Ireland's i360medical Adds Synecor, Duke University, the University of Miami and the University of North Carolina to Its Roster of Influential Global Partners

DUBLIN, IRELAND and MIAMI, FL and RALEIGH, NC--(Marketwire - Sep 20, 2011) - In landmark collaborations to be celebrated this week in Miami, FL and Raleigh, North Carolina, Ireland-based i360medical [formerly the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland-Center for Innovation in Surgical Technology (RCSI-CIST)] will sign a Memo of Understanding (MOU) with three premier US universities and one major US innovation hub. They include: Duke University, the University of Miami, the University of North Carolina and Synecor. i360medical sparks healthcare device innovation by catalyzing collaborations throughout the life science ecosystem to bring promising products from concept to global markets. The new partnerships expand i360medical's existing US footprint which includes relationships with the Cleveland Clinic, Covidien and the Mayo Clinic.

The events coincide with an Enterprise Ireland-supported trade mission to three South East States that will be led by Ireland's Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton, TD. Enterprise Ireland is the government organization responsible for the development and growth of Irish businesses in world markets.

i360medical is located in Dublin at the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI). For decades, the RCSI has inspired innovation in surgical and clinical techniques as it trains world-leading surgeons. Building on that legacy, i360medical has developed a strong and extensive team of skilled personnel from the medical device industry, academia and the surgical community. This team is used by i360medical to guide national and international entrepreneurs, clinicians, SMEs, multinationals and universities through the new product lifecycle. i360medical offers practical assistance in defining unmet needs, as a conduit of new ideas/solutions for multinationals, in developing new ideas (e.g. validating designs for CE/FDA approval), and in the commercialization of new inventions (e.g. by providing investment assistance and guidance).

Calling i360medical a 21^st-century innovation model, Minister Bruton praised the organization for tapping into Ireland's exceptional life science brain trust and technology community to drive surgical advancements and create new businesses. He noted, "As we'll see during this week's visit to several US universities, the innovation model is global. To speed a product to market in today's world, a healthy cross-fertilization of ideas is imperative. Enabling that dynamic is the i360medical ideal. We're proud to count them among Ireland's rich corps of exporters."

"Thanks to technology, medical advancements are occurring at breakneck speed which is yielding great benefits for world health," said Pascal Goldschmidt, MD, Dean of University of Miami Medical School. "And it is organizations like i360medical that are influencing this trend with a model that inspires practical invention. They've taken an entrepreneurial approach to surgical innovation that doesn't just advance important new techniques and products; it also spawns companies and creates jobs. We're glad to collaborate with them."

"Collectively, these three universities and Synecor innovation hub house today's scientific thought leaders, and their research labs have produced some of the world's most enduring surgical technologies," said i360medical's Head, Derek Young. "It's exciting to join forces with them as we jointly identify and develop a lifecycle plan for the breakthrough technologies of tomorrow."

To learn more about i360medical, please visit www.rcsi.ie/cist.
To learn more about Enterprise Ireland, please visit www.enterprise-ireland.com.