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices; Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents; Electronics www.ethimedix.com Degonda-Rehab SA Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.turbo-twirst.ch Eurofin Medical SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.eurofinmedical.ch Delman SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services www.delman.ch Evasensor SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Electronics; Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.evasensor.com Deloa SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.borruat.ch Exabone Gmbh Vaud Medical Technology - Implants www.exabone.com DentalPrestige SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices ExcellGene SA Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.excellgene.com Dentsply IH SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.dentsplyimplants.com ExCellness Biotech SA Vaud Medical Technology - Tissue Engineering / Regenerative Medicine www.excellness.com Dentsply Maillefer Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.dentsplymaillefer.com Fabrinal SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Medical devices www.fabrinal.ch

54 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 55 BUSINESS GUIDE

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

Fasteris SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services; CRO www.fasteris.com Harald Nordin SA Vaud Medical Technology www.nordin-dental.com Ferring International Center SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.ferring.com Haslab GmbH Bern Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.haslab.ch Firmenich SA Geneva Cosmetics www.firmenich.com Haute Ecole Vaudoise Vaud Academic Institutions www.hev.ch Fischer Connectors SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.fischerconnectors.ch HE Arc Neuchâtel Academic Institutions www.he-arc.ch FKG Dentaire SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology www.fkg.ch Health Systems and Technology Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.hst-consulting.ch Flexxe Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.flexxe.ch HEIG-VD Vaud Academic Institutions www.heig-vd.ch Fluid Automation Systems Technologies SA Geneva Medical Technology www.fas.ch Heiland Schweiz AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.heiland.ch FMC Production Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Communication / PR / Market research / Events www.fmcproduction.com Helbling Technik Bern AG Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.helbling.ch FME AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.fme-ag.com Helvemed SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.helvemed.com Fondation Artères Geneva Professional Services & Consulting www.arteres.org Helvetica Health Care Sàrl Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.helveticahealthcare.com Fondation Campus Biotech Geneva Academic Institutions / Incubator and seed fund www.campusbiotech.ch Hemacore SA Valais Medical Technology - Devices www.hemacore.com Fondation Genevoise pour la Formation Henry Schein Medical AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.henryschein-medical.ch et la Recherche Médicale Geneva Professional Services & Consulting / Academic Institutions www.gfmer.ch Hepia Geneva Academic Institutions www.hepia.hesge.ch Fondation H. Dudley Wright Geneva Professional Services & Consulting www.hdwright.org Heraeus Materials SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.heraeus-medicalcomponents.com Fondation ISREC Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.isrec.ch Heska SA Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.heska.com Fondation Jeantet Geneva Professional Services & Consulting www.jeantet.ch HES-SO Fribourg Fribourg Academic Institutions www.hefr.ch Fondation pour Recherche Medicale Geneva Incubator and seed fund www.unige.ch HES-SO Genève Geneva Academic Institutions www.hesge.ch Fongit Geneva Incubator and seed fund www.fongit.ch HES-SO Valais Valais Academic Institutions www.hevs.ch Fontax SA Vaud Medical Technology www.fontax.ch HighPoint Solutions Geneva Professional Services & Consulting www.highpoint-solutions.com Fors AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.fors.ch Hilderbrand Cie & SA Geneva Medical Technology - Biomaterials / Coatings www.hilderbrand.ch Foundation for Innovative New Diagnostics (FIND) Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.finddiagnostics.org Hilfsmittelstelle HMS Bern AG Bern Medical Technology www.hilfsmittelstelle.ch Frey + Messmer AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.freymess.ch HL Technology Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Dental Devices; Prosthetics; Implants www.hl-technology.ch Friadent Schweiz AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.friadent.ch HMT Microelectronic AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.hmt.ch Frimorfo SA Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO www.frimorfo.com Hock’n Roll AG Bern Medical Technology www.hocknroll.ch Fritz Gyger AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.fgyger.ch Hoffmann Neopac AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.hoffmannneopac.ch FSC - Fondation Suisse pour les Cyberthèses Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.fsc-sfc.org Hologic Europe Middle East and Africa SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.hologic.com Future Health Biobank Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Cell Therapy / Stem Cells www.futurehealthbiobank.ch Homeolab SA Valais Therapeutics and Diagnostics Future Health Cell Bank SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.futurehealth.co.uk Huco Vision SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.hucovision.com Galderma Pharma SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.galderma.ch