Pharmaceutical research, smart labels and water cycle management: find out the three winning companies in each category of the V rePCV Awards

The research, development and innovation of the companies of the Valencian Community have met this Friday in the fifth edition of the Awards of the Network of Science Parks of the Valencian Community (rePCV) with the ceremony of the awards to the awarded companies in the auditorium Marie Curie of the PCUV

The University of Valencia Science Park (PCUV) has hosted this Friday, in the Marie Curie Auditorium, the ceremony of the V rePCV Awards, an initiative of the Network of Valencian Science Parks (rePCV) that has the support of the Valencian Innovation Agency (Agència Valenciana de la Innovació). The awards recognize the business and entrepreneurial effort in their commitment to R+D+i in the science park environment. 

"These awards recognize the role of the parks as ecosystems called to enable the transfer of knowledge and technology. In the current context, the creation of science and technology-based companies from research results is a fundamental fact to bring innovation to the productive fabric", highlights Pedro Carrasco, director of the PCUV, while stressing that "the parks also have the vocation to create critical mass and create a culture of innovation capable of moving a community or creating common spaces in which research groups, sectoral entities, public administrations and companies are recognized". On these criteria, they respond to the top-rated projects in each category.

In the case of the "Spin-off" category, the highest recognition went to Medalchemy, a technology-based company from the Alicante Science Park (PCA), focused on research and developing high value-added products, mainly pharmaceuticals and new chemical molecules of therapeutic interest. In this category, the second prizes went to Arthex Biotech, from the University of Valencia Science Park (PCUV), and Ethical & Legal Plus, from the Miguel Hernández University Science Park (PCUMH).

The winner of the "Start-up Award" was Oscillum Biotechnology, from the PCUMH, dedicated to the development of an intelligent and compostable label, called SmartLabel, capable of detecting the level of decomposition of food, indicating whether or not it is safe for consumption. In the same category, the runners-up prizes went to the companies ABERVIAN, from Espaitec-Parque Científico y Tecnológico de la Universitat Jaume I, and Bumerania Robotics, from the PCA.

As for the "Business-University Collaboration Award", the company FACSA, from Espaitec, focused on the management of the integral water cycle, receives the award in this category, which also recognizes Sabartech, from PCUV, and ACTIVIDADES DE INFRAESTRUCTURAS PÚBLICAS Y CONSERVACIÓN, from the Ciudad Politécnica de la Innovación-Universitat Politècnica de València (CPI) with runners-up prizes.

Tonia Salinas, president of the Network of Valencian Science Parks (rePCV) during the award ceremony of the V rePCV Awards. Photo: FPCUV

"These awards recognize the role of parks as ecosystems called to enable the transfer of knowledge and technology. In the current context, the creation of science and technology-based companies based on research results is a fundamental fact to bring innovation to the productive fabric", Predro Carrasco, director of the PCUV

For her part, Tonia Salinas, president of the Network of Valencian Science Parks (rePCV), emphasizes that "the parks are magnificent tools that universities have to make the results and knowledge of their researchers reach society, and that the talent of their students form companies that are able to diversify the industrial fabric that surrounds us." To this fact, Salinas added that "this is a formula to retain the talent that we generate in the universities and to be able not only to retain, but to bring back that talent that during the period of crisis that we lived in Spain had to emigrate to other countries."

Along the same lines, Rosa Donat, vice-rector of Innovation and Transfer of the University of Valencia, points to the PCUV as "a lighthouse" where "researchers, companies and productive fabric meet", and where in addition, "it generates benefits for society in many ways, both economically and also a very interesting feedback system for universities." In this sense, Donat affirms that "the activity of the companies generates knowledge, and knowledge generates activity in the companies, and this is what the parks are optimizing and dynamizing. This system of connection between the knowledge generated in the universities and the knowledge that companies need to be more competitive and connected to the environment.

"The activity of companies generates knowledge, and knowledge generates activity in companies, and this is what the parks are optimizing and energizing. This system of connection between the knowledge that is generated in universities and the knowledge that companies need to be more competitive and connected to the environment", Rosa Donat, Vice-Rector for Innovation and Transfer of the University of Valencia

Innovation and production model, a necessary dialogue

Improving productivity is one of the main priorities both in Spain and in the Valencian Region, especially in the specialized sectors in which the Valencian region stands out. This must be the main strategic objective in order to close the gap with other regional economies. If this is not done, the Valencian Region will continue to be unable to retain the talent it trains and it will continue to be an economy with low salaries and incomes compared to the best positioned European regions. These are the premises defended by Andrés García Reche, executive vice-president of the Agència Valenciana de la Innovació (AVI), in his book Qué hacer con el modelo productivo: Guía básica para gobernantes audaces, which has served as the basis for a dialogue with Rafa Navarro, founding partner of Innsomnia and the innovation portal D+I, Disruptores e Innovadores.

