Eleven South Carolina Medical Device and Biomedical Companies to be Showcased at Greenville Conference Tomorrow
November 13, 2008
SCRA’s SC Launch! to present check to VidiStar LLC® after the conference
CHARLESTON, SC – November 13, 2008 – The 4th Annual Biomedical Entrepreneurship Program in Upstate South Carolina will be held tomorrow: Friday, November 14, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. at the historic Westin Poinsett Hotel in Greenville, SC. The program focuses on creation and growth of medical device and related biomedical business opportunities. Now in its fourth year, the meeting is the annual one-stop shop to meet and connect with biomedical, clinical and regulatory professionals including technical entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, academics and IP attorneys.
A first for this year’s program is the conference Company Showcase, in which eleven South Carolina medical device companies who actively research, manufacture and sell products in the medical device supply chain will be featured. “The Showcase creates semi-structured networking opportunity in response to demand,” said Dr. Matt Gevaert, the program chair. “We’ve always featured formal presentations from one or two local companies each year, but with the rapid growth in activity in the local and in-state medical device space, there was a need to incorporate many more.”
A list of the participating companies can be found on the conference website: http://www.sclaunch.org/biomedical_showcase.html.
In addition, Friday’s conference marks the first year of participation from all three of South Carolina’s major research universities . Four of the leading medical device technology licensing opportunities from Clemson University, the University of South Carolina and The Medical University of South Carolina will be presented.
The program boasts regional and national experts in the biomedical and medical device industries. Members of the media may attend the conference free of charge. Speakers include:
- Keynote address by Dr. Marc Long, Director of Research at Stryker Orthopedics, a global leader in medical technology. Dr. Long will discuss early intervention opportunities for medical device companies – an area of anticipated growth in the field in which devices introduced earlier in patient treatment improve the outcome of later surgeries.
- Overview of the Medical Device Industry: Andrew T. Calhoun, Associate Vice President, AdvaMed (the Advanced Medical Technology Association). His topic will be “The View from Washington: The New President, Medical Devices and You”, discussing the implications of our recent Presidential election on the med-tech industry.
“This year marks the 4th Biomed conference in the Upstate – the first three were a great success and proving to be more and more dynamic every year. Not only are we attracting distinguished speakers from across the country whose topics resonate with the medical device and biomedical communities, but we are also attracting attendees from around the Southeast region and beyond,” said Gevaert, a Commercialization Officer for CURF, Clemson’s Research Foundation. “This is a wonderful vehicle for our South Carolina companies to communicate with each other and to grow and prosper as a result”.
For more information about the conference and to see a complete program agenda, go to: http://sclaunch.org/biomedical_conference.html.
The Biomedical conference is hosted by Clemson University Research Foundation (CURF), The Clemson University Department of Bioengineering, SCRA’s SC Launch! and the Arthur M Spiro Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership at Clemson University.
SCRA’s SC Launch! presents check to VidiStar LLC® at 4:20 p.m. at conclusion of Biomedical Conference
VidiStar LLC will receive an investment today from SCRA affiliate SC Launch! VidiStar provides physicians with an affordable, easy to use solution for their clinical practice. VidiStar’s online reporting system conforms to the Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) structure reporting standard which auto-populates complex data from imaging devices, such as ultrasound machines, into customized reports for efficient processing and reporting. VidiStar’s cost-effective technology allows physicians and heath care providers to quickly review and interpret diagnostic studies, such as echocardiograms or fetal ultrasounds scans, from their office or anywhere in the world using a secure Internet connection – regardless of a physician’s location.
We are very excited about becoming an SC Launch! Portfolio Company, said Paul McHugh, managing partner of VidiStar.The SC Launch! program is a catalyst for supporting the long-term growth of companies such as VidiStar,LLC. In addition to the funding, Vidistar sees this as a stamp of approval of their product and business plan, and our company has already benefited from working with SCLaunch!’s vetted network, which is enabling VidiStar to optimize its resources and focus on sales.
The VidiStar management team has more than 15 years of expertise in medical imaging technology, regulatory affairs and government regulation, and includes board-certified medical professionals, including a practicing cardiologist with experience in echocardiography, nuclear cardiology and cardiovascular technology. The team brings more than 30 years of international and domestic sales experience to the venture.
“To SCRA and SC Launch, the VidiStar investment aligns closely with our multi-lateral efforts with Clemson University, The Medical University of South Carolina, The University of South Carolina and Health Sciences South Carolina to bring better patient care to South Carolina,” said Bill Mahoney, SCRA CEO. “The joint focus of these organizations in diagnostics, therapeutics and clinical applications leads directly to both improved care and leadership commercialization outcomes such as VidiStar.”
SC Launch! has identified VidiStar as a promising South Carolina start-up company and is assisting them with a seed-capital investment, ongoing mentoring and SC Launch! Resource Network services. Since its inception in April, 2006, SC Launch! has provided more than 118 companies with seed funding in the form of grants, loans or equity investments and provided counsel and support to more than 99 start-ups. The average salary of jobs created to date by these start-ups is $77,091. Additionally, SC Launch!-supported companies have secured more than $50 million in follow-on venture capital and private equity financing.
About Vidistar
VidiStar, LLC is a web-based Picture Archiving Communication System and online structured reporting solution for diagnostic medicine. VidiStar provides physicians with an affordable, easy-to-use solution for their clinical practice. VidiStar’s cost-effective technology allows physicians and health care providers to quickly review and interpret diagnostic studies. Learn more at http://www.vidistar.com/.
About the Clemson University Department of Bioengineering
One of the oldest in the world, Clemson’s bioengineering program was established in 1963 and offers bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees. A pioneer in the field of biomaterials science and engineering, the department is consistently recognized for its leadership in biomaterials research and education.
About The Clemson University Research Foundation (CURF)
The Clemson University Research Foundation (CURF) is a 501(c)(3) corporation founded in 1986 to support research and business incubation at Clemson University. The Foundation is organized exclusively for charitable, educational or scientific purposes to promote the research enterprise at Clemson Universi
ty.
CURF’s mission is to commercialize the intellectual property of Clemson University through technology transfer; licensing agreements and new venture formations; and assist in developing a strong research infrastructure through development and management of research properties, development of technology maturation and early stage research grants, and participation in sponsored research activities.
About The Spiro Institute
The Arthur M. Spiro Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership is a unit of the College of Business and Behavioral Science at Clemson. Its mission is to support educational, research, and outreach programs that promote entrepreneurial activity and economic development of the region, state, and nation. The Spiro Institute’s focus is on wealth creation through entrepreneurial activity.
About SCRA (http://www.scra.org/)
SCRA is a global leader in applied research and commercialization services with offices in Anderson, Charleston and Columbia. SCRA collaborates to advance technology. SCRA provides technology-based solutions with assured outcomes on behalf of industry, government, and research universities like Clemson University, the University of South Carolina and the Medical University of South Carolina.
About SC Launch! (http://www.sclaunch.org/)
SC Launch!, an SCRA collaboration, assists entrepreneurial start-up companies with up-front counseling, seed-funding, and access to a powerful resource network. The SC Launch! mission is to help generate knowledge economy jobs in South Carolina, enhance the state’s quality of life and provide opportunity for all South Carolinians in the new economy. For more information please visit http://www.sclaunch.org/.
SC Launch! is a trademark of SC Launch!, Inc. SCRA is a registered trademark of SCRA.