HUG - Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève Geneva Academic Institutions www.hcuge.ch Galexis AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.e-galexis.com Huntsman Advanced Materials (Switzerland) Sàrl Valais Fine Chemicals www.huntsman.com Gene Predictis SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Gene Therapy www.genepredictis.com Hygie-Tech SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.hygie-tech.ch Gene Signal International SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Gene Therapy www.genesignal.com Hy-Tech AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.hytech.ch GeneBio - Geneva Bioinformatics SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.genebio.com ID Quantique SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.idquantique.com GeNeuro SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.geneuro.com I-Dent Innovation For Dentistry SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.i-dent-dental.com Geneva Biotech Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Vaccines; R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.geneva-biotech.com Idexx Switzerland AG Bern Medical Technology www.idexx.com Genevensis Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Communication www.genevensis.com IE Life Science Engineering Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.ie-group.com Genevest Consulting Group SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services www.genevest.ch IHMA Europe Sàrl Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO www.ihmainc.com Genge & Thoma AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.gengethoma.com IIMG - Instruments, Industrial & Medical Group SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering GeniuSoft Sàrl Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.geniusoft.ch Il-Med Tec SA Bern Supplier & Engineering www.ilmedtec.ch GenKyoTex SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.genkyotex.com ILP Lüthi + Partner AG Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.ilp-switzerland.ch Genomic Health International Sàrl Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.genomichealth.com ILS Services SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.integralife.eu Gersteltec Sàrl Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.gersteltec.ch Inartis Foundation Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.inartis.ch Gevaltec Sàrl Valais Supplier & Engineering - Electronics Inartis Network Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.inartis-network.ch GF Machining Solutions SA Geneva Medical Technology - Delivery devices www.gfac.com Include Consulting Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Patent & Trademarks; Regulatory & Clinical Services www.includeconsulting.com Gibaud (Suisse) SA Geneva Medical Technology www.gibaud.com Index Ventures Geneva Venture Capital Fund www.indexventures.com Givaudan Suisse SA Geneva Cosmetics www.givaudan.com Indigo Consulting Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting www.indigoconsulting.ch GlaxoSmithKline AG Bern Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug; Vaccines www.glaxosmithkline.ch Infinity Dental (Suisse) SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.infinity-dent1.com Glenmark Pharmaceuticals SA Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.glenmarkpharma.com Inflamalps SA Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Delivery www.inflamalps.com GMP SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.gmp.ch Infomed SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.infomedsa.ch GMT Fine Chemicals SA Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.gmtfinechemicals.ch InnoPeritus Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting www.innoperitus.com Gomina AG Valais Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.gomina.ch Innosurf SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.innosurf.ch Greatbatch Medical SA Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.greatbatchmedical.com Innovaud Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.innovaud.ch Gribi AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.gribi.ch Inomed Technology SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.inomed.ch Groupe Genitec Holding SA Jura R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.genitec.net Inovorto Medical SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology Groupe PP Holding SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.groupe-pp.ch Inselspital, Hôpital universitaire de Berne Bern Academic Institutions www.insel.ch G-Therapeutics Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering Institut de Recherche en Ophtalmologie Valais Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.iro.vsnet.ch Gymetrics SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.gymetrics.com Institut de Recherche en Réadaptation (IRR) Valais Medical Technology - Diagnostic and therapeutic devices www.irr-valais.ch H. Hilderbrand Cie & SA Geneva Medical Technology - Biomaterials / Coatings www.hilderbrand.ch Instrumat AG Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Quality www.instumat.ch Haag-Streit Holding AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.haag-streit.com Intercosmetica Neuchâtel SA Neuchâtel Cosmetics www.intercosmetica.ch Hader SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology www.hader-swiss.com Interdelta SA Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.interdelta.ch Haemonetics SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.haemonetics.com Interdigit SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.interdigit.com Hanco Schleiftechnik AG Fribourg Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.hanco.ch Interlabor Belp AG Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.interlabor.ch

