Erik Tambuyzer
Encyclopedia
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
bio-engineer
Biological engineering
Biological engineering, biotechnological engineering or bioengineering is the application of concepts and methods of biology to solve problems in life sciences, using engineering's own analytical and synthetic methodologies and also its traditional...
and businessman. He is currently Chairman of the Board of the Flemish Center for Medical Innovation (CMI).
Education
Tambuyzer holds a doctoral degreeDoctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
in bio-industrial sciences from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
The Katholieke Universiteit Leuven is a Dutch-speaking university in Flanders, Belgium.It is located at the centre of the historic town of Leuven, and is a prominent part of the city, home to the university since 1425...
, (Leuven
Leuven
Leuven is the capital of the province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region, Belgium...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
).
Career
Having started his professional career at Baxter HealthcareBaxter International
Baxter International Inc. , is an American health care company with headquarters in Deerfield, Illinois. The company primarily focuses on products to treat hemophilia, kidney disease, immune disorders and other chronic and acute medical conditions...
(Baxter-Travenol in Europe) in 1977, Tambuyzer pursued his career six years later at Innovi NV (Brussels
Brussels
Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...
, Belgium), a technology management and consultancy company. He also worked as a consultant on biotechnology
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is a field of applied biology that involves the use of living organisms and bioprocesses in engineering, technology, medicine and other fields requiring bioproducts. Biotechnology also utilizes these products for manufacturing purpose...
for minister-president Gaston Geens
Gaston Geens
Gaston C.S.A. Geens was a Flemish politician and minister-president of Flanders....
of the Flemish government
Flemish government
The Flemish Government is the executive branch of the Flemish Community and the Flemish Region. It consists of up to a maximum of eleven ministers, chosen by the Flemish Parliament...
. In 1985 he made the business plan and co-founded, together with Hugo Van Heuverswyn
Hugo Van Heuverswyn
Hugo Van Heuverswyn is a Belgian molecular biologist, biotech pioneer, entrepreneur and businessman. He has been the chairman of the VIB, Flanders Institute for Biotechnology, since its inception in 1995.-Education:...
, the healthcare biotech company Innogenetics
Innogenetics
Innogenetics NV is an international in vitro diagnostics company, with headquarters in Ghent, Belgium. The company develops and markets diagnostic assays in the fields of infectious diseases, oncology, neurodegeneration, transplantation and genetic testing, with a special focus on molecular...
NV (Ghent
Ghent
Ghent is a city and a municipality located in the Flemish region of Belgium. It is the capital and biggest city of the East Flanders province. The city started as a settlement at the confluence of the Rivers Scheldt and Lys and in the Middle Ages became one of the largest and richest cities of...
, Belgium), of which he was General Manager until 1992, at which time he joined Genzyme. He was Senior Vice President Corporate Affairs for Genzyme
Genzyme
Genzyme Corporation is a fully owned subsidiary of Sanofi-Aventis. Before its acquisition, Genzyme was an American biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. In 2010, Genzyme was the world’s third-largest biotechnology company, employing more than 11,000 people around the world...
Europe and International, and a member of the European Management Committee of Genzyme Corporation until 2010, when he joined the Flemish Center for Medical Innovation (CMI).
Tambuyzer is a founding Board member and past Chairman of EuropaBio
EuropaBio
EuropaBio is Europe's largest and most influential biotech industry group, whose members include Monsanto, Bayer and other biotechnology companies...
, the European Association for Bioindustries, and founder of the Ethics Working Group of this Association, as well as the Chair of the joint EBE/EFPIA-EuropaBio Orphan medicines
Orphan drug
An orphan drug is a pharmaceutical agent that has been developed specifically to treat a rare medical condition, the condition itself being referred to as an orphan disease...
Task Force. He is also Vice-Chair of EPPOSI, the European Platform for Patients’ Organizations, Science & Industry. He published on policies regarding orphan medicines and advanced therapies in Europe and internationally, as well as about the European Clinical Trial Directive
Directive 2001/20/EC
The Clinical Trials Directive is a European Union directive that aimed at...
, and the impact of biotechnology on healthcare systems.