
Corrections or additions?
Life in the Fast Lane
These articles were published in U.S. 1 Newspaper
on March 17, 1999. All rights reserved.
Chrysalis Expands
Chrysalis’ first claim to fame, when it was founded
in 1985 as DNX, was transgenic pigs that produced human-like blood.
Now it has a broader approach to gene-based research — it develops
therapeutic products and biological testing services on various transgenic
animals — and is expanding from 12,000 square feet on College
Road to 30,000 square feet at Exit 8A, 5 Cedar Brook Drive, owned
by Joseph Stern of Eastern Properties. R.G. Vanderweil Engineers is
doing the fitout, and 40 employees are expected to move this summer.
The company retains its headquarters in Raritan.
A Canadian firm, Phoenix International Life Sciences, has essentially
bought Chrysalis International Corp., and is acquiring all its outstanding
shares and debt. Phoenix will issue shares worth $8.29 million and
assume $10.5 million in debt.
Chrysalis is traded on Nasdaq as CRLS, but after the deal goes down
next month it will be part of Phoenix, which trades in Montreal and
Toronto as PHX.
College Road East, Princeton Forrestal Center, Princeton 08540. Mark
E. Swanson, vice president transgenic sciences. 609-520-0300; fax,
609-520-9864.
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Imaging Start Up
A virtual instrument can replace the real thing, says
Michael Hinds, CEO of the United States division of a two-year-old
French company, Cell S.A, which has just opened a Princeton office.
Founded by Marc Lucas and Francis Lacoste, Cell S.A. has such virtual
instruments as a digital sampling oscilloscope, a logic analyzer,
and a combination of the two. The average selling price is $2,000
or $2,500.
Cell’s competition consists of the "real thing" (made by such
companies as Hewlett Packard, Tectronics, and LeCroy) and companies
that sell PCs dedicated to the instrument. "They take over the
PC and that is all the PC will do," says Hinds.
"Our small module connects to the PC and the electronic instrument.
It collects the data: it doesn’t display it, and doesn’t analyze it,
which makes it a lot cheaper and makes the instrument a lot more virtual,"
says Hinds. He notes that his module can be connected to a laptop,
so a field engineer can test an instrument in the field with a laptop,
do all kinds of analytical work, do reporting, and network the data
through the PC in the office.
Hinds will officially launch his firm on April 2 and will try to keep
it as a virtual company, subcontracting manufacturing to United States
firms because electronic components are less expensive in the United
States. Also to be subcontracted are technical support (software)
and sales, but Cell will continue to the R&D and some manufacturing
in France.
Hinds speaks four languages. His father worked for Texaco as a tool
and die maker in Venezuela and Trinidad, and he attended parochial
schools in South America before majoring in classics and science at
Cambridge University and the University of Bordeaux (Class of ’69).
With master’s and doctor’s degrees in economics from the University
of Paris, he has made a career in the medical and diagnostic medical
industry, doing product development for GE Medical in Germany and
diagnostic imaging for Picker International in Ohio.
He has been general manager of Picker’s MRI division. "After setting
up a new division in Europe in 1991, I got a fantastic offer from
Cytogen to be vice president of marketing and sales in 1995, says
Hinds. He left Cytogen a couple of years ago and did consulting until
friends from his University of Paris days asked him to work for Cell.
208, Princeton 08540. Michael Hinds, CEO. 609-419-4401; fax, 609-452-0909.
Home page: http://www.cellinc.com.
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Biotech Moves
Box 2197, Princeton 08543-2197. Dale R. Pfost, chairman and CEO. 609-750-2200;
fax, 609-750-2250. Home page: http://www.orchidbio.com.
Orchid Biocomputer will open a multi-phased high throughput lab to
analyze what the relationship is between single nucleotide polymorphisms
(SNPs) to disease and drug response. Though located in Baltimore now,
Orchid’s SNP scoring lab will be integrated into its 31,000 square
foot laboratory being prepared at 303 College Road East.
"By scoring SNPs at very high throughputs, we will determine which
drug, or drug candidate, will work best in an individual — the
underpinning of pharmacogenomics and pharmacogenetics," says Dale
R. Pfost, president and chief executive officer of Orchid.
Also just announced are the inaugural member institutions of network
that will provide clinical samples for Orchid to "score."