56 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 57 BUSINESS GUIDE

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

InterMedService Sàrl Jura Professional Services & Consulting - Other Les Naturelles Predige SA Vaud Cosmetics www.les-naturelles.com Intersteri AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.intersteri.ch Lifescience Consulting SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Information Provider www.lifescience-consulting.com Intrace Medical SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.intrace-medical.com Link Implants AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.link-implants.ch Intrachem Bio SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.intrachembio.com LMA Urology Suisse SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.lmaurology.com Intuitive Surgical Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.intuitivesurgical.com Locatis SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.locatis.ch Invacare International Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology www.invacare.eu.com Logival SA Valais Supplier & Engineering www.logival.ch Ipstudies Sàrl Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms - APIs www.ipstudies.ch Lonza AG Valais Supplier & Engineering www.lonza.com Ismeca Europe Semiconductor SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.cohuseg.com Loroch CTLS Vaud Professional services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Regulatory & Clinical Services www.loroch.ch ISS AG - Integrated Scientific Services Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider; Regulatory & Clinical Services www.iss-ag.ch Louis Bélet SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.beletsa.ch IVA Biotechnology Valais Biotechnology; Phyto www.iva-biotechnology.ch LPS Services SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering - Medical devices www.lps-services.ch Ivers-Lee MedTec AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.iverslee.com L-Techs SA Fribourg Medical Technology Ixxeo Healthcare SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other; Patents & Trademarks www.ixxeo.com Ludwig Center for Cancer Research Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Discovery www.ludwigcancerresearch.org Jacques Allemann SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.jacques-allemann.ch Lugaia AG Valais Medical Technology www.lugaia.ch JAG Jakob AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.jag.ch Lunaphore Technologies SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.lunaphore.ch JAG Jakob AG Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.jag.ch Lyncée Tec SA Vaud Service provider or subcontractor; Consulting www.lynceetec.com JB Metrics SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.jbmetrics.ch Madep SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.madep-sa.com Jet Medical SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.jetmedical.net Mandatec AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.mandatec.ch JetSolutions SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents; Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.jetsolutions.ch Mane SA Valais Phyto www.mane.com Jinfo SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.jinfo.ch Manigley SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.manigley.ch Johnson & Johnson Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.jnj.com Manufactures D’Outils Dumont SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.dumonttools.com Juratec SA Jura Professional Services & Consulting - Human Resources Services www.juratec.ch Manuplast SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.manuplast.ch Katzarov SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Other; Patents & Trademarks www.katzarov.com Mapag Maschinen AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.mapag.ch Kelly Services SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Human Resources Services www.kellyservices.ch MAPE Engineering Switzerland SA Jura R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.groupe-mape.com Kemopharm SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents Marcel Blanc et Cie SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.marcel-blanc.ch Kenta Biotech Ltd Bern Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.kentabiotech.com Marcel Jaccard SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.jaccard.ch Kergrohen & Associates Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services Masimo Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.masimo.com Kessler & Co SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.kessler.ch Max Jung AG Bern Medical Technology www.maxjung.ch KeySep Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO www.keysep.com MaxiMed Sàrl Vaud Professional services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.maximed.ch Komax Systems LCF SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.komax.ch MCL Medizinische Laboratorien Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.mcl.ch Kuhn und Bieri AG Bern Medical Technology www.kuhnbieri.ch MCS Labordatensysteme AG Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.mcs-ag.com Kyburz & Cie SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.kyburz-cie.ch MD-Clinicals Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Medical devices www.md-clinicals.com Kyphon Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.kyphon.com Mecaplast SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.mecaplast.ch La Colline Cellular Research Laboratories Valais Cosmetics www.lacolline-skincare.com Mecha Ch Rohr Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.mecha.ch La Manufacture Ressorts CML Vaud Medical Technology www.lamanufacture.ch Med Discovery SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.med-discovery.com Labodia SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.labodia.com Medacta International SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.medacta.ch Laboratoire Bailleul Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.bailleul.com MedC. Partners Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.medcpartners.ch Laboratoire Dr. Bregnard SA Jura R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services Medeco-ch Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Implants www.medeco-ch.com Laboratoire Gibro SA Neuchâtel Cosmetics; Phyto www.laboratoiregibro.com Medelec Minimeca SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.medelec-tubes.com Laboratoire SCM SA Jura R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.genitec.net MedExpansion Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.medexpansion.ch Laboratoires Anesa SA Valais Therapeutics and Diagnostics Medical Cluster Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.medical-cluster.ch Laboratoires Biologiques Arval SA Valais Cosmetics www.arvalcosmetics.com Medical Device Solutions AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.mds-ag.ch Laboratoires Plan SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.laboratoiresplan.com Medical Devices Lease SA Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services www.mdlfinance.com Laborial Suisse SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.laborial.com Medical Titanium Sàrl Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.medicaltitanium.com Lamineries Matthey SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Implants; Other; Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.matthey.ch Medic-Micro Sàrl Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.medicmicro.ch Lascco SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Diagnostics www.lascco.com Medico Technique SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices Laser Automation Gekatronic SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Implants; Devices www.laser-automation.com Medicontur Geneva Medical Technology www.medicontur.com Laserix Sàrl Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.tecvision.ch/laserix/ Medics Labor Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.medics-labor.ch Laserix Sàrl (Laboratoire) Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.tecvision.ch/laserix/ Medidee Services SA Fribourg Professional Services & Consulting www.medidee.com Laser-Jura Sàrl Jura Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents; Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.laserjura.ch Mediliant SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.biometeurope.com Lasermed AG Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.lasermed.ch Medimaps Group Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.medimapsgroup.com/ Lastec AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.lastec.ch Medinel Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.medinel.com Laubscher Präzision AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.burde-metall.at/glc.htm Medinorma Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.medinorma.ch Lauener et Cie SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.lauener.ch Medion Diagnostics AG Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.medion-diagnostics.ch Laurylab Sàrl Fribourg Supplier & Engineering Mediplant Valais Phyto www.mediplant.ch Le Vivier Fribourg Incubator and seed fund www.vivier.ch Medipol SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.medipol.ch Leitner SA Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.leitner-ag.ch Medirio Valais Medical Technology - Diagnostic and therapeutic devices www.medirio.com Leman Cardiovascular SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.lemancardiovascular.com Mediseeds Valais Phyto www.mediseeds.ch Leman Consulting SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other; Patents & Trademarks www.lemanconsulting.ch Medistri SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.medistri.com Leman Medical Technologies Vaud Medical Technology www.lemanmedical.com Meditec Consulting GmbH Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other; Regulatory & Clinical Services www.meditec-consulting.ch Leman Micro Devices SA Vaud Medical Technology www.leman-micro.com Medlight SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.medlight.com Lemo SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.lemo.com Medos International Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.jnj.com Lemur-Scouting Sàrl Jura Professional Services & Consulting - Devices; Business Development Services www.lemur-scouting.ch MedPlast SA Valais Medical Technology - Diagnostic and therapeutic devices www.medplast.ch

