New electronic and web-based applications, sites, and technologies
Knexus Provides Business-to-Business Social Media Platform Knexus Tech has introduced a business-to-business (B2B) social media platform that gives companies a quick, easy way to engage busy business professionals with quality insights and rapid learning, as well as encourage social networking and interactions. Built on the Cloud Computing model, the Knexus B2B platform is fully scalable, can be deployed instantly, and requires no software or hardware. By combining the Knexus platform with their own content, companies can drive improved online engagement or sales performance with partners and customers. The platform already underpins the Knexus global digital marketing community, serving professional content through online video, podcasts, and live online delivery, as well as providing extensive social media features for sharing, networking, and collaboration. Companies are looking to lower operating costs by moving operations online and increasing business with customers through stronger online engagement. “Knexus Tech offers companies the opportunity to harness new social media capabilities in a focused, commercially attractive way for their business customers," says Graeme Foux, CEO of Knexus. We’re making it easy, quick, and cost-effective for B2B marketers to make a step change in online engagement with customers, says Graeme Foux of Knexus. TrialDOCS Consolidates Electronic Regulatory Documentation Cape Cod Clinical Research (CCCRI) has launched TrialDOCS, a proprietary online clinical document management tool that assists pharmaceutical and biotech companies in managing their regulatory documentation electronically across multiple U.S. and international sites. TrialDOCS enables investigative sites, site monitors, and pharmaceutical companies to view and manage their regulatory files via a secure, user-friendly Website. The tool provides a centralized, cost-effective environment for clients’ valuable regulatory data. “In 2009, the pharmaceutical and biotech industries will not be exempt from the country’s current economic challenges," says CEO Bill Baker. “The ongoing directive within clinical research departments will be to find ways to increase productivity while cutting costs." The pharmaceutical and biotech industries will not be exempt from the country’s current economic challenges, says Bill Baker of Cape Cod Clinical Research. HealthCentral Adds Technology With Wellsphere Acquisition HealthCentral’s recent acquisition of Wellsphere combines HealthCentral’s condition-specific interactive experiences, content, and audience with Wellsphere’s aggregation of more than 1,500 health and wellness bloggers and Health Knowledge Engine technology. The deal adds 4 million Wellsphere visitors, raising HealthCentral’s audience of its owned properties to 10 million unique visitors per month. Consumers have specific health and wellness needs, such as needing advice on how to lose a specific amount of weight in a particular period of time, rather than just how to diet. “Because our traffic is organic, not from pay-per-click keywords, our audience members arrive more engaged and ready to act, and research shows they do act on what they learn," says HealthCentral CEO Christopher Schroeder. “Comprehensiveness of quality information is what makes HealthCentral’s acquisition of Wellsphere so unique," notes Ron Gutman, founder and CEO of Wellsphere. We now will be able to deliver better ROI for advertisers on an even larger scale, says HealthCentral’s Christopher Schroeder. This deal combines HealthCentral’s business savvy with Wellsphere’s technical expertise, says Ron Gutman of Wellsphere. Symyx Adds Chemistry Database to Isentris System The SPRESI structure and reaction database from InfoChem GmbH is now available to chemists via Symyx Technologies’ Symyx Isentris data access, analysis, and decision support system, which helps researchers accelerate R&D productivity. The SPRESI (SPeicherung und REcherche Strukturchemischer Information) data collection includes chemical structures, reactions, chemical/physical properties, keywords, and factual data abstracted from the most important journals in the field of organic chemistry. “SPRESI database offers research scientists a wealth of valuable reaction planning information at an economical price," says Trevor Heritage, Ph.D., president of Symyx Software. With Isentris, scientists only need a single application to explore a broad range of high quality reactions from Symyx as well as their own in-house reaction data, says Dr. Trevor Heritage of Symyx. Blog roll n Supply-chain and logistics software solutions provider ClearOrbit has launched a comprehensive Web resource, ClearOrbit Community, that provides customers and partners with a venue in which to share industry knowledge and exchange ideas to better understand and solve key supply-chain challenges. The Community site has four sections: the Idea Exchange, which empowers customers to post requests and feedback; the Forum, which facilitates discussions on a wide range of topics; the Resource Center, which provides continuously updated links to articles about best practices, tips, and tricks; and the Support Center, which assists customers with specific technical issues. For more information, visit community.clearorbit.com. n Healthcare public relations firm Russo Partners has launched a blog, Rx for PR, that features public-relations insights from the partners. The blog also includes excerpts from recent conversations with the leading voices in healthcare, as well as a link to the company’s breaking news feed on Twitter. For more information, visit rxforpr.com. Follow up Cape Cod Clinical Research Inc. provides the pharmaceutical and biotech industries with project management, quality monitoring, GCP auditing, and site assessments and training programs for research personnel. For more information, visit cccri.com. The HealthCentral Network Inc. is comprised of condition- and wellness- specific interactive health sites where consumers and vetted experts share real-life, health-related experiences and information. For more information, visit healthcentral.com. Knexus Tech, the technology division of Knexus, provides digital marketing learning, intelligence, and networking opportunities to global brands. For more information, visit knexusgroup.com/knexus_tech. Symyx Technologies Inc. offers information management solutions to the life sciences, chemicals and energy, and consumer and industrial products industries. For more information, visit symyx.com. Wellsphere builds online health platforms for large organizations and develops Web and mobile technologies that help millions of consumers live healthier, happier lives. For more information, visit wellsphere.com. E-Upgrades and Enhancements n The latest version of Symyx Technologies’ Symyx Notebook tool for supporting analytical chemistry and biology workflows offers significant time savings along with improved data collection, security, and compliance. Symyx Notebook 6.1 is a powerful enterprise electronic laboratory notebook (ELN) that is configurable to meet the needs of many scientific disciplines in regulated and nonregulated environments. Chemists can draw and edit complex chemical structures with ease directly in their notebooks using Symyx Draw 3.1 software, which is embedded in the current version of Symyx Notebook. In other product news, the latest release of the Symyx Metabolite database is now available to pharmaceutical, agrochemical, and biotechnology researchers via the Symyx Isentris data access, analysis, and decision support system, as well as the Web-based DiscoveryGate content platform. The Metabolite database contains one of the world’s largest and most comprehensive collections of drug metabolism data, accelerating R&D productivity by making it possible for scientists to focus on the most therapeutically promising compounds — those with the right metabolic profile — early in the process. For more information, visit symyx.com. n Thermo Fisher Scientific has introduced significant functionality enhancements to its 3.0 release of Darwin LIMS, a laboratory information management system designed specifically for pharmaceutical manufacturing R&D and QA/QC. Darwin 3.0’s new, fully validated Web interface allows for more efficient reporting and sharing of test data across the lab. The release also features solution and reagent inventory management and built-in instrument calibration and maintenance, allowing continuous operations and increased efficiencies. For more information, visit thermofisher.com. n The Mattson Jack Group has added 11 indications to Epi Database — BRIC, its premier Web-accessible database that provides researched, documented, and comprehensive epidemiology data in significant emerging markets. Epi Database — BRIC, which includes epidemiological data for Brazil, Russia, India, and China, presently covers 88 indications and is expected to expand to more than 120 by the end of 2009. Indications added to the database in February are: epilepsy, gastric cancer, liver cancer, diabetic foot ulcers, diabetic neuropathy, bone cancer and soft tissue sarcoma, schizophrenia, osteoporosis, neuroblastoma, migraine, and stroke. For more information, visit mattsonjack.com.