Inschrijving Rabo Duurzame Innovatieprijs 2023 geopend.

Inclusieve samenleving & Gezondheid

Heb jij een businesscase ontwikkeld die bijdraagt aan gelijke kansen in de samenleving? Voor een gezond leven, welzijn en toegang tot de arbeidsmarkt? En waarbij preventie en financiële gezondheid vooropstaan? Dan zijn wij op zoek naar jou! Of jouw initiatief er nu voor zorgt dat we straks langer thuis kunnen blijven wonen, mensen begeleidt naar werk, of deze bijdraagt aan digitalisering of circulaire samenwerking in de zorg. Schrijf je in voor de Rabo Duurzame Innovatieprijs 2023! Goed voor jouw bedrijf & goed voor onze toekomst samen.

Link: www.rabobank.nl/rdi

Protinhi Therapeutics raised funding form the European Innovation Council

The Netherlands Enterpise Agency (RVO) highlighted 11 Dutch start-ups have raised a total of €77 million in funding from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Accelerator programme. This puts the Netherlands in second place among the countries that receive the most money from this programme.

One of those companies is Nijmegen-based Prothinhi Therepeutics, a preclinical stage biotech company developing novel broad-spectrum antiviral drugs against upcoming viral health threats diseases (dengue, zika, WNV, Corona, Chikungunia) with a high unmet medical need.

Rest, routine and regularity: benefits for every baby

Prevention is better than cure, so it is said in the medical world. And according to Francien Mels, founder of Noviocare, this also applies to sleep. “People often speak about healthy eating and sufficient exercise, but sleeping well is also incredibly important for your long-term health. That’s where I want to make a difference with Noviocare.”

Where better to start looking at healthy sleep preventively than with the very youngest age group? “Sleeping well is starting to become more and more of a trend, which I am glad about,” Francien says. “But there are still very few solutions. I thought: sleeping well is the basis. If you sleep well, everything automatically improves.”

Massive long-term impact

Sleeping poorly seems like something small, but the opposite is true, according to Francien. “In the long-term, a sleep deficit is very bad for people. Not only for grownups but for babies as well. Even behavioural development is affected. And, well-sleeping babies are also a blessing for parents: you’re hitting two birds with one stone.”

Briskr connected Francien to Health Valley. “They helped me build my business plan. OostNL’s customer journey program brought me many insights as well.” Francien started with extensive market research, asking not only parents but also medical specialists to share their experiences.

Noviocare developed their product ‘PIKO’ building on those findings: a secure sleeping environment for a baby, wherever it sleeps. “There are three essentials to a good night’s sleep: rest, routine and regularity. However, our life is far from quiet. Babies have two working parents, noisy siblings, and go to daycare. When asked, parents say their kids end up sleeping in five different places on average per week, sometimes as many as ten.”

Working on a routine

So, parents want to move towards rest, routine and regularity but don’t get around to it because of their busy schedules. PIKO is the solution to that, according to Francien. “With PIKO, you have the same sleeping place for your baby everywhere. In the playpen, in the cradle, in your own bed. And taking it with you is very simple, so even at daycare, at grandma and grandpa’s and on holiday, your baby still sleeps in a familiar environment.”

PIKO’s goal is a better night’s sleep, and Francien explains that you need more than just a constant sleeping place. “Because you can also use sound to reinforce the bedtime ritual, PIKO also comes with a POD. You can turn on the sound when your baby wakes up or cries. The accompanying app helps you structure their sleeping behaviour. You keep a diary, and compare your child’s sleep behaviour with what a baby of that age needs.”

Ready to launch

Noviocare’s first product has now been developed, validated and tested for safety. The first results from the pilot are promising. At the Negenmaandenbeurs, where the prizes of the Baby Innovation Awards will also be presented, the PIKO will be officially launched. “We are nominated for the Awards, so it’s the perfect time to launch!”

The PIKO seems like a logical solution to a temporary problem, but Francien hopes for more. “It would be even nicer if prospective parents already see this as a solution. That puts us more into the preventive corner, from which this business idea was born.”

Francien and Noviocare’s focus is now on PIKO, but much more is possible in the future. “We don’t focus on the age group, but on sleep quality. Older children and adults benefit just as much from healthy sleep.”

Enzyre uses investments to save thousands on healthcare

Enzyre uses investments to save thousands on healthcare
According to Guido Maertens, co-founder and CEO of Enzyre, money is key to success in the world of biotech and life science. “In this world, you really have to believe in your own plans and products, otherwise it gets very tough. But the potential for our product is worth the effort since the treatment of haemophilia is extremely expensive.” With the completion of this Series A round, Enzyre has secured funding to further develop its first product for haemophilia and platform technology.