58 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 59 BUSINESS GUIDE

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

Medtronic Biopharma Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.medtronic.ch Novo Business Consultants AG Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.novo-bc.ch Medtronic Europe Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.medtronic.ch Novoglas Bern Supplier & Engineering - Other; Consumables & Reagents www.novoglas.ch Medvantis Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.medvantis.ch Nufer Medical AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.nufer-medical.ch Meister + Cie AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.meister-ag.ch Numelec SA Geneva Professional Servcies & Consulting www.numelec.com Melcure SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.eclosion.ch Nutricia SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.nutricia.ch Melet Schloesing Pharmaceuticals SA Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics Nutrilinks Vaud Nutrition www.nutrilinks.net Memedge Consulting Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Communication services www.memedge-consulting.ch Nutrimedis SA Fribourg Nutrition www.nutrimedis.ch Mensys Group Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Human Resources Services www.mensys-group.com NV Logistics SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Delivery www.nvlogistics.com Mensys Group Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Human Resources Services www.mensys-group.com ObsEva SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Discovery www.obseva.com Merck Serono SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug; Proteins / Peptides www.merckserono.net Obtech Medical Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.jnj.com Meridian AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.meridian.ch Odinelixir SA Valais Phyto www.odinelixir.ch Métafil-Lagirolle SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.metafil-lagirolle.ch Olympus Biotech SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices; Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.olympus.ch Meyer Sintermetall AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.sintermetall.ch Omega Statistical Consulting Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.omegastatco.ch MH LOG Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.mh-log.ch OmniScience SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Communication services www.omniscience-ltd.com Michael Page Healthcare & Life science Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Human Resources Services www.michaelpage.ch OncoEthix SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.oncoethix.com Micro Precision Systems AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.mpsag.com ONCommit Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.oncommit.ch Microcity Neuchâtel Academic Institutions www.microcity.epfl.ch Ondaco SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Business development services www.ondaco.com Microscan Service SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services; Information Provider www.microscan.ch One Drop Diagnostic Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Diagnostic and therapeutic devices www.onedropdiagnostics.com Microsens SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.microsens.ch Oriflame Cosmetics SA Fribourg Cosmetics www.oriflame.com Micrus Endovascular SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.micrusendovascular.com Orphée SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting www.orphee-medical.com MiCS - MicroChemical Systems SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices Ortho.Kern SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.ortho-kern.ch Mikron Holding AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.mikron-tg.com Orthoglobal Sàrl Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.orthoglobal.ch Milian SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.milian.com Ortho-Team AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.ortho-team.ch Milupa SA Fribourg Nutrition www.milupa.ch Oscimed SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.oscimedsa.com MindMaze SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.mindmaze.ch Osterwalder AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.osterwalder.com Mintaka Medical Research Foundation Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.mintakafoundation.com Otsuka SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug; Medical technology - Devices www.otsuka.com MLF Consulting Services Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Quality; Communication; Other www.mlf-consulting.com Outcome Europe Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.outcome.com MMV Medicines For Malaria Venture Geneva Professional Services & Consulting www.mmv.org P&TS SA Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.patentattorneys.ch Moinas & Savoye SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.msc-ip.com P.T.M. Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.ptm.ch Monnier & Zahner AG Bern Medical Technology www.monnier-zahner.ch Pact & Partners International Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.pactpartners.com Motilis Medica SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.motilis.com PACTT Vaud Academic Institutions www.pactt.ch MTA - Unitechnologies SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.mta.ch PAP Cosmetics Sciences SA Valais Cosmetics Mycotec SA Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting - Quality www.mycotec.ch Parvulus Suisse SA Vaud Medical Technology - Implants www.parvulus-suisse.com Mymetics SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Vaccines www.mymetics.com PB&B SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.pbbtech.ch MyoPowers Medical Technologies SA Vaud Medical Technology www.myopowers.com Pearlwater Mineralquellen AG Valais Nutrition Myotest SA Valais Medical Technology - Devices www.myotest.ch Pen-fix Sàrl Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.pen-fix.ch Nano Bridging Molecules SA Vaud Medical Technology - Tissue Engineering / Regenerative Medicine www.nbmolecules.com Performance Thérapeutique Sàrl Jura Supplier & Engineering Nanolive SA Vaud Medical Technology www.nanolive.ch Petitpierre SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.petitpierre.ch Nanologica Pure Sàrl Jura R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Delivery; Therapeutics, Chemical Drug www.nanologica.com Petz Industries AG Fribourg Supplier & Engineering Nanosensors Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.nanosensors.com Pevion Biotech AG Bern Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Vaccines www.pevion.com NanoWorld AG Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.nanoworld.com Pewatron AG Fribourg Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.pewatron.com NanoWorld Technologies Sàrl Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.nanoworldtechnologies.com PFL Antralux SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Dental Devices; Prosthetics; Implants www.precel.ch NBB Biotech GmbH Fribourg Medical Technology - Devices www.nbbbiotech.com PFM Medical Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology www.cppswiss.ch NeoCoat Neuchâtel Medical Technology www.neocoat.ch Pharma Consulting Marion Senn GmbH Bern Supplier & Engineering www.pharmaconsulting.ch Neocutis SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.neocutis.com Pharma Futura SA Valais Supplier & Engineering www.nutritiondusport.ch Neode SA Neuchâtel Incubator and seed fund www.neode.ch Pharmacap Holding SA Fribourg Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services NeoMed Medical Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services www.neomed.net PharmAlp SA Valais Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Nutrition www.pharmalp.ch Nestec SA Vaud Nutrition www.nestlenutrition.com PharmaSys Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting - Quality; Information Provider www.pharmasys.fr Nestlé Institute of Health Sciences SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.nestleinstitutehealthsciences.com Pharmatic AG Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.pharmatic.ch Nestlé SA Vaud Nutrition www.nestle.ch Phasis Sàrl Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.phasis.ch NetModule AG Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.netmodule.com Phenosystems SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.phenosystems.com Neurix SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services; Technology Platforms www.neurix.ch Phonak Communication AG Fribourg Medical Technology - Devices www.phonak-communications.com NeuroAssets Sàrl Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services; Technology Platforms www.neuroassets.com PhotoDerma SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.photoderma.com Neurolite Bern Medical Technology - Electro mechanical Medical devices www.neurolite.ch PHT Corporation Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services www.phtcorp.com Niklaus Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.niklaus-sa.com Phyt-Inov SA Jura Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.phyt-inov.com Novadaq Technologies Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.novadaq.com PhytoArk SA Valais Incubator and seed fund www.phytoark.ch Novagraaf International SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.novagraaf.ch PhytoConcept Valais Phyto Novartis Centre De Recherche Santé Animale SA Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.novartis.com Phytomed AG Bern Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.phytomed.ch Novartis Consumer Health SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.consumer-health.ch Phytopharma SA Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.phytopharma.ch NovImmune SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.novimmune.com Pibor Iso SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.pibor.ch Novipart Health & Life Sciences Sàrl Valais Professional Services & Consulting - Other; Business development services; Pico Drill SA Vaud Medical Technology www.picodrill.com Regulatory & Clinical services; Quality www.novipart.com Pierre Kern Orthopédie Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.ortho-kern.ch

