2010 Grants: Completed projects

University of Canterbury – Dr Robert Dempster, Virbac Australia Pty Ltd

The University of Canterbury was very significantly affected by the September 2010 and February 2011 earthquakes and the disruption due to loss or partial closure of buildings, as well as the effects of the traumatic events on students and staff, has made teaching and learning challenging.

But Dr Gabriel Visnovsky of the Department of Chemical and Process Engineering didn’t let these difficulties prevent him from hosting a successful third VIP visit from Dr Robert Dempster of Virbac Australia Pty Ltd. Dr Dempster delivered five lectures during July 2011 in which he shared his real life experiences of biotechnological technology transfer and product development with the students and staff, and supported the teaching of the Bioprocess Engineering Program.

“Dr Dempster knew ahead of time that the conditions for his visit would not even be close to ideal,” says host academic Dr Visnovsky. “Nevertheless, he decided to come and to do his best despite the conditions we were – and still are – working in.  I am especially thankful to Robert for his decision.”

Dr Dempster’s lectures featuring recent case studies included: ‘The market is key: the story of a recombinant vaccine for a tapeworm infection’, ‘Good manufacturing practice – where did it come from and why do we need it?’ and ‘The Science of Validation in the pharmaceutical industry’.

“We all enjoyed Robert’s captivating lecturing style and learnt a lot about the actual problems that can occur when transferring knowledge and technology from the ‘ideal world’ of an academic laboratory to the ‘real world’ of manufacturing,” says Dr Visnovsky.

As in previous years, Dr Dempster’s lectures were excellent and greatly appreciated by the students. “It is really good that we have been exposed to professionals like Robert,” one student commented. “His lessons about solving real-life problems were really valuable to me, and I think to all of us.” Another said, “I wish we had had the chance to meet other professionals like [Dr Dempster] all across our undergraduate studies.”

Dr Dempster defined his role as adding a human face to the biotechnology industry and “trying to give the students some insight into the things that can go wrong (and right) when developing biotechnological products. And I think my ‘war stories’ were well received.”

He used examples such as the loss of sales for a new vaccine when the product specification was incorrectly defined to illustrate the importance of all aspects of manufacturing. “The students came to understand the real importance of generic skills such as communication and teamwork,” he said.  “I hope I impressed upon them that the technology itself is one thing but without input from management, finance, regulatory, quality, sales & marketing and IP a project can flounder.”

Dr Dempster was also able to advise on strategies for linking the University of Canterbury with biotechnology companies working in his field of knowledge. “Discussions with Robert during his previous visits led to me visiting Intervet Vaccine Production Plant in the Netherlands last year to look at the economics of producing vaccines from fish cell lines cultivated in bioreactors,” says Dr Visnovsky. “This trip has already produced positive results in terms of cooperation between the company and the university, and it is likely that Dr Joseph Koumans from the Intervet Bioprocess Technology Support will be visiting our department next year.”