Lek receives special award for contributions to the development of pharmacy in Slovenia
On the 50th anniversary of the introduction of pharmacy as a field of academic study in Slovenia, special award were presented for contributions to the development of pharmacy and titles of Professor Emeritus were conferred
On December 2nd 2010, the Faculty of Pharmacy of the University of Ljubljana celebrated the 50th anniversary of the introduction of pharmacy as a field of academic study in Slovenia. The occasion was dedicated to collaboration with domestic institutions, and those responsible for the development of pharmacy received special awards. One of the recipients of these awards was Lek, a Sandoz company, which has worked with the Faculty of Pharmacy since its inception in 1960, in numerous areas of development, in the pedagogical process, in curriculum design and in the form of financial support in order to provide the material conditions for the Faculty’s development.
“We remain committed to continuing and strengthening our cooperation with educational and research institutions such as Faculty of Pharmacy. We believe that this is an exceptional opportunity for the development of both the pharmaceutical profession and quality human resources,” said Lek President of the Board of Management Vojmir Urlep upon receiving the award.
At the gala event, guest speakers President of the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia Pavel Gantar, Rector of the University of Ljubljana Stane Pejovnik and Dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy Stanislav Gobec spoke about the history of faculty, the challenges currently facing the pharmaceutical profession and the importance of pharmacy with regard to broader social issues. Dean of the Faculty Stanislav Gobec remarked that the 50th anniversary was the right moment for a critical assessment of the past achievements and the challenges of the future. He believes that continued investments are required in state-of-the-art research equipment, developing top-flight technologies and increasing international cooperation.
Rector of University of Ljubljana Stane Pejovnik also conferred the title of Professor Emeritus on : Anton Grčar of the Academy of Music, Tomaž Brejc of the Academy of Fine Arts and Design, Anton Wraber of the Faculty of Biotechnology (posthumously), Krešimir Puharič of the Faculty of Economics, Jana Lukač Bajalo of the Faculty of Pharmacy, Florjan Vodopivec of the Faculty of Civil and Geodetic Engineering, Marko Kerševan, Vekoslav Kremenšek and Meta Grosman of the Faculty of Liberal Arts, Andreja Kocijančič of the Faculty of Medicine, Milan Trbižan of the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering and Lojze Ude of the Faculty of Law.
Lek, a Sandoz company, is one of the pillars of leading world generics company Sandoz. Its role within Sandoz is to act as: a global development center for products and technologies; a global manufacturing center for active pharmaceutical ingredients and medicines; a competence center for the development of vertically integrated products; a Sandoz competence center in the field of development and manufacturing of biosimilar products; and, a supply center for the markets of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), South East Europe (SEE) and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), and it is responsible for sales on the Slovenian market. For further information please visit http://www.lek.si/eng/.
Sandoz, a Division of the Novartis group, is a global leader in the field of generic pharmaceuticals, offering a wide array of high-quality, affordable products that are no longer protected by patents. Sandoz has a portfolio of approximately 1000 compounds and sells its products in more than 130 countries. Key product groups include antibiotics, treatments for central nervous system disorders, gastrointestinal medicines, cardiovascular treatments and hormone therapies. Sandoz develops, produces and markets these medicines along with pharmaceutical and biotechnological active substances and anti-infectives. In addition to strong organic growth in recent years, Sandoz has made a series of acquisitions including Lek (Slovenia), Sabex (Canada), Hexal (Germany), Eon Labs (US), EBEWE Pharma (Austria) and Oriel Therapeutics (US). In 2009, Sandoz employed around 23,000 people worldwide and posted sales of USD 7.5 billion. For further information please visit http://www.sandoz.com.
Novartis provides healthcare solutions that address the evolving needs of patients and societies. Focused solely on healthcare, Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs: innovative medicines, cost-saving generic pharmaceuticals, preventive vaccines, diagnostic tools and consumer health products. Novartis is the only company with leading positions in these areas. In 2009, the Group’s continuing operations achieved net sales of USD 44.3 billion, while approximately USD 7.5 billion was invested in R&D activities throughout the Group. Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Novartis Group companies employ approximately 100,000 full-time-equivalent associates and operate in more than 140 countries around the world. For more information, please visit http://www.novartis.com.
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.
For further information contact:
Katarina Klemenc
Corporate Communications
Lek Pharmaceuticals d.d.
Phone: + 386 1 580 22 43
Fax: + 386 1 580 24 32
communications.lek@sandoz.com