Hope everyone is doing well and is safe and healthy. We hope that everyone was able to enjoy our webcast last week that celebrated BioSurfaces’s 18th anniversary. If you have not had the chance to view it, here is the link (https://www.biosurfaces.us/single-post/happy-anniversary-biosurfaces-18-years-and-counting-webcast-5). It was great to be able to hear each team member’s overview of what they work on, what they think about the company and what they would accomplish as the company grows. Tina and I, similar to the viewers, watched it for the first time once the video was put together since each person was separately interviewed. It was a lot of work putting this together. It will be great to view this webcast many years from now to see what progress has been made. We are appreciative of all the hard work our team continues to put in to make BioSurfaces a leader in electrospinning technology applications.
As I mentioned in a previous blog, spring here in Massachusetts is such as great time of the year. There is so much activity going on outside. This is an especially busy time for bees. They keep going from flower to flower, never stopping until they head to their hive and then right back out. To hear their constant buzz around you indicates that progress is being made. BioSurfaces currently has that type of buzz going on, both inside and outside the company. I believe that this has been the busiest time in terms of the buzz surrounding our technology, the most in the 18 years of the company’s existence. We have been so busy answering different inquiries about our technology. I equate it to a person looking to get a new car and going out to “kick the tires.” While many of these discussions will not yield positive results, the number of potential opportunities gives us a good chance to develop some diverse applications.
Our business team has been hard at work assessing all of the different opportunities. While this may seem simple, a lot goes into evaluating a potential partner/opportunity. You have to understand the market size, competition, how our technology compares to the current market leader and what value is added by using our technology. While we believe our technology has many positive attributes, there are some areas, albeit few, that we cannot provide a competitive advantage. This type of analysis allows us to prioritize different options that will best serve the company’s vision. On top of this work, they are working to market our 3D scaffold technology and develop plans to move our other technologies forward. Addressing these areas are important to moving the company forward.
For the first time in over 8 years, we have a new R&D electrospinning unit. Our manufacturing team, working hand in hand with the R&D team to understand their needs, developed a new unit that will be able to serve all of the R&D team’s current research needs while allowing them to expand their potential electrospinning options. It is an advantage to be able to control all aspects of machine development. The software will be validated, which will allow us to seamlessly transition this technology over to the next manufacturing unit. It was great to perform the first run of the unit. It’s like taking a new car for a test drive. We will put the unit through its paces over the next several weeks to make sure all works according to plan, but the first uses are looking good!
We continue to develop new tissue culture applications for our 3D scaffolds. This will allow us to provide valuable information to our future customers who will use our scaffolds on Transwell support plates. Our entire team is focused on getting this new program off the ground. We are also nearing the launch of our quality management system that will serve to provide complete tracing of the process, from raw materials through Transwell production.
Most of our team has received their second vaccine shot. By the end of May, all team members will be fully protected (including the two weeks required post-shot). It is nice to see that some sense of normalcy is beginning to return, not just here but around the country as well. Not needing a mask outdoors (except in crowded spaces) is a great feeling. Even with vaccination, we still need to continue wearing a mask indoors, practice social distancing and keep washing hands to keep driving the number of cases down until a majority of people get vaccinated. This also helps protect the younger folks who cannot get vaccinated at this time. The reason for this is that you may be able to spread virus to non-vaccinated people even if you don’t get sick from it. Hopefully, the data will eventually show that you can’t transmit the virus when vaccinated and will eliminate the need for masks. Masks, if used correctly by everyone, do make a difference. They are still an important tool we have until a majority of people are vaccinated. Please keep supporting your local businesses as they continue to dig themselves out. Outdoor seating is becoming more available here now that the weather is getting warmer. I am hopeful that by the middle to late summer I will be able to eliminate this paragraph from the blog based on good news. One can dream!
See you back here on May 21st!
Matt