Isle firms hope When the Sheraton Waikiki hosts the BIO AsiaPacific 2001 conference tomorrow and Wednesday, its sponsors -- including the state -- are hoping the $257,000 it cost to bring the conference to Hawaii will be money well spent.
to make impact
at biotech event
206 companies from around
Facts and figures By Lyn Danninger
the world are represented
Star-BulletinOrganizers say 364 people have so far signed up to attend, representing 206 biotech companies from Asia, the Pacific and the U.S. mainland. The conference will not be cheap for those who attend.
In addition to the upfront cost the organization required to bring the conference to Hawaii, Biotechnology Industry Organization members pay $1,300 to participate, plus travel expenses. Nonmembers pay $1,500. An exhibition booth costs an additional $2,000, while making a 15-minute presentation to attendees will cost $2,900.
David Watumull, a conference organizer and president of research firm Hawaii Biotechnology Group and the Hawaii Technology Trade Association's Biotech Council, said the conference is worth the money.
Watumull's company paid $15,000 to be a sponsor.
"It gives us a chance to showcase our assets to a global audience," he said.
Further, Watumull says an agreement reached with the Biotechnology Industry Organization for Hawaii to host the BIO AsiaPacific conference biannually for the next 10 years means Hawaii has now staked a place on the biotech map.
"It's really about the 10-year program, not just this one conference," he said.
By securing the Asia Pacific BIO meeting, Watumull said Hawaii is also in a good position to eventually secure the biotechnolgy organization's major international conference in 2004. This year, that conference is being held in June in San Diego. It is likely attract 10,000 to 12,000 people, Watumull said.
Watumull believes the smaller Hawaii conference gives Hawaii companies a better chance to showcase their products and meet people than at the San Diego conference.
"San Diego is more of a trade show," he said. "If you are a small or medium company looking for a partner or licensing, this is probably a better meeting."
So far, 12 Hawaii companies, including representatives from various University of Hawaii entities, and around 50 local attendees have registered to participate at BIO AsiaPacific, Watumull said.
The state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism contributed $10,000 to the cost of bringing BIO AsiaPacific to Hawaii.
Department Deputy Director Sharon Narimatsu said the participation and support from local companies sends the important message to the biotechnology industry.
"It's well worth it to participate," Narimatsu said. "We wanted this not just to be a government-sponsored conference. It's important to show a united front to the industry."
Hawaii's biotech interests will be represented at the conference by a number of University of Hawaii-related entities, such as the School of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, the John A. Burns School of Medicine, the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii and the Marine Bioproducts Engineering Center.
For the university, which paid $50,000 to be a sponsor and also received an additional $25,000 from the Harold K.L. Castle Foundation to sponsor the event, the conference will be a chance to showcase a number of promising areas, said Keith Mattson, executive director of University Connections, a high-tech business and academic forum. "Every one of the life science units potentially has corporate partners for sponsored research," he said.
Other possibilities include licensing UH inventions and discoveries, Mattson said.
For Glenn Magyar, manager of technology education and development for Queen's Medical Center, the goal is to attract clinical trials for his organization. "It could be new drugs, new therapies. It's an opportunity for companies to trial their drugs in an ethnically diverse population and the conference gives the opportunity to tell your story to a select group of people," he said.
There are several local marine research and life-science companies hoping to get some attention at the conference. One of those companies is Oceanit Laboratories, which specializes in research and development of algae products for medical use.
Oceanit Director of Research Joanne Ebisu said the company will man a booth at the conference and participate in meetings, but won't do a presentation. The goal for the company is to develop partnerships, she said.
Whether any agreements come from the conference depends on a number of issues, such as common research goals, she said.
Ebisu said Oceanit decided to attend the conference in large part because it is being held in Hawaii and is focused on Asia and the Pacific. The size of the conference was also a determining factor. "It will be smaller so we would have a better chance to meet with more people," Ebisu said.
One biotechnology company, the Big Island's Cyanotech Corp., which specializes in research and development of marine microalgae dietary and health supplements, will not be attending.
President Gerald Cysewski said the company wants to concentrate its efforts on the bottom line and increased sales instead. "We looked at attending, but we've been to conferences like this before," Cysewski said. "Based on the program, we felt we could best spend the money elsewhere."
How much a company can expect to get out get out of such a conference and how many deals are struck is difficult to quantify, even for official organizers.
"It's the companies that make the assessment on how much it meant to them. We don't keep track," said Sara Demy, director of the Biotechnology Industry Organization's New York Office.
Instead, Demy believes the high return rate to the organization's conferences says a lot.
"Since we have very high rate of return, you can expect the companies are not just spending money," she said. "We give people the framework to meet one another and they do it."
Event: BIO AsiaPacific 2001 Facts and figures
Who: The Biotechnology Industry Organization represents more than 950 national and international biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers and related organizations.
What: First biotechnology conference showcasing Asia and the Pacific Rim.
The conference is expected to draw representatives from 206 national and international biotechnology companies as well as potential investors.
Events: Plenary sessions, panel discussions, presentations and social events.
Scheduled speakers and panel participants include Dr. Randy Scott, chairman of Incyte Genomics and CEO of Genomic Health Inc.; John Wall, president of Nasdaq International; and Tse-Sen Soong, first vice president, China Development Industrial Bank.
When: Tomorrow and Thursday.
Where: Sheraton Waikiki Hotel.
Web site: www.bioasiapacific.com.