Rachel Boden-crop-web

Find-me appoints Rachel Boden as new CEO

Find-me Technologies, the creator of the Find-me Carers Watch, a wearable device to assist the elderly and those diagnosed with dementia, is preparing for rapid growth with the appointment of Rachel Boden as Chief Executive Officer.

Find-Me CEO Rachel Boden – click image to download high-res photo

 

With a career in health spanning over three decades, Ms Boden brings extensive experience in healthcare product commercialisation, having worked in start-up to large corporate pharmaceutical companies servicing Asia Pacific.

Specialists to present advances in emission reduction management at free Seminar

Australian specialists in particulates emissions reduction technology will come together to present the latest information about effective management of diesel emissions at a free seminar – Practical Guide to DPM Management – hosted by Peak3 on May 15, 2012.

Peak3 CEO Col Chandler said diesel emissions were one of the many potential health risks facing thousands of Australian miners and the seminar was designed to provide mining industry professionals a practical way to reduce these risks with the latest developments in emission reduction programs and technologies.

“The seminar is open to all mining industry professionals, including those working in occupational health and safety (OH&S), mine managers as well as maintenance and ventilation engineers and officers.”

“The goal is to ensure emissions are being managed effectively and efficiently, without affecting mine productivity,” Mr Chandler said.

This free seminar will be held on May 15th from 12.30pm to 4.30pm in the Vue Function Room at the Wollongong Golf Club, 151-161 Corrimal Street, Wollongong NSW. Afternoon tea will be provided.

Mr Chandler said demand for the seminars came from mine management who needed to ensure they were aware of the latest developments in this rapidly changing sector.

Diesel emissions include up to 41 toxic compounds – which pose health risks to underground miners. There are strict emissions regulations being implemented globally and Peak3 aims to become the ‘standard’ for end-to-end emissions management in the mining industry. The companies focus is on helping companies reduce costs and reduce emissions through better use of new planning, monitoring and treatment technologies and services. At the heart of that approach is Evidence Based Emissions Management.

Peak3 have developed a number of world-leading emissions treatment and monitoring technologies including the Particulate Management Platform that treats nano and ultrafine particulates using ultrasonic agglomeration, a process that was developed with collaborative research assistance from the Australian Coal Association Research Program and CSIRO.

Peak3, a Queensland Science and Engineering company, also provides a range of monitoring and emission planning services to the mining market and has just secured a significant investment from the OneVentures Innovation Fund to commercialise its latest technologies.

“Trying to manage Diesel emissions can cost mining companies a significant amount of money. To do it properly, up to date information is vital which is why we have brought together science and industry leaders to provide the latest information to those managing the problem,” Mr Chandler said.

The seminars will include presentations from seven industry experts:

  • Colin Chandler, CEO of Peak3, will present DPM “The Myths and Reality”
  • Dr Patrick Glynn, CSIRO, will present “Current Treatment and Monitoring in Mines”
  • Dominic Posavec, General Manager of NSW Workshops DMS Underground Division, will present “The Vehicle as a Solution”
  • Dr Richard Brown, Assoc Prof QUT, will present “Diesel Engine Efficiency and Emissions as Mech Markers”
  • Ray Morgan, Chief Scientist Peak3, will present “Monitoring”
  • Dr Zoran Ristovski, Assoc Prof QUT, International Laboratory of Air Quality and Health, will present “The Health Aspects of DPM”; and
  • Neil Davey, Chief Technology Officer Peak3, will present “Treatment and Monitoring Automation.

Places are limited and bookings essential. If you would like to attend, please RSVP to
info@peak3.com.au or call 07 3801 4897 by May 10, 2012.
For more information, a full program and bookings please email cheryl@peak3.com.au or phone 07 3801 4897

Investment in Vaxxas winner at 2012 Vaccine Industry Awards

WASHINGTON, DC, USA and BRISBANE, QUEENSLAND, AUSTRALIA – The $15m syndicated investment in Vaxxas Pty Ltd, developers of the Nanopatch™, a new needle-free vaccine delivery system, was judged the Best Venture Capital Investment at the 2012 Vaccine Industry Excellence Awards, held at the World Vaccine Congress in Washington, DC last week.

Dr Paul Kelly, OneVentures Partner and Chairman of Vaxxas, accepted the award on behalf of the investors and the company. The investment led by OneVentures, with co-investors Brandon Capital Partners, the Medical Research Commercialisation Fund (MRCF), and US-based HealthCare Ventures was made just seven months ago, enabling Professor Mark Kendall and his team at University of Queensland’s Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN) to take the Nanopatch™ into commercial development.

The Vaccine Industry Excellence Awards have been created to honour and recognise the efforts, accomplishments, and positive contributions of companies and individuals in the vaccine industry over the previous 12 months. This year’s awards were voted upon by global industry representatives and attended by more than 500 senior vaccine industry professionals.

The judging criteria for the award included the structure of the deal, how innovative the investment model was, and what impact the investing company has had and will have on the business.

Dr Kelly said winning the award was an acknowledgement of the innovative approach the syndicate had bought to making this investment. “As well as the OneVentures team, I would like to acknowledge the contributions of my fellow syndicate Directors, Dr Stephen Thompson of Brandon Capital Partners and Douglas Onsi, of HealthCare Ventures.

“The investment is significant because of its size, which ensures the company has appropriate initial funding to achieve key development and commercial milestones, because the investment syndicate includes both Australian and international investors, and also because those investors have a hands-on approach to supporting the company even at this early stage,” Dr Kelly said.

