norwood wins award Monash and Norwood Abbey were joint winners for the best research and development collaboration award for ‘Rebuilding immunity for better health”.
Monash collaborations scoop B-HERT awards Monash academics have been awarded two of the six Business/Higher Education Round Table (B-HERT) awards presented by the Federal Minister for Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Mr Peter McGauran, last month. Monash was joint winner with Norwood Abbey Limited for the best research and development collaboration award for the project ‘Rebuilding immunity for better health’. It was also part of a collaboration that received the award for best collaboration involving a cooperative research centre – research and development or education and training, for the Ceramifying Polymers project. The other members were CRC for Polymers, Olex Australia Pty Ltd, the University of NSW, RMIT University, CSIRO Manufacturing Infrastructure and Technology and the Dr Suzanne Lipe, Chief Operating Officer, Norwood Immunology Associate Professor Richard Boyd and Defence Science and Technology Organisation. The university was also part of a collaboration – comprising Griffith University, CSIRO Land and Water, the University of Melbourne, Melbourne Water, Brisbane City Council, NSW Environment Protection Authority, Victorian Environment Protection Authority, Ecological Engineering Pty Ltd, WBM Oceanics Pty Ltd, Sinclair Knight Merz and EarthTech Pty Ltd – that received an honorable mention for the project ‘Fast-tracking advances in urban stormwater management’. Associate Professor Richard Boyd, from Monash’s Pathology and Immunology department, and his team have been working with Norwood Abbey since 2000 to identify methods for rejuvenating the immune system for the treatment of cancer, infectious diseases, autoimmune conditions, transplantation and other areas of immune deficiency. The original intellectual property was developed by Associate Professor Richard Boyd and licensed to Norwood Abbey in a transaction negotiated by Dr David Lyster of Monash Commercial. Dr Boyd said the award recognised the importance of partnerships in the transition from research to marketready products. “The interface between research and commercialisation is a fundamental issue,” he said. “This award recognises the role of the university, commercial partners and government agencies in translating university research into practical applications for public consumption.” Dr Yi-Bing Cheng and Dr Don Rodrigo, from Monash’s School of Physics and Materials Engineering, were part of the collaboration that developed the ceramifying polymer – a plastic material that transforms into ceramic when subjected to extreme heat. The material has been used to make electrical cabling which enables emergency services to continue operating in the event of a fire. “It is a great feeling to see that the research at Monash has led to a useful commercial product, and it is particularly rewarding to be involved in the development of the fire performance cables that could save lives in a fire situation,” Dr Cheng said.
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