60 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 61 BUSINESS GUIDE

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

Piguet Frères & Cie SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.piguet-freres.ch Sandozmedica Ltd Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Financial Services; Pimatron Medizintechnik + Consulting GmbH Bern Medical Technology - Devices Human Resources Services; Patents & Trademarks www.sandozmedica.com Pixon Engineering SA Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.pixon-ch.com Sanex Pharm Sérolab SA Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.serolab.ch Plaspaq SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.plaspaq.ch Saniswiss SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.saniswiss.com Pnn Medical SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.pnnmedical.ch Sanitex SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.sanitex.ch Polar Electro Europe B.V., Schipol-Zuid Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting www.polar.com Sankom Switzerland SA Jura Nutrition www.sankom.com Polydec SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.polydec.ch Sanofi-Aventis (Suisse) SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug; Vaccines www.sanofi-aventis.ch Polyform Kopp AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.polyform.ch Saphirwerk Industrieprodukte AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.saphirwerk.com Polykem Sàrl Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.polykem.com SATYAtek SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices; Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.satyatek.com Precipart SA Bern Supplier & Engineering www.precipart.ch SAV-IOL SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Biomaterials / Coatings www.sav-iol.ch Précision éléctronique Precel SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Dental Devices; Prosthetics; Implants www.precel.ch SBG - Healthcare Strategic Marketing Preclin Biosystems AG Vaud Cosmetics; CRO (Contract Research Organization) www.preclinbiosystems.com & Communication Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Communication www.sbg-marcom.ch Predige SA Vaud Cosmetics Sccopi Engineering Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.sccopi.com PreenTec AG Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.preentec.ch Schaerer Mayfield Schweiz AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.schaerermayfield.com PregLem SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.preglem.com Schlafli Engineering AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.schlafli.ch Pretec AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.pretec.ch Schneiter & Vuille Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.sv-ip.com Prexton Therapeutics Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO; CMO ScienceVisuals Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Delivery devices www.sciencevisuals.com Primequal SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.primequal.com Scientis Pharma SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Drug Discovery www.scientispharma.ch Pro Valplantes SA Valais Phyto www.provalplantes.ch Scitec Research SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.scitec-research.com Product Life AG Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services www.productlife.ch SDI Surgical Device International Sàrl Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.sdigmbh.ch Productec SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.productec.ch Second Sight Medical Products Sàrl Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics Produits Dentaires SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.pdsa.ch Sedia AG Fribourg Medical Technology - Devices www.sedia.ch Protec Medical Sàrl Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.protec-shop.ch Selectus SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.selectus.ch ProTool AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.protool-ltd.ch Selexis SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Other; Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.selexis.com Proxilab Analyses Médicales SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services Semadeni AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.semadeni.com PulmonX International Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.pulmonx.com Sensimed SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.sensimed.ch Pure by Switzerland SA Jura Cosmetics www.purebyswitzerland.com Sérolab SA Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.serolab.ch PX Dental SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.pxdental.ch Servicos AG Bern Cosmetics www.servicos.ch PX Services SA Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting www.pxservices.ch Servier Suisse SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.servier.com QGel SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.qgelbio.com Seyonic SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.seyonic.com Qloudlab Vaud Medical Technology - Diagnostic and therapeutic devices / Imaging www.qloudlab.com SGS M-Scan SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.m-scan.com Qualimatest SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.qmt.ch SGX Sensortech SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.sgxsensortech.com Qualimetro SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.qualimetro.com Shire AG Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.shirepharma.ch Quantis International Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Communication; Information Provider www.quantis-intl.com Siemens Suisse SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics; Other www.siemens.ch Quantum Pharmaceuticals SA Neuchâtel Cosmetics www.quantumpharmaceuticals.com Signal Processing SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.signal-processing.com Quartz Bio SA Geneva Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.quartzbio.com Simatec AG Bern Medical Technology www.simatec.com R-Action Distribution Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.radistribution.com Simpex Tech AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.simpex.ch Recomatic SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.recomatic.ch SimplicityBio Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Technology Platforms (BioSystems, BioChips, BioMems) www.simplicitybio.com Redelec Technologie SA Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Technology Platforms (BioSystems, BioChips, BioMems) www.redelec.ch Sintetica Bioren SA Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.sintetica-bioren.com Regen Lab SA Vaud Medical Technology - Tissue Engineering / Regenerative Medicine www.regenlab.com Sirad SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.sirad.ch RegenHU SA Fribourg Medical Technology - Tissue Engineering / Regenerative Medicine www.regenhu.com SISPha SA Valais Supplier & Engineering www.sispha.com «RegioMed Fred Riesen» Bern Medical Technology www.regiomed.ch/ Skin Cell Technologies Valais Phyto; Cosmetics RehaxOne SA Valais Professional Services & Consulting - Quality; Business Development Services www.rehaxone.com Smartcanula Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.smartcanula.com Remp AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.remp.com SmartCardia Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices ReseaChem GmbH Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.reseachem.ch SmartGene Services Sàrl Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.smartgene.ch Reuteler & Cie SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.reuteler.net SME BioAdvisor Ltd Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services; Financial Services; RF Pharmaceuticals Sàrl Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Communication / PR / Market research / Events Business Development Services www.smebioadvisor.com RiboVax Biotechnologies SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.ribovax.com SMR Engineering & Development SA Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.smr.ch Ridepharm Consulting Sàrl Valais Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.ridepharm.com SMT Swiss Microtechnology AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.ziemergroup.com Riotex AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.riotex.ch Snortec Sàrl Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.snortec.ch RNI CONSULTING Healthcare Valais Supplier & Engineering www.rni-consulting.com SNP Consulting Fribourg Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services; Communication; Rodanotech Sàrl Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO (Contract Manufacturing Organization); Patent & Trademarks www.swissnp.ch CRO (Contract Research Organization) www.rodanotech.ch Socar Research SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Regulatory & Clinical Services - R&D Services Roewasys AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Other; Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.roewasys.com and Technology Platforms - CRO (Contract Research Organization) www.socar-research.com Romedic SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.romedicsa.ch Société Suisse des Explosifs Valais Fine Chemicals www.explosif.ch Rosin Entreprise Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology www.rosin-ent.com Socorex Isba SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.socorex.com Ruetschi Technology AG Fribourg Medical Technology - Devices www.ruetschi.com Solae Europe SA Geneva Nutrition www.solae.com Ruetschi Technology AG Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.ruetschi.com Solid Drug Development SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO; Professional Services & Consulting - Patents & Trademarks www.soliddrugdevelopment.com Rüfenacht AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.starbowl.ch Sompharmaceuticals Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.sompharmaceuticals.com Rüsch (Schweiz) AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.ruesch-schweiz.ch Sonoscope SA Fribourg Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.sonoscope.ch S&S Sàrl Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.ssgmt.com Sophia Genetics SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics; Safrima AG Bern Medical Technology www.safrima.ch Diagnostics / Analytical Services www.sophiagenetics.com