“These resources are not just financial but expertise, networks and the experience in building high-growth globally significant companies and taking novel technologies through to innovative products. Colleagues in the investment syndicate have vaccine industry experience, healthcare business development experience and close relationships with major pharmaceutical companies.”

Dr Stephen Thompson, Managing Director of Brandon Capital Partners and the MRCF, stated that “the OneVentures Innovation Fund, Brandon Biosciences Fund 1 and MRCF are all supported by the Australian Government’s IIF program. The importance of the IIF program is enabling Australian venture capital firms to commercialise the outcomes of Australia’s strong research capability can not be over emphasized. Without this contribution to the venture industry, technologies such as the Nanopatch™ being commercialised through Vaxxas, may never make it off the laboratory bench to international markets.”

Douglas Onsi, Managing Director of HealthCare Ventures, stated that “this award is a tribute to Professor Kendall and the team in his lab at the AIBN who invented and developed the breakthrough Nanopatch™ technology and to UniQuest who provided the managerial and intellectual property support. A venture investment is only as good as its underlying technology and people, and this award represents recognition from the global vaccine industry of Professor Kendall and his team’s accomplishments in solving some of the major issue in vaccine delivery. The entire syndicate looks forward to seeing the Nanopatch™ technology advance towards testing in patients.”

The Nanopatch™ has thousands of small projections designed to deliver the vaccine to abundant immune cells in the skin, whereas the traditional syringe hits the muscle where there are few immune cells. Early stage testing in animals so far has shown that a Nanopatch™ delivered flu vaccine was effective with only 1/150th of the dose compared to a syringe and that the adjuvants currently required to boost the immunogenicity of vaccines may not be needed. In addition to improving the efficiency of delivery, the Nanopatch has the potential to dramatically improve patient convenience and reduce the complications associated with needle phobia, needle stick injuries and cross contamination, which are key global health issues. The Nanopatch™ is designed also to provide vaccine thermostability, removing the need for refrigeration, making transport much cheaper and easier, particularly to developing nations around the world.

 

Smart Sparrow targets Next Generation Learning after securing first round of funding

Sydney, December 16, 2011 – Smart Sparrow Pty Ltd, have today announced it has secured a significant round of venture capital investment to accelerate the commercialisation of its proprietary online Intelligent Tutoring e-learning platform.

Smart Sparrow, a company incubated with the University of New South Wales’ Faculty of Engineering, was originally identified by Uniseed. OneVentures then led the funding round with Uniseed investing alongside the OneVentures Innovation Fund. Smart Sparrow will utilise the capital injection to enhance platform capability and further pursue market adoption of their state-of-the-art technology.

Smart Sparrow founder, Dr Dror Ben-Naim said the future of education is learning environments that adapt to the individual student as they progress through coursework and where each student receives rich interactive feedback as if sitting one-on-one with their teacher.

“While students work, Smart Sparrow’s adaptivity engine models their knowledge and learning style, so that it can personalize the teaching, specific to their learning.

“We are delighted to have received such strong interest in the technology with recognition not only from Australian venture capitalists but also internationally,” Dr Ben-Naim said.

OneVentures Managing Partner, Dr Michelle Deaker said OneVentures had identified education as a sector that would see substantial growth, disruption, globalisation and innovation over the next decade

“The OneVentures Innovation Fund is looking for investments with global potential and large addressable markets. We were impressed by the Smart Sparrow team, the technology and the potential of the company in servicing the rapidly growing e-learning market expected to exceed $50 billion in 2011.”

Smart Sparrow was founded in 2010, following seven years of research and development by Israeli-Australian PhD graduate Dror Ben-Naim. While within the University of New South Wales, the technology became successfully incorporated into the teaching programs of over 60 academics and used by 15,000 students annually. Hundreds of adaptive modules are now in use in subjects ranging from pathology and science labs through to music and business. Adoption of the platform has enabled the university to reduce costs, provide a richer learning environment and improve student performance and classroom success rates.

Uniseed Investment Manager, Dr David Rowe, said Uniseed recognised the potential of the technology and looked to partner with venture capitalists who had the requisite experience and international networks to help drive the business and mentor the founding team of the company.

“The platform developed by Smart Sparrow represents the next generation of educational technology. The cloud-based platform is stable, scalable and proven with modules in operation now in 5 of the 8 top tier Australian Universities, as well as first international customers.”

University of New South Wales Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research), Professor Les Field AM said venture capital played a crucial role and was recognised globally as an essential building block in the innovation ecosystem.

“In many respects, it is the missing link between university funded research and commercial outcomes that benefit the economy, make workplaces more productive and create new jobs. The University is delighted to see Smart Sparrow attract substantial venture capital funding to further its commercial operations,” said Professor Field.

Professor Field also commented that there is a growing need, particularly in higher education, for institutions to take a global view of their provision of educational services and learning, expand their student numbers and yet also find ways to customise the learning experience to individual students. In a wired world, coupled with ubiquitous mobility, educational institutions must adopt new technologies that allow them to teach anyone, anywhere and anytime.

Dr Ben-Naim said they had seen significant engagement from students accessing the platform.

“As academics build their content into the platform, learning outcomes are enhanced and the teacher can monitor progress of the student through all stages of the course,” he said.

Dr Deaker commented that a key focus of the NBN would be delivery of educational training and vocational services into regional areas of Australia through online education programs.

She also noted that the Asia-Pacific region was growing rapidly in wealth yet was unable to adequately meet the demands for educational services, which would provide significant opportunity for Australian institutions.

“Lack of or access to qualified educators means that more scalable education models are required which will be underpinned by technology. Intelligent Tutoring Technology, such as Smart Sparrow, will be essential as the platform enabler of these future learning environments.”

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