WFU Biotech Conference Highlights Life-Sciences Innovation in Triad

By Jeremy Summers, NCBiotech Writer

Business school students from some of the country’s top programs got a closer look at the life-sciences innovation coming out of the Triad this past weekend.

The 4th Annual Wake Forest University Biotechnology Conference & Case Competition gave students a chance to learn more about the region’s biotechnology industry and even compete for some prize money.

The North Carolina Biotechnology Center co-sponsored the conference, which took place February 8-9 in Winston-Salem.

Keynote address centered on innovation in region

The conference featured a keynote address from Eric Tomlinson, D.Sc., Ph.D., chief innovation officer of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

The conference served to “boost the innovative potential for Wake Forest and this community,” said Tomlinson. Tomlinson, who was also named president of the Piedmont Triad Research Park (PTRP) last summer, has grand plans for the park.

PTRP has already become the “fastest-growing research park in the U.S.,” according to Tomlinson. He is currently overseeing an expansion effort he hopes will turn the park into “the next hub for life-sciences and high-tech innovation in North Carolina.”

Panelists discuss innovation coming out of the Triad.

By the end of 2014, Tomlinson expects more than $520 million in public and private investment in the park, with 2,800 employees at over 35 companies and an estimated annual payroll of $160 million.

Many companies housed in PTRP have moved into renovated buildings that once belonged to companies like R.J. Reynolds Tobacco. These buildings, which housed the companies that built the city, are now seeing a second life as office and lab space for the city’s cutting-edge tech companies.

PTRP is already home to several biotech companies, including Carolina Liquid Chemistries and over 20 startups out of Wake Forest University. These companies include NanoMedica, Orthovative Technologies, KeraNetics and Ocular Systems, Inc.

Panel discussed impact of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center

The conference also featured a panel discussion on how the Triad has grown into a hub of life-sciences activity.

That growth is due in large part to Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. The center, which is Forsyth County’s largest employer and the only academic hospital in northwest North Carolina, is consistently ranked among the nation’s top hospitals.

The medical center includes the medical education and research components of the Wake Forest School of Medicine, a leading national research center in several fields, including regenerative medicine, cancer, neuroscience and public health sciences.

“Innovation is about transforming patients’ lives,” said panelist Derrick Lenz, group manager of marketing at medical device company Boston Scientific, lead sponsor of the event along with Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center.

Other panelists included Anthony Atala, MD, director of the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Banks Bourne, senior managing director and CEO of Bourne Partners and John McConnell, MD, chief executive officer of Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center. The panel was moderated by Justin Catanoso, director of journalism at WFU.

“Innovation comes from the day-to-day hard work and trying to create transformational technology” that can be used on a variety of products, said Atala.

There is a shift occurring in the healthcare industry towards providing higher quality care at lower costs, said McConnell. This shift, which stresses preventative medicine, will help rein in healthcare costs. “Innovation can drive down costs,” he said. “Creative thinking is crucial to this process.”

Teams competed for $17,000 in prize money

The conference culminated with the case competition portion of the conference.

Students attend the conference's awards dinner at Wake Forest Biotech Place.

On Saturday, eight teams from some of the nation’s top business schools competed in the conference’s Business Case Competition. The competition featured teams from Johns Hopkins University, Northwestern University, the University of California, Berkeley, the University of California, Los Angeles, the University of California, San Diego, the University of Florida, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Wake Forest University.

Each team gave a half-hour presentation in front of the panel of judges, who then scored each team’s approach to a given business case, provided by Boston Scientific. The teams then attended an awards dinner that evening at Wake Forest Biotech Place in PTRP. The ceremony gave these future business leaders a chance to network with medical and business professionals.

“We were amazed by the comprehensiveness of the cases for all the teams,” said Tom Byrne, director of health economics & reimbursement at Boston Scientific, who served as one of the judges for the case competition. “But there was one that stood out in terms of covering all the bases.”

The night’s top prize, $10,000, went to the team from Johns Hopkins University. The team from host school Wake Forest University took second place, which came with a check for $5,000. The team from the University of Florida received $2,000 in prize money for their third place finish.