Novartis Slovenia receives the silver national award for innovation

  • At this year's Innovation Day, Lek, which is  part of Novartis, received the silver national award for innovation awarded by  the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia. 
  • The prestigious award was given to an  innovation that enables the automation of processes in the development of  biosimilars, which leads to more efficient development and greater availability  of medicines.
  • Lek's experts have been the recipients of a  total of twelve awards in the 19 years since the Chamber of Commerce and  Industry of Slovenia started giving national awards for innovation.
13. 10. 2021

This year's national awards for innovation were presented as part of the Innovation Day hosted by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Slovenia on October 12, 2021. Lek, which is part of Novartis, received a silver award for its project of automating analytical processes in the development of biosimilar medicines.

“At Novartis Slovenia, we boast a high level of knowledge in areas such as digitalization, automation and artificial intelligence. We pay a lot of attention to our innovation ecosystem, culture of innovation and continuous learning in order to create breakthrough solutions, increase the availability of medicines and improve people's lives. We support this by investing in new technologies and digital transformation, which is key for better patient care, cost efficiency, greater transparency and better production and faster development of medicines,” said Robert Ljoljo, MSc, President of the Management Board of Lek d.d. and Novartis Country President Slovenia.

One of the projects of introducing new technologies and artificial intelligence is the award-winning innovation of process automation in the development of biosimilar medicines, which enables the analysis of a larger number of samples in a shorter time. “With innovative approaches, we strive to shorten development times for high-quality, safe and effective biological medicines. More efficient processes also mean reduced consumption of financial and material resources for development and indirectly affect the greater access of medicines, which is the foundation of our mission – care for patients across the world,” Tilen Vidmar, PhD, Lek’s leading scientist and research team leader, said about the innovation.

Biological medicines are one of the central areas of Novartis’ operations, as they bring significant health benefits and improve patients’ lives, especially in the treatment of cancer, autoimmune diseases and neurological diseases. Mengeš site is one of Novartis’ most important sites for the development of innovative biological and biosimilar medicines and is the only industrial center for  the modern production of biological medicines in Slovenia.

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Novartis  is the leading provider of medicines in Slovenia, where Lek d.d., Novartis Pharma Services Inc.,Podružnica v Sloveniji and Sandoz d.d., operate. Together we are building and maintaining the reputation of a dynamic, ethical, and trusted pharmaceutical company. Lek develops, manufactures, and markets effective, safe, and high quality medicines and active pharmaceutical ingredients. With our knowledge, quality, and experience we have gained an important role in Novartis' organizational structure, especially in the Novartis Technical Operations,Global Drug Development, Novartis Business Services, and the generic division Sandoz. We are the leading Sandoz development center, and one of the key development sites for technologically complex projects. We invest a great deal in the development, education, and training of our employees. Over the last nine years, the company has created more than 3,350 new job opportunities, making us one of the biggest employers in Slovenia. Novartis invested inSlovenia more than EUR 2.7 billion since 2003.

About Sandoz
Sandoz, a Novartis division, is a global leader in generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars. Our purpose is to pioneer access for patients by developing and commercializing novel, affordable approaches that address unmet medical needs. Our ambition is to be the world’s leading and most valued generics company. Our broad portfolio of high-quality medicines, covering all major therapeutic areas, accounted for 2020 sales ofUSD 9.6 billion.

About Novartis
Novartis is reimagining medicine to improve and extend people’s lives. As a leading global medicines company, we use innovative science and digital technologies to create transformative treatments in areas of great medical need. In our quest to find new medicines, we consistently rank among the world’s top companies investing in research and development. Novartis products reach nearly 800 million people globally and we are finding innovative ways to expand access to our latest treatments. About 109,000 people of more than 140nationalities work at Novartis around the world. Find out more at 
www.novartis.com.

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This press release contains statements and conclusions based on  projections of Lek’s future business operations. These estimates are derived  from the best information currently available. In case these forecasts prove  unreliable, the actual results could prove different from those projected.

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For additional information contact:
Gregor  Makuc
Communications & External Engagement
Lek Pharmaceuticals d. d.
Phone: +386 1 580 22 43
gregor.makuc@sandoz.com