ALLENDALE, N.J., Aug. 12, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NeoStem, Inc. (Nasdaq:NBS) ("the Company"), a leader in the emerging cellular therapy industry, and its subsidiary, Progenitor Cell Therapy, LLC ("PCT"), an internationally recognized contract development and manufacturing organization, announced today the addition of two new leaders to the PCT team-Robert ("Bob") Shaw as Vice President of Commercial Sales, and Brian Hampson, as Senior Director, Engineering and Innovation.
Mr. Shaw will be tasked with bolstering the Company's top line revenue growth through strategic transactions and additional business lines, as well growing the existing client base through enhanced technical sales and marketing initiatives.
Mr. Hampson will be heading up a new department at PCT, Engineering and Innovation, created as a formalization of PCT's ongoing engineering and process development programs. This department will accelerate PCT's efforts to address the important issues of scale up, automation, integration, and improved robustness within the regenerative medicine industry.
"It gives me great pleasure to bring these experts onto the PCT team," said Robert A. Preti, PhD, President and Chief Scientific Officer of PCT. "Bob brings a wealth of experience in cell therapy industry sales as well as a proven track record of meeting and exceeding business development goals, and Brian's expertise will help us refine and advance development, manufacturing processes and capabilities within our company."
"We are proud of our 29% revenue growth in Q2 2013 over the same period in 2012 and look to continue this strong growth trend with the addition of Bob Shaw to our management team," said Robin L. Smith, MD, Chairman and CEO of NeoStem. "We are confident that PCT's position as an industry-leader will benefit significantly from the technical expertise, industry contacts and vast product development experience Brian will bring to bear."
Over the last two decades Mr. Shaw has held several positions at EMD Millipore Corporation, a top tier supplier to the life science industry. Most recently, he held the position of Commercial Director – Stem Cell Initiative where he was responsible for strategic and technical leadership, including all aspects of product marketing, product development and commercial management. He previously held the position of Director of Strategic Marketing and World Wide Training Program Director for Vaccines and Emerging Biotech, where he had responsibility for management and development of vaccines and emerging biotech markets across the world, and the position of Program Director, Aseptic Processing, where he had global responsibility for a $300 million business. Mr. Shaw earned an M.B.A. from Loyola College, Maryland, and an M.S in Viral Immunology, University of Toronto. Mr. Shaw serves as a Board member of the Alliance for Regenerative Medicine, where he is also Co-Chair, Operations and Governance Committee. He was previously the Founder and Co-Chair, Process Development Committee for the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, and has held positions on the Boards of the Westford Education Foundation and the Parenteral Drug Foundation, and serves on the Editorial Advisory Board of BioProcess International.
Mr. Hampson has focused his career primarily on the development of first generation products and related manufacturing processes for the medical and biotechnology markets. He brings an extensive background and broad knowledge of many technical disciplines, including control systems, process automation, software, fluid systems, cell culture processes, aseptic/closed-system processing, and single-use disposable systems. Prior to joining PCT, Mr. Hampson worked for two decades with Aastrom Biosciences in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where he held several positions, the most recent being Senior Engineering Fellow, an executive level engineering position tasked with providing strategic technical leadership to cell therapy manufacturing technology. He previously held the positions of Vice President Product Development; Senior Director, Product Engineering; and Director, Instrumentation Development. He is a thought leader in the application of engineering principles and innovation to the needs of bioreactor systems and the manufacture of cell therapy products, and he was the chief architect for the pioneering patient-specific automation efforts which resulted in the Aastrom Replicell System. He received his Master of Engineering, Electrical and Bachelor of Science, Electrical Engineering from Cornell University.
About NeoStem, Inc.
NeoStem, Inc. ("NeoStem" or the "Company") is a leader in the emerging cellular therapy industry. Our business model includes the development of novel proprietary cell therapy products as well as operating a contract development and manufacturing organization providing services to others in the regenerative medicine industry. The combination of a therapeutic development business and revenue-generating service provider business provides the Company with capabilities for cost effective in-house product development and immediate revenue and cash flow generation. www.neostem.com
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements reflect management's current expectations, as of the date of this press release, and involve certain risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements include statements herein with respect to the successful execution of the Company's business strategy, including with respect to the Company's research and development and clinical evaluation efforts as well as efforts towards development of cellular therapies, including with respect to AMR-001, the future of the regenerative medicine industry and the role of stem cells and cellular therapy in that industry and the Company's ability to successfully grow its contract development and manufacturing business. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward- looking statements as a result of various factors. Factors that could cause future results to materially differ from the recent results or those projected in forward-looking statements include the "Risk Factors" described in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 11, 2013 and in the Company's periodic filings with the SEC. The Company's further development is highly dependent on future medical and research developments and market acceptance, which is outside its control.