Right now, it’s all about making their prototype robust for Enzyre. “We want to move towards clinical validation testing. As a research tool, we don’t want to get stuck. The ultimate goal is to help patients at home. That’s why we have to step up the quality!”

What will Enzyre help patients at home with? The company focuses on patients with haemophilia, a chronic blood disease. “These people do not have enough active factor-8 protein, so the blood doesn’t clot sufficiently. Quite simply, a small bleed can already have extreme consequences for these people.” Patients in the Netherlands receive proper, often prophylactic treatment. “They inject medication every week. But as a patient, you also want to know how much medication is left in your blood. That’s where we come in.”

Monitoring for peace of mind

Enzyre is currently developing the EnzyPad, a tool that allows patients to monitor their medication levels. So how does that work? “It starts with taking a blood sample. Fortunately, this can be done painlessly with a blood sampling device. You put that sample on our EnzyCard, our test card. We mix the blood with a number of chemicals. This causes a reaction, producing light. You can measure light in the form of photons. Simply put: if there are too few photons, it’s time for more medication.”

This simple monitoring provides peace of mind for patients, according to Guido. “Patients now know exactly how well the medication is working. It reassures them. They know they’re protected, should something happen. It also means that people can lead a more active life because fear doesn’t hold a grip on them.” There are also major benefits for the healthcare system. “Treatment for haemophiliacs costs around €250,000 a year. So any saving quickly yields a profit.”

Long- and short-term

In the short term, Enzyre is going to use the money it raised to go from a prototype to a product. This also includes the realization of a pilot product line. But there is also the long term. “We don’t just want to focus on haemophilia. We want to become a leading company in the world of blood clotting. We probably need a partnership for that, with a diagnostic company, for example. We are very good at research and development, but we could use some help with sales or distribution.”

Enzyre is already working with many companies in the region. “The Noviotech Campus has brought us a lot in terms of networking. We develop our hardware in collaboration with Sencio and EPR Partner. And our first sensors came from NXP!”

Thousands of potential savings

Guido is also very happy about the partnership with Takeda. “They are a very big pharmaceutical company, with an awful lot of content knowledge. For a company like Enzyre, a partnership like that is rather unique, but we’re happy to be working together. We couldn’t have closed this investment round without Takeda.” The successful round of investment brings patients one step closer to leaving their fears behind. This way Enzyre continues to use its network on and off campus to lower the impact of haemophilia on patients’ lives. As medication is costly, their product has the potential to lower healthcare costs by thousands of euros per patient.

This article is published by Noviotech Campus.

Protinhi Therapeutics semi-finalist iin ZELSIF

Protinhi Therapeutics, a company located at Noviotech Campus Nijmegen, is nominated as a semi-finalist in ZELSIF this year, and will be presenting their journey to European and Chinese medical experts and investors during the event on the 16th of December.

The ZELSIF 2022 International Top 15 winners will receive the “ZELSIF 2022” award, which goes along with the privileged opportunity to introduce their solutions to Chinese healthcare experts, investors, and industrials through an online pitch presentation. In the next two weeks, the semi-finalist companies will compete for the top 7 final winners who will receive further awards in cash.

Protinhi Therapeutics is an early-stage biotech company aiming to combat (emerging) viral infectious diseases with a high unmet medical need via protease inhibition. With their proprietary technology platform, they are actively developing novel antiviral drugs that inhibit proteases and block viral replication. The aim for easy-to-administer drugs able to treat in epidemic and pandemic situations.

https://set.kuleuven.be/lhtc/News

Posted by Karina Garcia, Kadans Science Partner.

Unieke financieringstafel biedt alternatief voor innovatieve ondernemers

Banken slaan handen ineen met Oost NL en The Economic Board Arnhem-Nijmegen

REGIO ARNHEM-NIJMEGEN: Rabobank, ING en ABN-AMRO hebben samen met Oost NL en The Economic Board Arnhem-Nijmegen een financieringstafel voor het MKB opgericht. Innovatieve ondernemers met een goed businessplan, die eerder een financieringsvraag afgewezen zagen worden, kunnen bij de financieringstafel aankloppen voor een manier om hun bedrijfsplan alsnog te financieren. De financieringstafel verwacht op deze manier vele ondernemers per jaar te kunnen ondersteunen.

De financieringstafel zet in op zowel innovatie als financiering en is bedoeld om innovaties die de regio hard nodig heeft, een grotere kans van slagen te bieden. Oost NL verzorgt de intake en brengt de casussen in bij de financieringstafel. Jan van Dellen, directeur The Economic Board Arnhem-Nijmegen, is bestuurlijk voorzitter van de tafel.

Regio heeft innovaties hard nodig

Rabobank constateerde in een rapport uit 2021, dat gebleken is dat ondernemers moeite hebben om innovatieve ideeën gefinancierd te krijgen. De financieringstafel gaat daarom in januari 2023 direct van start met de behandeling van de eerste ingebrachte casussen. Jan van Dellen kan niet wachten tot het zover is: “We staan al maanden te popelen om onze ondernemers te gaan helpen. Je moet je voorstellen dat als jij een goed idee hebt, voor een startup of jouw jonge bedrijf wilt uitbreiden, dat niks zo vervelend is als in de wachtkamer zitten omdat je niet weet waar je terecht kunt met je financieringsvraagstuk. Onze regio heeft innovatieve ondernemers keihard nodig om de vraagstukken van de toekomst op te lossen. Hoe brengen we de energierekening in de wijken omlaag? Welke toepassingen in de zorg helpen om de volksgezondheid in onze regio op peil te houden tegen lagere kosten? Met de financieringstafel gaan we ondernemers helpen om de oplossingen van morgen naar de markt te brengen.”

Grootbanken slaan handen ineen

Uniek aan de financieringstafel is dat de grootbanken Rabobank, ING en ABN-AMRO zich samen inzetten om een alternatief te creëren. Casussen worden door Oost NL verzameld en daarna anoniem ingebracht en op inhoud besproken, waarna er gekeken wordt welke bank de best aansluitende financieringspartner is. Aanvragen die niet passen binnen de kaders die de banken hanteren, worden gekoppeld aan alternatieve financiers, zoals investeringsfondsen, business angels of crowdfunding. Jan van Dellen: “Het komt voor dat een ondernemer nog niet in staat is om te voldoen aan de eisen die aan financiering gesteld worden. In zo’n geval kan de financieringstafel ook helpen een coachingstraject op te zetten, subsidiemogelijkheden in kaart helpen brengen of doorverwijzen naar een partner die gespecialiseerd is in begeleiding van opkomende ondernemers. Uitgangspunt is dat we een zetje in de rug willen geven op de best passende manier.”

Innovaties om te overleven

De voortdurende veranderingen in kennis, producten en diensten, werkwijzen, gedrag, welvaart, maatschappelijke verhoudingen, kortom, de voortdurende veranderingen in de wereld vereisen een continue aandacht van ondernemers voor die veranderingen, dus aandacht voor innovatie. Dit is noodzakelijk om te overleven, juist in deze zeer moeilijke tijden voor het MKB. Daarom is de vraag om financiering veel méér dan vraag om werkkapitaal voor de dagelijkse bedrijfsvoering. Jan van Dellen: “Zonder investeringen in mensen, nieuwe processen, methoden en producten en ICT kan geen bedrijf succesvol blijven.”

De financieringstafel bestaat uit vertegenwoordigers van de Rabobank, ING, ABN-AMRO, Oost NL en The Economic Board Arnhem-Nijmegen. Het bestuurlijk overleg wordt voorgezeten door The Economic Board. Met deze publiek private samenwerking willen we in de gezamenlijke samenwerking impact maken om innovaties te versnellen en zo te kunnen bijdragen aan maatschappelijke vraagstukken.

Schrijf je in voor de Nationale Zorginnovatieprijs 2023!

Ben jij een ondernemer uit Gelderland of Overijssel? Heb jij een innovatief zorgproduct ontwikkeld dat al succesvol is getest en geïmplementeerd bij de eindgebruiker? En wil je jouw markt vergroten of het product verder verbeteren? Schrijf je dan nu in voor de achtste editie van de Nationale Zorginnovatieprijs 2023! Deelnemers maken kans op de vakjuryprijs ter waarde van €10.000,- of de publieksprijs van €5000,-. Schrijf je voor 4 januari 2023 in!

Maak kans op €10.000!

Zorginnovatie.nl heeft het doel om innovaties in zorg en welzijn te versnellen. Ondernemingen die hun innovatie al uitgewerkt, getest en gelanceerd hebben, kunnen vaak een duwtje in de rug gebruiken om hun onderneming echt tot een succes te maken. Daarom wordt op 30 maart 2023 de Nationale Zorginnovatieprijs uitgereikt; een prijs speciaal voor de meest innovatieve onderneming in de opschalingsfase. De uitreiking van de prijs vindt plaats op het Health Valley Event.