"The disorientation in Spain regarding its economic direction and its economic model is absolute and total. Therefore, the hard core of what is the economic strategy of this country is undiagnosed and undetermined. We have been going on for dozens of years now, and we are still in the dark and discussing trivialities, but we are not discussing the core of the matter, which is what I was trying to bring out in this book", warns García-Reche. Regarding the process of increasing productivity in Spain, the executive vice-president of the Agència Valenciana de la Innovació (AVI) points out that the country is at "a transition point", and stresses that "for there to be a certain perspective that we can get somewhere, in terms of improving the added value of everything we produce, it is necessary to create new sectors and technologies that have a much higher technological and knowledge content, so that our average added value grows".

On the other hand, Navarro emphasizes that "one of the great unfinished business" is the difference between "the big centers that have many resources and extraordinary machines that perhaps suffer from slowness, and super-fast and agile startups, but do not have the resources", which is answered by Rafa Navarro, who says that to create and consolidate the innovation system is not only that "the world of science, technology and business come together", but it is necessary that actors such as the AVI "had much more capacity for action, coordination and budget the problem that arises would be solved or in the process of resolution.

"The disorientation in Spain with respect to its economic direction and its economic model is absolute and total. Therefore, the hard core of the economic strategy of this country is undiagnosed and undetermined. We have been going on for dozens of years, and we are still in the doldrums and discussing banalities, but we are not discussing the substance of the matter, which is what I was trying to bring out in this book", Andrés García-Reche, executive vice-president of the Agència Valenciana de la Innovació (AVI)

Andrés García Reche, executive vice president of the Agència Valenciana de la Innovació (AVI), during the dialogue with Rafa Navarro, founding partner of Innsomnia and the innovation portal D+I, Disruptores e Innovadores. Photo: FPCUV

Science, humor and music

Humor and music, but above all, science has been in charge of the group ALGA BROWN & the pipettes, a scientific-musical formation composed by the researchers of the Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology (IATA-CSIC), Gloria Sanchez, PhD in biology, virologist and expert in food safety and emerging microbiological risks and Amparo Lopez-Rubio, PhD in food science and technology and expert in food materials; along with musicians Anna Franco, a singer with a long career; and Iván Moya, musician, composer and founder and singer of the band Tigre.

The audience enjoyed an unconventional performance that highlighted the value of science, and more specifically, food science. Throughout the 25 minutes of performance, the group has emphasized issues such as the work of IATA-CSIC researchers during the coronavirus pandemic or the problem of investment suffered by the world of science in Spain, among others.

This scientific-musical project has been in the making for a few years, when they did a first informative event at a Pint of Science, performing a version of Deep Purple's Smoke on the Water adapted to the problem of plastic. From there, López-Rubio points out that it was clear to them that "to reach a more general audience, they needed a format that combined accessible scientific content, humor and music." "The format was very well received and, since then, the project has been evolving and consolidating until we decided to give it a name," says the researcher.  Likewise, López-Rubio recognizes that she is "tremendously lucky", since she has managed to embark on this project "with my colleague and fantastic scientist Gloria Sánchez, and with two very high level and super creative musician friends who are the ones who adapt the songs and fill the stage with their art."

ALGA BROWN & the pipettes during their performance at the V rePCV Awards ceremony. Photo: FPCUV

These are the awarded companies

With honorary status, the awards consist of recognition diplomas and trophies, of which one prize and up to a maximum of two runner-up prizes are awarded for each category. Companies that have won the award in each of the three categories are entitled to apply for up to two tickets to Transfiere 2024. In addition, the organizing park of the fifth edition, corresponding to the PCUV, as an entity that will participate in the Valencia Digital Summit 2023, offers the awarded companies the possibility of participating in this international technological meeting.

