A consortium led by Cels Business Services (CBSL) will create a database of UK companies in the medical technology and diagnostics, medical biotechnology and industrial biotechnology sectors.
The consortium was appointed by the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR), the Department of Health (DH) and UK Trade and Investment (UKTI).
It will bring together thorough sector knowledge, specialist database-management skills and information analysis expertise.
CBSL's consortium partners are: Clicksquared, which will provide specialist database-management capabilities; Kepier and Company, which will provide project management and partner liaison services; and Lindum Research, which will provide sector segmentation and analysis expertise.
Thirty data partners from within the bioscience industry will help to identify and categorise companies and organisations within the relevant sectors.
CBSL and the consortium will then use this information to collate, categorise and construct the database.
These sectors are not well represented by the official statistical classifications; this database is expected to change this.
It will inform the government about competitiveness issues relating to the industry, by providing an accurate and continuous evidence-based analysis.
UKTI will also host an index of companies on its website, based upon the information held in the database, to promote the UK's medical technology, medical biotechnology and industrial biotechnology industries to overseas procurers, investors and influencers as part of the UK Life Sciences Marketing Strategy.
The database is expected to go live during the summer and will be updated annually.
An annual commentary will include an analysis of the information from the database plus market statistics and trade and production figures.