62 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 63 BUSINESS GUIDE

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

Spagyros SA Jura Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.spagyros.ch Technilab SA Geneva Medical Technology SpineArt Geneva Medical Technology - Implants; Biomaterials www.spineart.ch TechnoCut SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.technocutsa.ch Spinomix SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.spinomix.com Techno-Lens SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.technolens.ch SpirAlps SA Valais Nutrition www.spiralps.ch Temmentec AG Bern Cosmetics www.temmentec.ch SPsolutions SA Valais Professional Services & Consulting www.spsolutions.ch Tenax SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.jic.ch/tenax St. Jude Medical Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.endosense.com The Ark Valais Professional Services & Consulting www.theark.ch Staar Surgical AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.staar.com The MathWorks GmbH Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.mathworks.ch Startech Consulting Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.startech-consulting.ch Thermo Fisher Scientific SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.thermofisher.com Station de recherche Agroscope Topotarget Switzerland SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.topotarget.com Changins-Wädenswil Valais Phyto www.agroscope.admin.ch Tornos SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.tornos.com Steiger Galvanotechnique SA Fribourg Medical Technology www.steiger.ch Totzke & Dreher Scientific SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Communication; Regulatory & Clinical Services www.td-s.com Stemedica International SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Cell Therapy / Stem Cells www.stemedica.com TQM Insight Geneva Medical Technology www.tqm-insight.com Stemergie Biotechnology SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Cell Therapy / Stem Cells; Chemical Drug www.stemergie.com Trabold & Co AG Bern Supplier & Engineering www.trabold.ch Steris AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.steris.com TransCure BioSciences SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Cell Therapy / Stem Cells; Gene Therapy www.transcurebiosciences.com SteriSwiss Sàrl Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms www.steriswiss.ch TRB Chemedica International SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.trbchemedica.com SteriSwiss Vaud SA Vaud Medical Technology www.steriswiss.ch TRB Chemedica SA Valais Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.trbchemedica.com Stiftung für Technologische Innovation Bern Professional Services & Consulting - Financial Services www.sti-stiftung.ch Triflo Medical Switzerland Sàrl Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics Stoppani AG Bern R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.stoppani.com Trimastek Sàrl Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.trimastek.ch Stragen Pharma SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Generics / Biosimilars www.stragen.ch Triskel Integrated Services SA Geneva Professional Services & Consulting - Other; Regulatory & Clinical Services www.triskel.com Stratarium Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Tissue Engineering / Regenerative Medicine; Devices www.stratarium.com Typon Medical Systems Bern Supplier & Engineering www.typon.ch Straumann Villeret SA Bern Medical Technology - Implants; Biomaterials www.straumann.com UCB Farchim SA Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.ucb.com/worldwide/switzerland Stryker EMEA Headquarter Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.stryker.ch Unident SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.unident.ch Stryker Spine SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.stryker.ch Unident SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.unident.ch Stryker Trauma SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.stryker.ch Unilabs SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Diagnostic / Analytical Services www.unilabs.ch Suisse Med Technologies SA Valais Medical Technology www.suissemt.com Unimed SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.unimed.ch Sunrise Medical AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.sunrisemedical.ch Uniquer Sàrl Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO (Contract Research Organization); Sunstar Suisse SA Vaud Cosmetics Bioinformatics / genomics & Proteomics www.uniquer.ch Supply Chain Operations SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Human Resources Services; Quality www.suplychainoperations.ch United BioSource (Suisse) SA Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CRO (Contract Research Organization) www.unitedbiosource.com Surcotec SA Geneva Supplier & Engineering www.surcotec.ch UniverCité Vaud Academic Institutions www.univercite.ch Surgical Instrument Engineering AG Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering University of Bern Bern Academic Institutions www.unibe.ch Süss MicrOptics SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering www.suss-microoptics.com University of Fribourg Fribourg Academic