TORONTO, July 11 /PRNewswire/ -- Novozymes North America Inc., a North
Carolina-based industrial enzymes company, was honored today as the first
recipient of a new North Carolina Biotechnology Center Industrial
Biotechnology Leadership Award given by the North Carolina Biotechnology
Center.
Ken Tindall, the Biotechnology Center's Senior Vice President, Science
& Business Development, announced the selection in conjunction with the
opening of the three-day 2006 World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology
and Bioprocessing here.
The first such award conferred by the world's first
government-sponsored biotechnology center, Tindall said it honors
outstanding corporate achievement in areas such as technical endeavors,
business leadership, the translation of new technologies into commercial
markets, support for education, and community service.
Novozymes' achievements will be celebrated during a dinner of North
Carolina attendees of the World Congress meeting Wednesday evening, and
Tindall will formally present the crystal obelisk award to Novozymes North
America President Thomas Nagy at the meeting's plenary session on Friday at
noon.
Tindall said Novozymes was picked for the award because of its
achievements in two broad categories. The firm excelled in technical
achievement, he noted, by developing new enzyme technologies that reduce
the cost of ethanol production from cellulose. The Franklinton, N.C., firm
has also provided outstanding leadership in developing important
biotechnology- related educational programs -- not only for its employees,
but also for use by others.
"I can't imagine we could find a more fitting example than Novozymes to
inaugurate this annual recognition program," said Tindall.
"First of all, this firm has worked with grants from the Biotechnology
Center and federal agencies and in just five years has managed a 30-fold
decrease in the cost of enzymes needed for production of ethanol from
cellulose biomass such as corn stover. This is already a major contribution
to the nation's growing biofuel production activity."
"Perhaps even more impressive," continued Tindall, "is Novozymes'
historical commitment to biotechnology education. The company's community
college-based workforce training collaborations with the Biotechnology
Center have led to the acclaimed BioWork course, which the Biotechnology
Center ultimately developed and published for use by the community college
system statewide."
Tindall noted that in addition to its curricular support, Novozymes
donated $250,000 to help build the first laboratory in the state designed
for teaching the BioWork course, at Vance Granville Community College. Soon
after the new laboratory was built, Novozymes donated a stainless steel
tank and other equipment worth $52,000 to build a skid for training, in
coordination with a $90,000 grant from the Biotechnology Center.
"Novozymes engineers designed the equipment and had it fabricated in
company shops, and got a vendor to donate the control system software,"
said Tindall. "Now, Vance-Granville BioWork students have a stirred tank
that can be heated or cooled, complete with other industrial-grade
equipment, instrumentation, and control systems."
Novozymes executives also continue to support workforce development by
serving on the Industrial Curriculum Committee of the state's
Biomanufacturing and Pharmaceutical Training Consortium, as well as on
advisory boards of several educational institutions.
Nagy said he was delighted with the recognition for Novozymes.
"It's especially gratifying to have this award reflect both our science
and our community commitment," he said. "It's another significant way to
share the news of our success with the workers, the educators, the
customers and the business-support institutions of this wonderful state who
have helped us grow and prosper."
North Carolina Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler, who is also a
member of the non-profit Biotechnology Center's board of directors, joined
in recognizing Novozymes for its achievements.
"The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
recognizes the importance of industrial biotechnology and biofuels to the
State of North Carolina, and congratulates Novozymes on its achievement,"
he said.
The Biotechnology Center, headquartered in Research Triangle Park, is a
private, non-profit corporation supported by the N.C. General Assembly. Its
mission is to provide long-term economic and societal benefits to North
Carolina by supporting biotechnology research, business and education
statewide.
Visit the Biotechnology Center's Web site at http://www.ncbiotech.org.
For more on Novozymes go to http://www.novozymes.com and on the World
Congress, http://www.bio.org.
SOURCE North Carolina Biotechnology Center
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Related links:
http://www.ncbiotech.org
http://www.novozymes.com http://www.bio.org/
CONTACT:
Jim Shamp, News & Publications Editor, of the
North Carolina Biotechnology Center, +1-919-541-9366, or
jim_shamp@ncbiotech.org
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