• Medalchemy: dedicated to the R&D&I of pharmaceuticals and new chemical entities with therapeutic interest, the company presents itself as a solution to the development and scale-up of active pharmaceutical ingredients. Therefore, its line of work corresponds to the research and development of high added value products, mainly pharmaceuticals and chemical molecules of therapeutic interest.
• ARTHEx Biotech S.L.: is a spin-off company of the University of Valencia focused on the development of a treatment against muscular dystrophy type 1 based on microRNA inhibitors. The proof of concept of the efficacy of these molecules in animal models of the disease was generated in the Translational Genomics laboratory of the University of Valencia, directed by Dr. Ruben Artero. The business model proposed to complete this project corresponds to the current open innovation model, in which the biotechnology company emerging from a research center develops the products up to clinical phase 2 (efficacy), and subsequently licenses them to multinational pharmaceutical companies with the capacity to complete the development, more advanced studies and their commercialization.
• Ethical & Legal Plus, S.L.: The spin-off Plus Ethics provides legal and ethical advice in the field of public policies and initiatives as well as for the development of R&D projects related to ICT (Information and Communication Technologies). It is a firm promoted by Fernando Miró, professor of Criminal Law at UMH and director of the Centro Crímina, the UMH research center for the Study and Prevention of Crime, and by UMH professor and researcher at the Centro Crímina, Francisco Javier Castro. Founded in 2018, and aims to manage ethical, social and privacy aspects in European projects. The Plus Ethics team is formed by professionals in the fields of Philosophy, Law and Social Sciences, with extensive experience in scientific research. Currently, they participate as partners and Independent Ethical Experts in European projects of the Horizon 2020, Horizon Europe and European Defence Agency programs".
• Oscillum Biotechnology S.L.: The start-up Oscillum has developed an intelligent and compostable label, called SmartLabel, capable of detecting the level of decomposition of food, indicating whether or not it is safe for consumption. It is a company promoted by UMH Biotechnology graduates Luis Chimeno, Pilar Granado and Pablo Sosa, and emerged after being one of the winning projects of the program for entrepreneurs UMH Start-ups Creation Marathon.
  
  
•  ABERVIAN SRL: Abervian is a technology partner specialized in product engineering in developments related to land and naval electric mobility, energy storage and management. It specializes in hardware and software development of customized products for companies in the launching phase of new products, such as customized batteries, second life batteries, electrical systems integration, electric propulsion, energy monitoring and control, electric vehicle charging, automotive and marine.
• Bumerania Robotics: Social robotics company, dedicated mainly to manufacture robots that can help people. Bumerania Robotis currently offers robots for three large and well-defined areas: the health sector, where they focus especially on the care of the elderly and disease prevention; robotics for the hotel and hospitality sector, and also for security.
• FACSA: with almost 150 years at the service of water and society, is one of the benchmark companies in the intelligent and sustainable management of the integral water cycle. The company currently serves 2.5 million people in more than 300 municipalities through water supply, sanitation and treatment, as well as the construction of water infrastructure, bioenergy, conservation of the urban and natural environment and other services that, through the analysis of water and its behavior, contribute to improving aspects such as the performance of processes and infrastructures or population health. Innovation and digitalization - currently articulated under its new brand Waternology by Facsa, are basic pillars in all its actions to ensure the future of water and thus the progress of the societies in which it is present. A purpose that is increasingly achievable thanks to these pillars and the commitment of its entire team to sustainable development.
• SABARTECH S.L.: Sabartech is an innovative biotechnology company dedicated to the transfer of new technologies in the health and oncology sector. The company has received several grants and subsidies, for example, from the NEOTEC Program, granted by the Center for the Development of Industrial Technology (CDTI) of the Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness, of the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities as a firm with the Innovative SME seal. It is worth mentioning its contribution to the implementation and validation of liquid biopsy techniques and/or autoantibodies in patients with pulmonary nodules detected in order to optimize interventional diagnostic strategies and radiological follow-up through the EarlyCDT-Lung Test, which serves as an autoantibody detection test to carry out this action. Recently, Sabartech also collaborates with FISABIO, the Universitat de València and the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid in the FRAGILTEC consortium for the early detection of frailty in the field of geroscience, gerotherapeutics and healthy aging. It also participates in the iSARC-GENETICS consortium, for the diagnosis and monitoring of sarcopenia, together with the company Dawako, the CoMMLab group of the Universitat de València and Ci2B (Center for Research and Innovation in Bioengineering) of the Universitat Politènica de València, and with the support of the Agència Valenciana de Innovació.
• ACTIVIDADES DE INFRAESTRUCTURAS PUBLICAS Y CONSERVACION, S.L.: is one of the main Valencian companies integrated in the construction, infrastructure and services sector, both public and private, with experience and recognition in the management of construction projects, from a growth model based on diversification, expansion, financial solvency and sustainable and responsible activity for the society to which all its activity is destined. They provide constructive solutions to the current needs of the market."

Network of Valencian Science Parks

The Network of Valencian Science Parks (rePCV) is an entity formed by the Science Park of the Miguel Hernández University, by Espaitec-Science and Technology Park of the Universitat Jaume I, by the Science Park of the University of Valencia, by the Polytechnic City of Innovation-Universitat Politècnica de València and by the Science Park of Alicante-University of Alicante. The aim of the rePCV is to increase the wealth of the region, promote the culture of innovation and foster the competitiveness of companies and knowledge-generating institutions installed or associated with science parks. Also, to promote the diversification and growth of a new business and industrial fabric, quality, differentiated and committed to social responsibility policies.

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