- Biopôle SA, a leading life sciences park located in the Swiss Canton of Vaud, today announced the appointment of a new Board of Directors responsible for its strategic management and future development. The new Board is another key step in the re-positioning of Biopôle in Switzerland and internationally, following the appointment in October 2015 of new CEO Nasri Nahas. Biopôle has a clear strategy to be one of the best life sciences locations in Europe where industry and academia benefit from a vibrant community of exceptional talents, stimulating collaborations, added value services and an unrivalled quality of life.Konstantinos Efthymiopoulos, the new Chairman, commented: “It is an honor to be appointed to this role. Switzerland enjoys an outstanding reputation in life sciences, and I am convinced that Biopôle will thrive as a world-class base from which both industry and academia can further enrich this region’s credentials. I look forward to working with all our stakeholders both in Switzerland and internationally.”
Located on the shores of Lake Geneva, Biopôle currently hosts more than 40 industry members and multiple academic research groups from the University of Lausanne (UNIL) and the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), who are primarily focused on oncology, immunology, personalized medicine and nutritional health. Today over 1,100 professionals from over 30 nations enjoy a range of world-class facilities across ~80,000 m2 of landscape, which will include another 36,000 m2 of offices and laboratories in the period 2016-2020.
The world-leading Ludwig Cancer Research (Ludwig) will move into a new dedicated building at Biopôle in the next couple of years. This follows an announcement in June 2015 that Ludwig has chosen Lausanne as one of its main international sites and intends to invest more than CHF100 million to develop immunotherapy in Lausanne over the next ten years, under a framework agreement with the Canton of Vaud covering a 30-year timescale.
Lionel Eperon, Vice-Chairman, and prior interim Chairman, said: “We have rebuilt the executive team under the leadership of CEO Nasri Nahas over the past year, and are clearly seeing the fruits of our efforts. The new Board brings together the right blend of business, science, Swiss and international experience to take Biopôle to the next level. I am pleased to provide the continuity of our relations with the Swiss public authorities.”
Nasri Nahas, Chief Executive Officer, stated: “I am delighted that the new Board is now in place to guide the strategic management of the organization and enhance our visibility in key markets. Our role at Biopôle is to provide a vibrant life science community where ideas cross boundaries, generations and disciplines in a naturally collaborative spirit. Being Swiss we instinctively deliver a world-leading level of quality in all we offer.”
The Canton of Vaud’s government (Conseil d’Etat) has expressed its support for the ongoing developments at Biopôle and considers it as a strategic priority (read the press release here: http://www.vd.ch/actualite/communiques/). Biopôle plays a key role in strengthening the regional “Health Valley”
and will also be an important partner of the national Swiss Innovation Park. The Board appointments are effective as of 01 September 2016.
New members appointed to the Board are:
- Konstantinos Efthymiopoulos, Chairman and responsible for business relations.
- Nouria Hernandez, Director of the Integrative Genomics Centre of the Faculty of Biology and Medicine, and future Rector of the University of Lausanne. Ms. Hernandez will also be in charge of ensuring relationships and collaborations with UNIL and CHUV.
- Nicolas Cottier, attorney, responsible for monitoring legal issues and contract law. They join the existing Board members:
- Lionel Eperon, Vice Chairman, in charge of continuity and relationships with political authorities. Mr. Eperon also served as Biopôle’s interim Chairman.
- Pierre-Antoine Hildbrand, town councilor in charge of economy, representing the city of Lausanne.
- Maurice Mischler, Mayor of Epalinges city.
Source: Biopole