Institutions www.unifr.ch Swiss Arab BioPharma Geneva Cosmetics; Medical Technology - Devices; Nutrition - Professional Services & Consulting - University of Geneva Geneva Academic Institutions www.unige.ch Business Development Services; Therapeutics - Chemical Drug www.swissarab-biopharma.com University of Lausanne Vaud Academic Institutions www.unil.ch Swiss Dental Material SA Valais Medical Technology www.sdm-sa.com University of Neuchâtel Neuchâtel Academic Institutions www.unine.ch Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics Geneva R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.isb-sib.ch V.I.P.S medical Sàrl Neuchâtel Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.vipsglobal.com Swiss Institute of Cell Therapies (SICT) Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.swiss-ict.ch Valdar SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.valdar.ch Swiss Malaria Foundation Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.swissmalaria.ch Valmed SA Valais Medical Technology - Devices www.valmed.ch Swiss Medical Care SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.swissmedcare.com Valpharmex SA Valais Supplier & Engineering - SWiSS TM Sàrl Geneva Medical Technology - Implants; Devices Valplantes Valais Phyto www.valplantes.ch Swissatec Sàrl Jura Medical Technology Valsynthèse SA Valais Fine Chemicals www.valsynthese.ch Swissaustral Biotech SA Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.swissaustral.ch Valteo SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.valteo.ch Swissderm AG Fribourg Therapeutics and Diagnostics www.swissderm.ch Valtronic Technologies SA Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.valtronictechnologies.com Swissfillon AG Valais R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.swissfillon.com Valucept Sàrl Geneva Cosmetics www.valucept.com SwissLens SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.swisslens.ch Vaxeal Holding SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins Peptides; Vaccines www.vaxeal-group.com Swiss-Medical-Consultants Sàrl Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.swiss-medical-consultants.com Venner Medical (Suisse) SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.vennermedical.com SwissMIM SA Jura Medical Technology - Devices www.swissmim.com Venturelab Vaud Professional Services & Consulting www.venturelab.ch Swisssurgical Sàrl Vaud Medical Technology - Devices; Professional Services & Consulting - Quality; Regulatory & Clinical Services www.swisssurgical.com ViDi Systems SA Fribourg IT Services / Information provider www.vidi-systems.com Swortec SA Valais Medical Technology - Devices www.swortec.ch Vifor Pharma SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Chemical Drug www.viforpharma.com Symbion Medical Systems Sàrl Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.symbion-medical.com Vifor SA Fribourg R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO www.viforpharma.com Symbios Orthopédie SA Vaud Medical Technology - Implants; Biomaterials www.symbios.ch Vigisense SA Geneva Medical Technology - Devices www.vigisense.com Symetis SA Vaud Medical Technology - Tissue Engineering / Regenerative Medicine www.symetis.com Vinci Capital Vaud Venture Capital Fund www.vincicapital.ch Syngenta Crop Protection Monthey SA Valais Fine Chemicals www.syngenta.com Viral Inactivated Plasma Systems SA Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting - Business Development Services www.vipsmedical.com Synthes Raron GmbH Valais Professional Services & Consulting www.synthes.com Viroblock SA Geneva Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.viroblock.com Sysmelec SA Bern Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.sysmelec.ch Viso Médical SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering Sysmex Digitana SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.sysmex.ch Visualbiotech Sàrl Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - Bioinformatics / Genomics & Proteomics www.visualbiotech.ch Systems Assembling SA Neuchâtel Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.sysa.ch Vivactis (Suisse) SA Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Communication services www.vivactis.ch Tabrasco SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.tabrasco.com Vivos Dental SA Fribourg Medical Technology - Dental Devices www.vivosdental.com Tagator Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Business development Services www.tagator.com Voisin Consulting Sàrl Vaud Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.voisinconsulting.com TauDerma Sàrl Valais Nutrition - Vuilleumier Technology SA Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.vui-tec.ch Tech-Laser Sandoz SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering www.techlaser.ch VWR International AG Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Consumables & Reagents www.vwr.com Techma Consult Sàrl Vaud R&D Services and Technology Platforms - CMO; Technology Platforms (BioSystems, BioChips, BioMems) www.techma-consult.com Vygon Suisse Sàrl Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.vygon.ch TechniCAD Engineering SA Valais Professional Services & Consulting - Other www.technicad.ch Wibemo SA Jura Supplier & Engineering www.wibemo.ch

