TransCelerate BioPharma Launched at BioPharm America™ in Boston

WASHINGTON & CARLSBAD, Calif. & BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The fifth annual BioPharm America™ conference kicked off in Boston, MA, today with the announcement of TransCelerate BioPharma, a new non-profit organization focused on accelerating the development of new medicines. TransCelerate’s founding members are Abbott, AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Eli Lilly and Company, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer, Genentech - a member of the Roche Group, and Sanofi.

“I want to extend our congratulations to ten forward thinking pharma companies on the formation of TransCelerate. This new non-profit will foster pre-competitive collaboration to improve the drug development success rate.”

Members aim “to work together across the global research and development community and share research and solutions that will simplify and accelerate the delivery of exciting new medicines for patients," according to newly appointed interim CEO of TransCelerate, Garry Neil, MD, Partner at Apple Tree Partners and formerly Corporate VP, Science & Technology, Johnson & Johnson.

“We aim to reduce bottlenecks in R&D and increase efficiency. This is all about accelerating transformative innovation. We have an obligation to stakeholders to find…new and transformative ways of doing things. We are really working collectively in a way we haven’t done before,” said Neil.

The announcement was made during the morning plenary and further discussed in an afternoon panel entitled “Best deal structures: How do you operationalize external R&D?” moderated by Abbie Celniker of Eleven Biotherapeutics with panelists Sridaran Natesan of Sanofi; Garry Neil of Apple Tree Partners; Caroline Rowe of Covance; Richard Soll of WuXi AppTec; and Frank Yocca of AstraZeneca.

Addressing the BioPharm America delegation at the plenary session, Carola Schropp, President of EBD Group, said, “I want to extend our congratulations to ten forward thinking pharma companies on the formation of TransCelerate. This new non-profit will foster pre-competitive collaboration to improve the drug development success rate.”

The event, organized by EBD Group, the leading partnering firm for the life science industry, is being held September 19–21, 2012 at the Westin Boston Waterfront in Boston, MA in collaboration with the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council (MassBio).

Video coverage of this plenary and other highlights from BioPharm America 2012 will be posted online at http://www.ebdgroup.com/bpa/media/videos.php

About BioPharm America 2012

BioPharm America is where biotech industry partnerships get started. Meet face-to-face with biotech and pharma executives from around the world to identify and enter strategic relationships. Equipped with partneringONE®, BioPharm America is the only event in North America based on the same reputable formula as EBD Group’s acclaimed European events BIO-Europe® and BIO-Europe Spring®.

Follow BioPharm America 2012 on Twitter: twitter.com/ebdgroup (hashtag: #BPA12)

About EBD Group

EBD Group is the leading partnering firm for the global life science industry. Since 1993, biotech, pharma and medical device companies have leveraged EBD Group’s partnering conferences, technology and services to identify business opportunities and develop strategic relationships essential to their success.

EBD Group’s conferences are run with the support of leading corporations and international trade associations and include:

BIO-Europe® and BIO-Europe Spring®, Europe’s largest life science partnering conferences, supported by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO)
BioPharm America™, the fastest growing partnering event in North America
Biotech Showcase™, a unique forum in San Francisco for presenting to investors and business development executives, co-produced with Demy-Colton Life Science Advisors
BioEquity Europe, the investor conference co-organized with BioCentury Publications and BIO
ChinaBio® Partnering Forum, the first dedicated biotech/pharma partnering conference in China, co-produced with ChinaBio® LLC
EuroMedtech™, EBD Group’s partnering event for the innovative medical technology industry
Partnering for Global Impact®, a new partnering conference providing an innovative forum to partner, identify and generate social and philanthropic investment and funding opportunities

EBD Group’s sophisticated web-based partnering service, partneringONE®, is also used as the partnering engine at numerous third-party events around the world, and partnering360® is the open online community of life science dealmakers that enhances partnering experiences all year long.

Outside of the conference format, EBD Group’s consultants provide hands-on assistance for firms seeking to in- or out-license products and technologies.

EBD Group has offices in the USA and Europe.

For more information please visit www.ebdgroup.com.