Athlone firm OxyMem wins €10k biotech award

An Athlone-based company has been named as the one of the most innovative small biotech businesses in Europe.

OxyMem, which is based in Blyry, Athlone, was last week chosen as winner of the EuropaBio 2016 Most Innovative European Biotech SME Award.

The company won the industrial biotech award, and a €10,000 prize, for its technology aimed at reducing the cost of wastewater treatment and making it more energy efficient.

EuropaBio is the European Association for Bioindustries, and its annual awards, now in their seventh year, recognise innovative European SMEs who have developed novel ways of meeting societal, technical, and environmental problems through the application of biotechnology.

OxyMem's chief executive, Wayne Byrne, said the company was 'incredibly flattered to receive this award and to be recognised for our achievements in the biotech space.'

He added: “We look forward to our journey with EuropaBio over the coming year and are excited about the engagements we have already established with some of their members.”

OxyMem was co-founded by Professor Eoin Casey, Dr Eoin Syron and Wayne Byrne in 2013 as a spin-out from UCD’s School of Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering.