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News From Battelle Subsidiaries
March 5, 2001
BATTELLE PULMONARY THERAPEUTICS BOARD OF DIRECTORS
BOLSTERED BY ADDITION OF THREE INDUSTRY LEADERS
Three industry leaders are joining the Board of Directors for Battelle Pulmonary Therapeutics, Inc. (BPT), in a strategic move that will help propel the promising startup toward becoming a leading specialty pharmaceutical company.
"The addition of Aleksandar Erdeljan, Wilbur Gantz and Robert Towarnicki has been well received by the pharmaceutical and financial communities," said Douglas E. Olesen, BPT Board Chairman. "Their strong business acumen and deep-rooted knowledge of the pharmaceutical and biotech industry bring validation and credibility to our business objectives and technology platforms."
"These new board members have a wealth of knowledge and proven track records in guiding emerging businesses and technologies toward market success," said Dennis Cearlock, BPT's President and CEO. "With their vision and keen insight we will be able to attain the substantial commercial value resident in our breakthrough technology platforms."
Joining the board are:
Aleksandar Erdeljan, former CEO and Chairman of the Board of R.P. Scherer Corporation. During the nine years under his leadership, R.P. Scherer developed and commercialized a number of unique technologies, which established Scherer as one of the leading companies in the oral drug delivery segment. Erdeljan left Scherer in November 1998 following the acquisition of the company by Cardinal Health, Inc. He is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Eurand Pharmaceuticals, an international developer and marketer of drug delivery technology. Erdeljan has a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Belgrade, Yugoslavia and an MBA from IMD, Lausanne, Switzerland.
"I am excited about joining the BPT board and assisting its team to maximize the potential of one of the most exciting drug delivery technologies I have come across," Erdeljan said.
Wilbur H. Gantz, is retired from PathoGenesis, which he founded and then served as President, CEO and Chairman. PathoGenesis, which was acquired by Chiron Corporation in September 2000, develops and markets drugs to treat chronic human infectious diseases. PathoGenesis developed and marketed worldwide TOBI™, the first aerosolized antibiotic solution to receive regulatory approval. Previously, he was president of Baxter International, Inc. where he held a number of executive positions during his 25-year career there. Gantz also is currently a director of The Gillette Company; W.W. Grainger, Inc. and the Harris Bank and Trust Company. He is a past trustee of Princeton University. Gantz received a bachelor's degree from Princeton and an MBA from the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration.
"Battelle Pulmonary Therapeutics has state of the art technology that opens up the opportunity to effectively deliver many new drugs and therapies by the inhaled route," Gantz said.
Robert J. Towarnicki, President, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Cell Pathways, Inc. Prior to joining Cell Pathways, he led Integra LifeSciences Corporation. Towarnicki has had a solid career in leading other biotech and startup companies including work at MediRel, Inc., Focus/MRL and Collagen Corp. He also held operational positions at Pfizer, Inc., and Merck & Co., Inc. Towarnicki currently serves on the Board of Directors of VectraMed, Inc., a privately held company focused on tissue-activated drug delivery. He has both bachelor's and master's degrees from Villanova University.
"I am pleased to join the Board of Battelle Pulmonary Therapeutics and look forward to assisting the management team in furthering the development of the company and its exciting drug delivery technologies," Towarnicki said.
In addition to Olesen, the board includes: Dennis Cearlock, President and CEO of BPT; Jerome R. Bahlmann, Battelle Senior Vice President for Administration and General Counsel; Mark W. Kontos, Battelle Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer; and Robert W. Smith, Jr., Battelle Senior Vice President for Organizational Development.
Battelle Pulmonary Therapeutics, Inc. (BPT) is a for-profit subsidiary of Battelle (formed in April 2000) that specializes in commercializing novel pulmonary therapeutics. BPT focuses on developing pulmonary drug products and medications that provide non-invasive drug delivery for respiratory diseases such as lung cancer, asthma and a variety of systemic diseases.
For more information contact BPT's Vice President of Business Development Michael Placke at (614) 424-4898 or at placke@bpt-inc.com or contact Katy Delaney at (614) 424-5544 or at delaneyk@battelle.org.
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