64 Summer 2014 Summer 2014 65 BUSINESS GUIDE

COMPANY NAME CANTON MAIN SECTOR & SUBSECTORS Internet

Willemin-Macodel SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.willemin-macodel.com Wire Engineering Sàrl Fribourg Supplier & Engineering - Electronics; Mechanical Engineering/Micro Engineering www.wire-engineering.com Witech Bassecourt SA Jura Supplier & Engineering - Mechanical Engineering / Micro Engineering www.witech-sa.ch World Medical Device Organization Vaud Medical Device Professional www.wmdo.org Xactform SA Neuchâtel Medical Technology - Devices www.xactform.com XenTech AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.xentech.ch Xigen SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides; Chemical Drug www.xigenpharma.com XiTact SA Vaud Medical Technology - Devices www.mentice.com XLBiosim SA Vaud Supplier & Engineering - Electronics www.xlbiosim.com Y-Parc SA Vaud Science & Technology Park / Incubator and seed fund www.y-parc.ch Ypsomed AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.ypsomed.com Yttermed SA Vaud Medical Technology www.yttermed.ch Zanin Swiss Cosmetics Valais Cosmetics www.zanin-cosmetics.ch Zestagen SA Vaud Therapeutics and Diagnostics - Proteins / Peptides www.zestagen.com Ziemer Ophthalmic Systems AG Bern Medical Technology - Devices www.ziemergroup.ch Zimmer Schweiz GmbH Bern Medical Technology - Implants; Biomaterials www.zimmer.com Zimmer Surgical Geneva Medical Technology www.zimmer.com ZTC Technology SA Neuchâtel Professional Services & Consulting - Information Provider www.ztc-techno.com Zwirner Nanotec AG Fribourg Supplier & Engineering www.zwirner-nanotec.ch

The BioAlps team Committee Members Address President Mrs CATHERINE LALIVE D’EPINAY BioAlps Association Dr BENOÎT DUBUIS Economic Development Officer, c/o OPI Director of Eclosion Department of regional affairs, economy Ch. du Pré-Fleuri 3 Vice President and health (DARES), Canton of Geneva 1228 Plan-Les-Ouates Mr RAPHAËL CONZ Dr SACHA SIDJANSKI Switzerland Economic Promotion Manager, Head of External Relations, Canton of Vaud School of Life Sciences, EPFL Contact Treasurer Dr MASSIMO NOBILE Mr Christophe Rouiller Mr ROLAND LUTHIER Project Manager, CimArk Executive Assistant Director of the Alliance Phone +41 (0) 22 304 40 40 Liaison Programme Secretariat Email [email protected] Mr CHRISTOPHE ROUILLER Web www.bioalps.org Executive Assistant

Technology by Bilan EDITOR Fabrice Delaye BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Bilan ART DIRECTOR Pierre Broquet Cédric Piaget EDITOR IN CHIEF Stéphane Benoit-Godet PHOTO DIRECTOR David Huc MARKETING DEPUTY EDITORS DESIGN DIRECTOR Charlène Martin Dahlia Al-Khudri, Marie-Anne Fourot Myret Zaki, Christina d’Agostino ADVERTISING SALES EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Tamedia Publications romandes SA Sylivie Bernaudon Matthieu Hoffstetter, Leila Ueberschlag Tel + 41 21 349 50 50 and Pascal Vermot. [email protected] Publisher + 41 44 251 35 75 Tamedia Publications romandes SA TRANSLATION/EDITING [email protected] Louise Delaye, Vivienne Gerritsen Customer service and and Peter Wrobel inquiries Rue des Rois 11, 1204 Geneva Switzerland Tel + 41 22 322 36 36 Fax + 41 22 322 34 50

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