Science and Technology Daily: China, UK to achieve fruitful results in Guangzhou

Academicians, scholars and entrepreneurs in biotech and health industry from China and the UK recently gathered in Guangzhou's Huangpu district to seek innovative cooperation at a project matchmaking event during the 10th iBridge UK-China Open Innovation Workshop.

A group of key cooperation projects were signed, laying a solid foundation for the industrialization of the scientific and technological achievement.

A local science innovation foundation led by Zhong Nanshan, a renowned respiratory expert and academic at the Chinese Academy of Engineering, announced to invest 200 million yuan ($29.07 million) in biomedical research institutes and industrialize universities' research results.

The foundation will launch a fund to facilitate the cooperation on biotech projects between the two countries.

Zhong, who also served as the team leader of a group of experts, spoke highly of the UK's advantages in scientific research, such as large input, solid foundation and high efficiency, saying that it has the best medical system - National Health Service.

He also pointed out China's strength in clinical resources, cutting-edge manufacturing and the largest market in the world.

The combination of China's and UK's advantages will greatly promote more enterprises to turn from cost-driven to market-driven and even knowledge-driven, and complete the strategic upgrading of enterprises, Zhong added.

Guangzhou High-tech Industrial Development Zone (GHIDZ) is home to more than 600 players in the biomedicine sector, which realized a turnover of 78.5 billion yuan last year and accounted for 60 percent of the city's total.

The zone was honored as the top biomedical park in China last April.

The British delegation brought a raft of cutting-edge theories and technologies on health management, covering the whole industrial chain of health technology for the elderly.

The technologies include exercise incentives, sleep health, individualized diet nutrition design, mental health tracking, stress management, hearing screening, neuroprotection, and spinal physical therapy.

Paul Thorning, director of Open and Innovation at the University of Bradford, noted that the cooperation and innovation between the two countries bring huge business opportunities.

Since its debut in 2011 in the GHIDZ, the annual project matchmaking event has been devoted to promoting cooperation between Chinese and British innovation-oriented companies.

The previous nine sessions have brought about 200 MOUs between companies from China and the UK.

Share - WeChat