12 October 2006 - Article by Nottingham Evening Post

The man who led the team that made one of the biggest discoveries in pain relief has today been given landmark recognition. The latest stage in the expansion of Nottingham's bioscience incubator, BioCity, has been named after Dr Stewart Adams. He led a team at Boots that discovered ibuprofen - the drug at the heart of Nurofen. Today, he was joined by Sir William Castell, of the Wellcome Foundation, to officially name the second phase of BioCity as The Stewart Adams Building. BioCity is based in buildings once used by Boots pharmaceuticals, and it was at Pennyfoot Street that the ibuprofen research was done. Among the guests at the ceremony was another of the major names in British science, Sir Alec Jeffreys, the University of Leicester academic who discovered DNA fingerprinting. He gave a lecture after the ceremony. The naming of the building marks the first local recognition for Dr Adams. He was awarded an OBE in the 1980s, but his contribution to science has only now been recognised in Nottingham. Now 83, Dr Adam told the Post: "The fact that these buildings are being used for scientific research is very important to me, particularly now that Nottingham has become a 'Science City'. "When the decision was originally taken to shut these buildings I was always concerned that they might end up being knocked down. "It as a great relief to me that BioCity was formed to take over the labs and I'm particularly pleased that it is such an entrepreneurial environment. "I would like to think that in a way this honour is in part an acknowledgement of all the good science that came from the scientists who worked in research at Boots." BioCity encourages the nurturing and development of bioscience businesses. It provides follow-on space for businesses that have established themselves in phase one of the site but have now reached the stage where they need to expand. Dr Glenn Crocker, BioCity chief executive, said "There are five companies in the second phase already, with another two moving in. "The key thing is the type of facility. These are chemistry laboratories that would normally cost a company a prohibitive amount of money to put in place. "We are incredibly fortunate in the legacy we have been given by BASF [former occupiers of the building] and we have also received grants from Emda and European money through the Greater Nottingham Partnership. That has helped to create this environment." There are 40 companies in the first phase of BioCity employing 220 people between them. "This is now becoming a major employment site and these are all high-value, high-skills jobs that wouldn't otherwise be here. "When these businesses grow and leave this site, that is when things will really start to mushroom." BioCity was set up three years ago to promote the growth of a biosciences sector in Nottingham's industry base. It follows the nurturing of similar sectors in locations like Cambridge. But Dr Crocker said: "We shouldn't try to be another Cambridge. They have a lot of pure drug research companies that consume lots of money but don't produce much revenue. "We are looking at something that produces revenue and is much more sustainable. We don't want businesses that are a flash-in-the-pan. "But we are doing well; Cambridge has been going for 25 years and we are only in our third year." BioCity is now planning the development of the next of its four phases. The inauguration of the new building was supported by Boots. Simon Potts, Boots Healthcare commercial director said: "We're delighted that BioCity have named this building after Dr Stewart Adams. "Nottingham and Boots have a long history of healthcare innovations and we're proud to be supporting future healthcare developments here." With the East Midlands Development Agency and the Greater Nottingham Partnership, they have contributed £3m towards the cost of The Stewart Adams Building. Sue Kirby, Emda's policy director, said: "We are pleased to support the second phase of the BioCity development, enabling more companies - particularly those within the healthcare sector - to successfully exploit their ideas in creating new products or services and lead to the creation of more highly skilled jobs." Martin Gawith, chief executive of GNP, added: "The project is living proof of the skills, ingenuity and hard work of the science community in Nottingham. "Bio City is a great illustration of Nottingham's ability to succeed in the 21st Century as a leading Science City."