Commercialisation expert visits UOW

May 25, 2007

One of Australia's leading foremost experts in the commercialisation of the products of research, Dr Graham Mitchell, visited the University of Wollongong this week (Wednesday 23 May) to present a seminar as part of the 2007 Australian Innovation Festival.

The seminar, held in conjunction with Davies Collison Cave (Australia's leading intellectual property firm), was titled "The National Innovation System: Opportunities and Challenges in Commercialising Life Sciences".

Dr Mitchell is the founder of Foursight Associates -- a company that specialises in matching inventors with investors, science with business, and ideas with capital. Foursight also ensures the conversion of research into products and services of value to business, the community and the environment.

"Commercialisation of research, the translation of ideas into dollars, is an imperative with great opportunities in Australia," said Dr Mitchell. "Foursight is assisting this process at many levels."

Dr Mitchell explained how Foursight specialises in evaluating new technologies and investment opportunities, reviewing R&D strategies, projects and portfolios, advising on R&D management and new product development, developing policy with government in R&D and science & technology and facilitating productive interaction between scientists, funding bodies and investors.

Before establishing Foursight Associates, Dr Mitchell led the research into parasite vaccines at The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne and was also Director of Research in the R&D Division of CSL Limited -- a global, specialty biopharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures and markets products to treat and prevent serious human medical conditions.