Swiss Biotech Report 2006

14 ... AND CONCENTRATING ... >>• To guarantee high-quality services in support ofthe KTT projects on behalf of all the participatingacademic partners in the push-and-pull area.• To identify and utilise synergies and opportunitiesfor cooperation between universities of appliedsciences and the traditional universities.• To expand competence and contact networks for allthe partners involved.Another successful networking example is the “SystemsX”national project, an initiative to support andpromote systems biology. This project combines theworld-renowned expertise of the Swiss Federal Instituteof Technology in Zurich (ETH Zurich), and its focuson the areas of technology and science, with theexcellent biological, medical and nanotechnology researchcentres of the University of Basel and the acclaimedlife sciences department of the University ofZurich. By combining and integrating the competenciesof a number of Swiss universities and institutes,the foundation has been laid for an interdisciplinaryapproach to systems biology.Unlike modern biology, systems biology studies thecomplex processes of an entire biological systemrather than mere molecular details. Support is requiredfrom many different disciplines, in order to gain anunderstanding of the system as a whole. Informationtechnology is needed, for example, in order to handlethe enormous amount of data. Other influential disciplinesare physics, engineering sciences, mathematics,chemistry and bioinformatics. And now industryhas been added to this concentrated transfer ofknow-how. Roche, for example, has announced a collaborationagreement with “SystemsX” in the areaof diabetes.@For further information please visitwww.whoch6.chwww.kti-cti.chwww.swissbiotechassociation.chMORE VALUE THROUGHGREATER IMPLEMENTATIONSWISS BIOTECHNET Greater enterprise value canbe delivered through innovation. And innovationcomes about when ideas are implemented. SwissBiotechnet is a strong partner in this process.Daniel GygaxEvery analysis confirms it. A company with a high degreeof innovation in its portfolio will generate higherbusiness value over the long term. For example, theshare price of DSM rose by 46 per cent in 2005, at arate far outstripping growth in that sector. The abilityto produce innovative products smoothly and efficientlyis therefore crucial for business. Swiss Biotechnetcan make an important contribution to theseprocesses by bringing together the expertise of theSwiss universities of applied sciences into one network,which is easily accessible to industry. The totalvolume of projects implemented in the area of bioanalyticsproduction of biomolecules and tissue engineeringhas grown to over CHF 20 million in the lastfive years.ATTRACTIVE SERVICE PROVIDERIn tandem with the implementation of innovative researchprojects, the network is making a name for itselfas the provider of custom-tailored training andcontinuing education programmes.One specific, intensive course was developed for Hoffmann-LaRoche AG, for example, at which laboratoryand chemical technicians receive further training in