They include the University of Cincinnati and the University of Pennsylvania
Health Systems.
Founded in 1995 and incubated at Sarnoff Corporation, Orchid aims
to leverage the same technologies used to design computer chips to
develop and commercialize micro-fabricated systems for chemistry and
the biosciences.
Center, Suite 100, Princeton 08540. Edward Quilty, president, CEO
and chairman. 609-520-1911; fax, 609-452-0880.
The development-stage medical technology company has entered Phase
2 studies on its second LeuTech product line, for the diagnosis of
bone infections known as osteomyelitis. The first LeuTech product
line, for diagnosing thoracic and abdominal infections such as equivocal
appendicitis, is nearing the end of its Phase 3 clinical trials, with
anticipated enrollment of 200 patients at 10 sites.
The initiation of the Phase 2 study of LeuTech for osteomyelitis is
a major step in fully developing LeuTech’s potential for multiple
applications, says Charles Putnam, executive vice president. "LeuTech
also has the potential to make a significant impact in healthcare
cost containment, since current tests that LeuTech is designed to
replace are cumbersome, costly, time-consuming, and may require hospitalization."
LeuTech can be administered in one hour or less, and does not require
blood handling by staff.
Plainsboro 08536. Steve Forrester, president. 800-246-0033; fax,
609-897-0289. Home page: http://www.biotrace.com.
The medical research company has signed an agreement with Heineken
Technical Services, following research and development work over the
last three months, for the development of Biotrace’s single shot hygiene/contamination
tests, Clean-Trace and Aqua-Trace, for beer testing.
Biotrace provides Rapid Cleanliness Testing systems based on ATP Bioluminescence
technology. The process is used to detect microbial contaminations
in the manufacturing of cosmetics, food, and pharmaceuticals.
Cedar Brook Corporate Center, Cranbury 08512. Robert A. Feinberg,
CEO. 609-409-9010; fax, 609-409-1650. Home page: http://www.hydromed.com.
Hydro Med Sciences has entered into exclusive licensing and manufacturing/supply
agreements with Eatontown-based Roberts Pharmaceutical Corporation.
The agreements pertain to a Roberts’ LHRH therapeutic and represent
Hydro Med’s first commercial collaboration for its Hydron Implant
— a proprietary subcutaneous hydrogel retrievable device that
can deliver a broad spectrum of therapeutic compounds at controlled,
constant release rates for up to one year and longer.
"We are excited to announce our first corporate partner for the
combination of our long-term Hydron Implant with a therapeutic active,"
says Robert Feinberg, president of the drug delivery company that
designs, develops, and manufactures a broad range of polymer-based
products. It is a division of GP Strategy Corporation.
Princeton Forrestal Center, Princeton 08540-6619. Charles A. Baker,
chairman and CEO. 609-452-7060; fax, 609-452-1890. Home page: http://www.lipo.com.
Wyeth-Ayerst International, a subsidiary of American Home Products
will assume marketing responsibilities for the sale of Liposome’s
Abelcet in the United Kingdom. Marketed in the United States and 22
other countries, Abelcet is used in the treatment of severe, systemic
fungal infections in patients who are refractory to or intolerant
of conventional therapy and is the leading lipid-based formulation
of amphotericin B in the U.S.
"We expect this marketing agreement to increase our profitability
and add to shareholder value," says Charles Baker, chairman and
CEO of Liposome, which trades on Nasdaq as LIPO.
"Wyeth-Ayerst has a large sales force in the UK and will provide
improved access to the UK market for Abelcet. In addition, we will
realize significant cost savings from the transfer of selling activities
to Wyeth-Ayerst," he says.
The two companies currently have marketing agreements that cover France,
Italy, Greece, Austria, and the Nordic countries. Liposome is a biopharmaceutical
company developing, manufacturing, and marketing therapeutic products
to treat cancer and related diseases.
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New in Town
Suite 201, Lawrenceville 08648. Sachin Tikekar, general manager. 609-912-0666;
fax, 609-912-0059. Home page: http://www.kpit.com.
The software solutions firm has a headquarters in Pune, India, plus
offices in the United Kingdom and the Gulf. Its first office in the
U.S. has only two people now but will be bringing in 30 to 40 people
in the next few months.