Deelnemers maken kans op:

Een geldbedrag ter waarde van €10.000,- (vakjuryprijs) of €5.000,- (publieksprijs);
Finalisten krijgen gratis toegang en een eigen stand op het Health Valley Event;
Professionele begeleiding bij de verdere ontwikkeling van je innovatie;
Toegang tot het netwerk van Zorginnovatie.nl.

Belangrijke data

4 januari 2023: sluiting aanmeldingen om 12:00 uur
6 februari – 3 maart 2023: regionale voorrondes tijdens de Slimme Zorgestafette
20 maart 2023: stemronde voor publieksprijs wordt geopend op Zorginnovatie.nl
27 maart 2023: stemronde voor publieksprijs wordt gesloten
30 maart 2023: uitreiking Nationale Zorginnovatieprijs 2023 op het Health Valley Event

Vakjury en publieksjury

Na de bekendmaking van de finalisten begin maart, zal een vakjury zich buigen over de genomineerden en hen inhoudelijk beoordelen. De leden van de vakjury worden later bekend gemaakt. Daarnaast kan elke finalist campagne voeren om zoveel mogelijk stemmen van het publiek voor zich te winnen. De innovatie met de meeste stemmen (met uitzondering van de winnaar van de vakjuryprijs) wint vervolgens de publieksprijs.

Schrijf je nu in voor de Nationale Zorginnovatieprijs 2023!

De Nationale Zorginnovatieprijs is dé kans voor scale-ups om de ontwikkeling van hun innovatie te versnellen! Ga voor meer informatie over de Nationale Zorginnovatieprijs 2023 en het inschrijfformulier naar www.zorginnovatie.nl/nationale-zorginnovatieprijs.

Brilliant Work shows you how to get even more out of your business

Starting a business or growing it when things are going well: there are challenges on all sides of entrepreneurship. How do you achieve your ambitions as quickly and efficiently as possible? Often it helps to get support and feedback from people with experience and expertise in this area.

Growth, what does that mean for your employees? Or: at what point in your business do you need an extra set of hands to work on your goals? Lizanne Jakobs, founder of Brilliant Work, answers questions like these every day. “We don’t advise on your area of expertise – we’re obviously not going to tell a pharmaceutical company how to develop medication. We are here for short- and long-term business strategies.”

Partner at Briskr

Brilliant Work recently became an official Briskr partner, but has been available to entrepreneurs for a long time. “We have known Briskr for a long time. We have been coming to meetings and giving workshops in collaboration with Briskr for years now. We just formalised the partnership to make the collaboration more intensive.”

Briskr member companies are of interest to Brilliant Work for a specific reason: their growth potential. “We help companies that are looking for change, in the form of business growth and internationalisation. The start-ups and scale-ups in the life science and high-tech sectors are excellent examples in this respect. These companies not only have tremendous growth potential, but often do so at a fast pace. Most of the time they do this internationally, which is one of our areas of expertise.”

Most business owners are not trained to be entrepreneurs but excel in their profession. “As a scientist, you use a completely different skill set from that of an entrepreneur, and that is where as experienced coaches we can help avoid pitfalls.” Ultimately, the goal is to help all Briskr-affiliated entrepreneurs to get the true and full potential out of their companies.

Coaching and advice

Coaching with Brilliant Work always starts with a good intake. “It might seem obvious, but it is crucial to the advice you get”, says Lizanne. “We need to have a good understanding of where you are with your business. What is going well, what do you want to keep this way, and what do you want to change? Once we know that, your ambitions are the next step.”

Not all entrepreneurs have those written down. “It always works well to write them down in a specific and measured way. But having ambitions is not enough; you must have a clear plan of how you will get there and have enough money to do so and obviously we help our clients write the right plans, pitch decks or budgets to do so. Subsidies are also an important area that is overlooked to help grow the company without capital dilution. Coaches who know which subsidies to use when, help you to make the right decisions.

“Brilliant works tailors their coaching, advice and training to fit the company. For most clients, including start-ups, we offer one-on-one sessions. For larger companies, sometimes we train the entire office staff at once. Our sessions are often about two hours long, but vary on the client’s needs. Our engagements normally result in an action plan to realise your ambitions and we connect you to the right people and government officials to help you carry it out.

