Southern Lights Biomaterials supplies BSE Free Medical and pharmaceutical products From New Zealand & Australia.
Southern Lights Biomaterials WELCOME TO SOUTHERN LIGHTS BIOMATERIALS
WHO WE ARE

 Peter Meyer - Managing Director

Peter

Peter Meyer is an American who has lived in New Zealand since 1991. He has involvement with a number of companies involved in technology transfer from New Zealand to the United States and EU. In 1980 he founded and managed an investment banking business in London England serving the needs of the construction industry. Prior to this he worked for Credit Suisse First Boston in London. He established SLB in 2003 to export BSE free biomaterials from New Zealand.
Peter Meyer holds a BA in history from Kenyon College.
 

Geoffrey Bennett - Chief Operating Officer

Geoffrey Bennett
Geoffrey Bennett is a Canadian with 25 years of senior operational and financial management experience who has recently moved to New Zealand to join the Southern Lights team. He has spent the last 15 years with early stage enterprises specializing in technology commercialization, including 2 years in New Zealand from 2001 through 2003. He was most recently Chief Operating Officer for Innervision Medical Technologies Inc., managing the commercialization of Flash UltraSound™, a diagnostic imaging method for use in the early detection of cancer and other diseases. Mr Bennett holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Alberta and is a member of the Canadian institute of Chartered Accountants.
 

Dr Jim Pachence - Chief Science Officer

jim

Dr. Pachence founded MediMatrix, Inc. in 1986 to develop advanced medical devices based on collagen. MediMatrix, Inc. formed the basis of Integra LifeSciences, where he was the Vice President of Research and Development until 1994. While at Integra, Dr. Pachence developed collagen medical products for applications in general surgery, cardiovascular repair, neural repair and cartilage repair; eight of his collagen-based products have reached commercial production, six of which are currently sold by Integra. He has worked as a biomaterials scientist at major academic institutes such as the University of Pennsylvania , Columbia University , Hospital for Joint Diseases (NY), and the Brookhaven National Laboratory. He also has extensive experience with technology licensing, industrial and academic research and development, and regulatory affairs for biomaterials-based medical devices. Dr. Pachence holds a Ph.D. in Biophysics from the University of Pennsylvania and a B.A. in Physics and Biophysics (magna cum laude) from the University of Pennsylvania.
 

Dr John Higgins – Technical Director

John

John Higgins is a biochemical engineer with broad industry experience and a passion for application of science and technology.
His experience includes process development and application in: manufacture of gelatine and agar, continuous isolation of enzymes produced by fermentation, very large scale production of single cell protein, microbial polysaccharides, application of chemolithotrophic bacteria to metal extraction, and isolation of milk proteins. His expertise includes understanding the performance characteristics of proteins and polymers in terms of both the manufacturing process and the system of characterisation.
He has also practiced as a consultant specialising in valuation of investment in science and technology.
His responsibilities in Southern Lights include establishment of production processes, process facilities and quality systems. The most recent development is to produce Type I insoluble collagen. This development includes supply to customers of a full product characterisation to the standard ASTM F2212-02 Standard guide for Characterization of Type I Collagen as Starting material for Surgical Implants and Substrates for Tissue-Engineered Medical Products
Dr Higgins holds a Ph.D in Biotechnology and a B.Tech. (Biotech) from Massey University and an M.E. (Chem) from the University of Canterbury
 

Dr Saroja Gurazada – Tissue Specialist

Saroja

Dr Gurazada emigrated from India to New Zealand in 1998. Following research work in India she continued her career at the University of Auckland, researching cancer biology involving the human genome project. Her technical expertise includes tissue engineering technologies, recombinant protein technology and gene technologies.

She has won several prestigious New Zealand research awards such as a Marsden Fellowship, Pfizer Scholarship and an Enterprise Scholarship. Her passion to do novel research led to a US patent, and international publications.

Dr Gurazada’s doctorial research in microbial biosensors development laid the foundation for the development of a commercial oestrogen biosensor. The biosensor technology has wide applications in clinical, medical diagnostics, environmental and food industries.

She joined the SLV team in 2009, working with Dr Higgins to develop novel commercial tissue processing and preservation technologies for the medical device companies.

Dr Gurazada holds a Ph.D in biotechnology from Auckland University of Technology, an MSc (AIC) in analytical chemistry from the All India Institute of Chemists, Calcutta, and a BSc from Osmania University, Hyderabad.

 

Sandra Hatt – Office Manager

John

Sandra is a Canadian native who moved to New Zealand two years ago, with her Kiwi partner.

She has a background in insurance, and for ten years owned her own brokerage company in Ontario, Canada.

In her spare time Sandy is studying towards a Certificate in Ecological Building and Design.

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