09 April 2020 – Inova, Lyonbiopole, and Evaluate have joined forces to launch a unique virtual partnering event, backed by a consortium of biotech clusters and trade associations in the life sciences industry, to be held across the globe from 20 April to 6 May 2020.

Today’s COVID-19 crisis requires a previously unimaginable acceleration of output from the biopharmaceutical and life sciences industry. It raises the question about the ability to find the right partner in developing diagnostics, drug treatments and, ultimately, a COVID-19 vaccine. Beyond R&D – COVID-19 also raises a series of questions about the ability to handle the massive scale-up needed to deliver urgent solutions to protect health workers in the front line of the epidemic and patients alike. 

The way forward requires an enormous leadership and collaboration effort within the life sciences industry to leave no stone unturned. 

#PartneringAgainstCOVID19 is enabling small and big players worldwide to meet and match their skills and efforts against COVID-19. 

The event is being made possible by Inova, which is leveraging its biopharma industry expertise, its leading digital networking platform and years of experience in organizing partnering events. Lyonbiopole and Evaluate will also support the event, leveraging their global life sciences networks and expertise.

Participation is free and open to any organization that provides products, knowledge, or technologies that can help in the effort to develop and produce testing, treatment and vaccine solutions to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic. Participants will be able to pursue:

• Potential R&D collaborations
• Tools for research projects
• Drug repurposing
• Partners for clinical trials
• Biological markers and diagnostic tests for clinical trials
• Animal and in-silico models
• New suppliers for supply chain reinforcement
• Funding and licensing
• Production capabilities and scale-up know-how
• Early stage discovery collaboration
• Adjuvants, carrier systems, and formulation technologies

“With today’s COVID-19 pandemic, and half of the globe staying at home, we need to take virtual partnering one step further and make it accessible to all. The team is proud to be part of this collective effort to continue to help biopharmaceutical companies accelerate their partnering efforts. Everyone's ultimate goal is to get solutions to patients”, says Gilles Toulemonde, CEO at Inova. “Partnering meetings usually take place face-to-face at large industry gatherings, but it’s now possible to #PartnerAtHome”. 

“We’re delighted to be lead partner for this event”, adds Deborah Kobewka, CEO, Evaluate Ltd, a trusted provider of commercial intelligence to the pharma industry for over 20 years. “Today’s COVID-19 public health crisis requires a previously unimaginable acceleration of output from the biopharmaceutical and life sciences industry. We are now seeing a major demand for global partnerships and this event will be a key solution to help bring together the industry to collaborate in new and innovative ways”. 

“We are very proud to be on board for the organization of this international partnering event against the current public health crisis”, says Florence Agostino-Etchetto, CEO of Lyonbiopole, a French Bio Cluster based in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. “Our region is historically strongly involved in the research and the fight against infectious diseases and the current crisis we are experiencing worldwide needs a global response. Partnership will be the keystone to provide effective solutions.”

The event is endorsed by a growing number of leading trade associations including the European Federation of Pharmaceutical and Associations (EFPIA), EuropaBio, EUCOPE as well as national associations and coalitions. 
 

Event at a glance 
 

What is a virtual Partnering Event? 

A partnering event usually aims to facilitate interactions between attendees at big conferences in convention centres. Instead, we’re providing a safe, structured and easy-to-use online space for those working on solutions for COVID-19.   

• Meeting requests: Partnering meetings are unique in that the interactions are not serendipitous. Participants search for and request meetings with potential partners in our directory. Once accepted, they schedule the meeting via our online networking platform. Access to the directory and meeting scheduling will start from 20 April.
• Virtual meetings: Meetings take place from 4 May through 6 May using the online meeting system. Meetings only last 30 minutes. They are short but allow enough time for an introduction to the partner and their capabilities.
• Follow-ups: Although the initial meeting is short, the relationship continues afterwards.
   

How does this work?

• Each delegate enters a profile (organization, technology, product, expertise)
• Searchable directory of profiles
• Anyone can reach out to companies listed in the directory
• Meetings can be requested, accepted or declined
• Meetings are virtually organized and scheduled
• Each delegate has a personalized agenda of meetings