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Expansions
Michael Starr, president and CEO. 609-951-0070; fax, 609-951-9330.
Home page: http://www.a1limo.com.
The ground transportation company has expanded its headquarters in
Princeton by moving the sales and marketing departments to a location
across the street, increasing the customer service staff by 60 percent
increase, and acquiring a new telephone system.
The expansion includes the installation of a Sun 5000 computer mainframe,
which will support A-1’s integrated mobile data communication system
with mobile data terminals and global positioning receivers. Steve
Pitel, vice president of sales and marketing, says that the communicators
will provide constant accessibility of the drivers along with accurate
dispatch.
With locations in Princeton and Bound Brook, A-1 Limousine is "the
largest full-service ground transportation company in New Jersey and
the fourth largest in the nation," says Pitel. The company operates
a fleet of 260-plus late model luxury sedans, limousines, vans, and
motor coaches.
08540. Lisa A. Mosso, project director. 609-252-1776; fax, 609-252-1787.
The previously home-based events planning company has moved to its
new location at 436 Wall Street. "Right now we only do medical
meetings but we are looking to grow and branch out in the future,"
says Lisa Mosso, project director. "We would like to move into
entertainment and production and organize more `showy’ events."
Her father, Gus Mosso, founded the company in 1990. "He was creative
services director for Squibb and planned meetings for them. I trained
under my father." Mosso majored in communications and theater
at Trenton State College, Class of 1984. After a brief shot at theater,
she decided to join her father in the business.
The company is presently involved with organizing oncology meetings
for Bristol Myers Squibb. "Pharmaceutical companies have meetings
at certain times of the year and they do not need to keep in-house
people for that," says Mosso. "Large pharmaceutical companies
are looking for smaller companies like mine to organize their events
for them."
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Name Changes
Junction 08852. Kim Frazee, administrator. 732-274-1122; fax, 732-274-1991.
This skilled nursing facility was formerly known as Deer Park Nursing
and Rehabilitation Center. The 96-bed facility offers rehabilitation
therapy and nursing care
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Electronic Contracts
College Road East, Princeton 08540. Tom Evslin, CEO. 609-419-1500;
fax, 609-419-1511. Home page: http://www.itxc.com.
The Internet telephony company has closed a $15 million second round
of venture capital financing. Investors include Chase Capital Partners,
Flatiron Partners, Intel, Polaris Ltd., Spectrum Equity Investors,
and VocalTec Communications, all of whom also invested in ITXC’s first
round.
John G. Musci, former senior vice president of wholesale markets at
Qwest Communication Corporation of Denver, Colorado, has joined ITXC
as chief operating officer, and executive vice president.
08638. Bruce Ruhf, president. 609-883-3150; fax, 609-883-9250. URL:
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority is guaranteeing 50 percent
of a $200,000 Summit Bank loan through its Technology Funding Program
to further develop Magnetic Specialties’ proprietary new product.
The company designs and fabricates components that sense and control
electrical energy. The product, FCS-2000, provides furnace end users
with a safer, more efficient way of powering industrial electric resistance
furnaces at a lower cost.
Road, Princeton Junction 08550. Edwin E. Mier, president, CEO. 609-275-7311;
fax, 609-275-8813. Home page: http://www.mier.com.
MierComm has been named as the pioneer test lab for Voice-over-IP
vendors seeking iNOW! certification of their product’s interoperability.
The company pioneered the development of Voice-over-IP testing methodologies
and is preparing a test environmnt that will certify that iNOW! compliant
products do interoperate.
08540. Boris Fridman, president. 609-734-0300; fax, 609-734-0346.
Home page: http://www.nettechrf.com.
BellSouth, one of the Baby Bell regional telephone companies, will
be using Nettech software as part of a computer upgrade for Bell’s
15,000 service technicians. The company’s software can send and receive
data over a wide variety of wireless networks, such as those used
for cellular telephones or by satellites.
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Deaths
Transmission on Route 33.
manager for Strategic Technology Systems, formerly Base Ten.
Kepner-Tregoe.
at Harry Ballot clothing store on Nassau Street.
professor at Mercer County College, he worked for Starr Transit and
American Limousine.
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