Biacore launches its own operation in China

Uppsala, Sweden-based Biacore International AB, a supplier of systems for protein interaction analysis, says that it has formally launched its own operation in China, and is taking over full business responsibility for its products there. The new organization is designed to take Biacore's business to the next stage of its development in the rapidly growing market for life science instrumentation in China.

The new Chinese operation will be headed by Peter Lee, the former regional sales manager for GE Healthcare in Southern China. He will lead a team of six people based in Shanghai that will be responsible for the sales, marketing, applications support and service of Biacore's systems. In the outlying areas of the country, Biacore will be supported by a network of local dealers and distributors. The organization will target customers in the life science research, pharmaceutical and biotechnology and food sectors.

The market for life science instrumentation in China was estimated to be worth $1.6 billion in 2005, having more than doubled in value since 1998. Over the next several years, the Chinese market for these products is expected to grow significantly as the government continues to invest in new centers of excellence in the areas of proteomics and genomics.