Cenetec LLC Announces MarCon, Pioneer in Web-based Clinical Trials, as First Client At Gainesville Technology Accelerator.

Business Editors

GAINESVILLE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 7, 2001

MarCon Global Data Solutions, Inc., a pioneer in revolutionizing the management of clinical research via the Internet, is the first client company to join Cenetec's new technology accelerator in Gainesville, Fla.

Founded by two biostatistics professors at the University of Florida, MarCon has developed, patented and successfully beta-tested a practical web-based system for both conducting real-time clinical trials and assessing clinical outcomes via the Internet. MarCon's technology and services significantly reduce the time and cost of clinical trials, while boosting research quality for pharmaceutical, biomedical and medical device companies, as well as managed care providers and malpractice carriers. "MarCon exemplifies the tremendous intellectual capital that exists at UF, and that can be commercialized through Cenetec's technology acceleration program," said Scott Adams, co-founder and president of Boca Raton, Fla.-based Cenetec. "We're excited about our role with MarCon, and its prospects for speeding important new drug products safely to market, while saving the pharmaceutical industry millions of dollars," added Bill Hager, CEO of Cenetec.

Cenetec, a statewide technology accelerator company, utilizes a "braintrust" approach and comprehensive resources to rapidly move start-up, early-stage and established technology companies to market. The Gainesville center allows Cenetec to tap the wealth of top-caliber research underway at University of Florida -- one of the nation's top 20 public research universities -- and become a catalyst for creating a synergistic and integrated regional and university entrepreneurial infrastructure in Gainesville. Its 13,500-square-foot accelerator will anchor GTEC, the new Gainesville-Alachua County Incubation facility.

MarCon is positioned to be a leader as healthcare begins the transition to paperless, web-based trials research, according to co-founder Ronald Marks, Ph.D., the firm's President and University of Florida professor. "This is a wonderful fit. Cenetec's resources, support and speed are imperative to ensure MarCon stays on the leading edge of this exploding industry."

Pharmaceutical companies have faced increasing competitive pressures as the average cost of a clinical trial has climbed to between $1.5 and $2.5 million. According to a recent Frost and Sullivan report, spending on pharmaceutical research and development exceeds $17 billion annually, projected to rise to $35 billion by 2004. Marks noted that MarCon's system offers significant savings by centralizing and coordinating the fragmented processes involved in conducting clinical trials at test sites worldwide.

Marks and co-founder Michael Conlon, Ph.D., chief technologist and University of Florida professor, have spent five years developing an Internet-based system to enhance the clinical research process through simplified, faster, and more accurate clinical data collection. In 1996, along with several colleagues at UF, they were instrumental in securing a $35 million grant -- the largest in UF history -- from Knoll AG to test their system with a major international clinical trial involving over 22,000 subjects and 1,000 physicians in nine countries. "This study has provided us with more clinical research experience on the web than any other group to date," said Conlon.

In 1997, Marks and Conlon created MarCon Global Data Solutions and licensed the technology from the University of Florida. After receiving a U.S. patent in 1999, they again successfully tested the new system with a Fortune 100 company during 2000.

"Interest in our services has been overwhelmingly positive and we are in the due diligence phase with several applicants," said Todd Chase, director of operations at the Gainesville center. "We are especially appreciative of the University of Florida Office of Technology Licensing for facilitating our introductions and collaborating in our agreement with MarCon. The OTL worked quickly and professionally with us in positioning MarCon for success."

About Cenetec

Cenetec is the technology accelerator company led by accomplished Internet entrepreneurs. It infuses startups and fast-growing companies with the strategic guidance, technology and business expertise and resources, facilities and capital access to rapidly accelerate high-growth potential products and services to market.

Cenetec is developing a series of technology accelerators. Its first accelerator, located along the InternetCoast in Boca Raton, serves the South Florida region. Cenetec also maintains a Miami business office, targeting emerging technology companies in the Latin American market. Its accelerator in Gainesville, in association with the University of Florida, serves the north and central regions of the state.

Cenetec is headquartered at 4950 Communication Avenue, Suite 900, Boca Raton, Florida 33431, 561/981-0200. The Gainesville facility is located at 2153 SE Hawthorne Rd., Gainesville, FL 32641. More information is available at http://www.cenetec.com.