NSW incubator appoints associate director

The NSW government's new BioFirst biotechnology incubator is on track for its February 2003 opening and has made named a high-level tech transfer specialist as its associate director.

Paul Field, who is currently the commercialisation manager at the University of Technology, Sydney, will join the new incubator in January.

Dr Mark Bradley, CEO of the incubator's developer, ATP Innovations (ATPi), said Field's role would be to drive the development of the incubator and help biotechnology companies in the facility to fast-track their commercialisation processes through ATPi's bizConnect program.

ATPi won a NSW government tender, worth $2.5 million over five years, to develop the incubator at the Australian Technology Park (ATP) in inner-city Sydney. ATPi is matching the state's contribution and is now working to create facilities that can house up to 16 biotech companies at once.

Apart from his UTS role, Field is also a vice-chair of Knowledge Commercialisation Australasia, (KCA), which represents the interests of university commercialisation and tech transfer offices. He was also formerly European-based marketing manager for Australian immunodiagnostic company Cellabs, based in Munich, where he oversaw clinical trials and establishing a European product distribution network.

He said incubators were a good way for the biotechnology industry to improve its economies of scale, pooling resources, sharing infrastructure and accessing management skills.

"Commercialising technology -- especially biotechnology -- is so hard, and the time to market is so long, that you need all the friends you can get and all the help you can get," he said. "The key is building scientific and business alliances".

Bradley said Field's deep understanding of the public sector commercialisation process would be crucial to the development of the incubator.

"We are very pleased to have been able to attract someone Paul's calibre and experience to this important position," Bradley said.