Her own experiences

Before Lizanne founded Brilliant Work, she worked as an SME coach in the UK. “Before starting my work as a business coach, I had worked as a sales and account manager for multiple European companies. I enjoyed always being on the road, but at that point it was not compatible with family life any more. As a coach, I could work from any location.” In a group with 50 coaches, she gained an incredible amount of experience. When she moved back to the Netherlands in 2014, she missed an agency that offered advice with an eye for both sides of a business.

What does that mean? “On the one hand, you have your goals, your KPI’s, and your processes. Those are all tangible things, the ‘hard facts’. But there also is your customer focus, communication, leadership and other skills. That is the ‘soft side’ of a business. A good consultancy business helps you get both to the right level, because you want a balanced business.” Lizanne’s solution to the lack of coaching companies with a broad vision? Starting her own agency!

“Of course, I was in a unique situation. I had already owned a coaching business in the UK, and had done so in a setting where I felt very supported and had lots of people I could ask for advice. . Starting a business by yourself is not easy. The most important tip I give entrepreneurs? Not losing yourself in your day-to-day work. Your daily and weekly workload can slowly eat up all your time, leaving you with no time to work on the things that will really grow and transform your business. That is a missed opportunity! By blocking out time with us, you will make huge steps towards having a business that works well, grows nationally and internationally and where you enjoy your own role.”

More info at: www.brilliantwork.nl

New analysis on the Healthcare, IT, Software & Technology market

Aeternus, supporting partner of Briskr and specialised in company valuation, has published a new analysis on the Healthcare IT, Software & Technology market. It gives an overview of the most important investors, deal flow of the last two years. Also it gives some direction in thinking on valuation of healthcare IT companies. This is an interesting report for any healthcare company looking for investors or thinking about company valuation. It is available in both English and Dutch.

“The large number of deals in healthcare IST shows that the market is hot for these companies. It is a mix of a primary sector with interesting growth opportunities in a world of extensive automation and digitalization and the huge availability of investment capital. Prices for Healthcare IST companies have therefore risen sharply. In addition, an interesting development is that Private Equity parties regularly outbid strategic buyers.”

You can find the report here.

Kind regards,
The Briskr team

NEW: Entrepreneur track for (young) researchers

The strapline of Radboudumc is “To have a significant impact on healthcare”. Research is a key component in creating this impact. However, without entrepreneurship even the best paper remains just a paper. Impact ~ Research × Entrepreneurship!

Do you want to be the one to turn Research into Impact? Entrepreneurship is the key to achieve this!

Are you with or without a concrete idea, but have passion and drive to become an entrepreneur? Are you the one daring to take the challenges and bringing your innovations/services to the market? We have set up a program specifically aimed at PhD candidates, Postdocs and other early career researchers with entrepreneurial ambitions. During this program we inspire and guide you how to start and how to grow your business during or after a PhD trajectory. Although the track is developed for PhD candidates and postdocs, all researchers are very welcome to join.

This program consists of three sessions. All speakers have been PhD candidates themselves or work closely with young scientific entrepreneurs. They know exactly which hurdles you will have to take, but also how to achieve and celebrate success.

After each presentation and interview, you will have the possibility to ask questions. For example, how to successfully combine a PhD or Postdoc with entrepreneurship? Or how to find an investor and what makes them (not) investing? Can you still be a scientist when becoming enprepreneur?

Program:

8 November 2022 16:00-18:00 Lucas Noldus: Lucas Noldus is founder and CEO of Noldus Information Technology BV. He started this business in 1989 based on his PhD research. In 2019, he was also appointed professor at Radboud University Nijmegen. In the last 30 years, his company grew from a one-man outfit to a team of 170 professionals located in 10 countries, serving over 12,000 customers in 95 countries. As an entrepreneur, Lucas has gone through different phases and he has faced various challenges. Learn from his experience in this very interactive session.
24 January 2023 16:00-18:00 Thijs Cohen Tervaert: How can you get your great idea for a startup company funded? Thijs Cohen Tervaert is partner of the Venture Capitalist company INKEF Capital, which invests in early-stage healthcare and technology companies. He will not only share his career experiences with us, but also advice on how to get your great biotech business idea funded.
28 February 2023 16:00-18:00 Eva van Rikxoort & Jan Smit: Eva van Rikxoort turned her PhD research into a thriving company: Thirona. In 2014, she founded this company, which has grown ever since and is active for global customers. How did she do this? What skills are needed to become an entrepreneur? How entrepreneurship in an academic environment can be improved? She and our dean Jan Smit will discuss these questions and any other questions from the audience.

More information and registration via Radboudumc.