EIT Health signs agreement with West Pharmaceutical Services

EIT Health Ireland-UK welcomes West Pharmaceutical Services to Europe’s largest health innovation network.

EIT Health, part of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, a body of the European Union, today announced that it has signed a collaboration agreement with West Pharmaceutical Services, Inc. West is a leading provider of innovative, high-quality injectable solutions and services, and trusted partner to established and emerging drug developers. West comes on board as EIT Health Ireland-UK’s newest partner and becomes a member of a Europe’s largest health innovation network, made up of 280 world-class organisations across business, research, education, and health service delivery.

To date, EIT Health has supported approximately 1,700 health start-ups across its eight Co-Location Centres (regional hubs). These start-ups have gone on to secure over €1BN in investment, with millions of patients benefitting from their innovations.

West is prioritising investment strategies that evolve and innovate how medicines are delivered to patients, making healthcare delivery more effective and efficient. West plans to achieve this via collaboration and investments in leading-edge start-ups and SMEs.

By becoming a member of EIT Health, West gains access to a burgeoning network of health innovation start-ups, as well as a line of sight into emerging health technologies being developed by European scientists, healthcare professionals, researchers, patients, clinicians, and entrepreneurs.

“The power of our network is that it opens doors to opportunities and knowledge. Whether it’s in medtech, biotech, digital health, or life sciences, innovators from across Europe come together to collaborate on ideas, inventions, and solutions that will advance healthcare,” said Graham Armitage, Interim Managing Director, EIT Health Ireland-UK. “With its focus on capital deployment in emerging healthcare technologies, West is a key enabler to growth in our sector. EIT Health Ireland-UK welcomes West as a partner, with a shared vision of accelerating progress to optimise patient outcomes.”

“West is committed to growing its business and the industry through strategic capital investments and partnerships that will drive innovation. Through strategic investments across the healthcare ecosystem, West can support innovative practices and products that will improve the healthcare process, help clinicians to deliver better care, and ultimately benefit patients,” said Scott Young Ph.D, VP Venture and External Collaboration, Research and Development at West. “We are delighted to be partnering with EIT Health, as Europe’s largest healthcare network, we are confident this partnership will enable West to continue to be at the forefront of new technology and technology development.”

West recently made a minority investment in Dublin-based Latch Medical, a start-up developing next-generation vaccine and biologics delivery technology. Latch Medical, a University College Dublin spin-out, was awarded grant funding through EIT Health’s Headstart programme in 2020 and was a semi-finalist in EIT Health’s prestigious Catapult pitching competition in 2018 representing Ireland-UK in the MedTech category.

EIT Health Ireland-UK will sponsor the 19th National Health Summit on 8th February 2023. Learn how your organisation can join Europe’s largest health innovation network by contacting our team to arrange a meeting at the event.