Business leaders from two ambitious Lothian-based life sciences companies have been shortlisted for a prestigious Scottish Enterprise Life Sciences Award 2010.

Livingston-based Touch Bionics and Edinburgh-based Aircraft Medical will compete against Tayside company, Axis-Shield to lift the award for best Life Sciences Business Leadership which recognises a business leader or management team that has significantly advanced a Scottish life sciences company in the previous year.

Under the expert leadership and guidance of CEO, Stuart Mead, Touch Bionics has expanded significantly and launched the world’s first and only ‘bionic’ hand with articulating fingers.  The company’s highly competent senior management team has driven product development and sales to take the ‘bionic’ hand to market in over 30 different countries throughout the world.

The management team at Aircraft Medical has focused on developing a significant new brand in healthcare over the past year.  The company has expanded through recruitment of key personnel including new staff in its R&D, business development and sales teams in line with the company’s commitment to expanding its anaesthesia and critical care offering.

The winners of the 2010 awards will be announced at the Scottish Enterprise Life Sciences Annual Dinner at the Edinburgh International Conference Centre on 4th February.

Rhona Allison, senior director of Life Sciences at Scottish Enterprise, said: “Congratulations to all of the companies who have made it onto the shortlist – they have done tremendously well to make it to this stage. We always expect a high standard of entries for the Life Sciences Awards and this year has been no different.  I understand from the judges that the quality of entries has again been incredibly high and built on the impressive standards set last year.”

“These Awards are a real chance for us to recognise and reward Scotland’s life sciences top innovations and entrepreneurial performers and have become an increasingly important event in the industry’s business calendar.  I’m looking forward to the awards themselves which will, once again, showcase Scotland’s achievements, successes and outstanding talent.”

The keynote speaker at this year’s dinner will be Dr Rod MacKenzie, senior vice president and head of world wide research for Pfizer Inc.and the event will be attended by industry both national and international, academia, the Scottish Government as well as funding specialists who continue to carefully track the undeniable innovation and dynamism of the sector.

The Scottish Enterprise Annual Life Sciences Dinner attracts more than 750 people from the life sciences community in the UK and abroad to celebrate Scotland’s most innovative companies.