Specialist Support on Hand for Horizon 2020 Applications

UK company Boyds, which works with organisations specialising in the development of early-stage drugs and medical devices, is channelling its pharmaceutical and biotechnology expertise to support life science companies applying for Horizon 2020 grant funding.

From its UK offices in Cheshire and Cambridgeshire, Boyds is acting as the Industrial Partner in Horizon 2020 applications.

Horizon 2020 is the European Union’s biggest ever Research and Innovation programme. It has nearly €80 billion of funding available over the next 7 years with the aim of strengthening the EU’s global position in research, innovation and technology so that Europe produces world-class science, whilst encouraging collaboration between public and private sectors.

The initiative includes a dedicated SME instrument for single or groups of highly innovative SMEs with international ambitions to turn strong business ideas into winners in the market.

Boyds has extensive experience of developing medicinal products and bringing them to market, alongside a long and proven track record of successfully securing funding for academic institutions, organisations and companies. This includes £15 million funding from the Wellcome Trust for R&D activities for five organisations, and additional funding for life science businesses from the TSB, the MRC, CRCUK, medical charities and EU Framework programmes.

“Our aim is to utilise this experience and proven track record to the benefit of more academic institutions and SMEs operating in the life science sector that are specifically looking to apply for funding support from Horizon 2020,” explains the company’s founder and CEO Professor Alan Boyd.

“We have successfully worked with partnering groups from industry and academia to help obtain funding from numerous European sources and this expertise has armed us with the knowledge and skills to give all funding applications purpose and maximum commercial potential.”

Boyds can provide assistance in responding to Horizon 2020s core priorities that cover ‘Excellent Science’, ‘Industrial Leadership’, and ‘Societal Challenges’, as Professor Boyd explains: “For 2020 funding applications, we begin by developing a Target Product Profile for the intended medicinal product.

“The TPP ensures the purpose of the product is clear, that a real clinical need and commercial potential is defined, and most importantly, will describe the product’s key attributes, benefits and risks in treating the specific disease it is being developed for.

“The TPP also covers the plans for the manufacturing programme, required pre-clinical studies, regulatory strategy that should be adopted, component parts of the clinical study programme to assess the benefits and risks — that is the efficacy and safety profile — of the product, and the project’s key milestones, timelines and indicative costs.

“We do like to get involved as early as possible in the development process, even if the medical product is still in the concept stage with very little research work having been performed. Development plans are produced and these can then form a key part of the organisations’ business plan or grant application for funding.”