RESEARCH & INNOVATION
Revenue-Generating Centre Open for Business
volatile organic compounds, among others, according to Pro Vice-Chancellor and Principal Professor Clive Landis . “We are taking a big step towards the realisation of our five-year 2022-2027 strategy for the Cave Hill campus themed Creating Value from our Ideas ,” he said during the opening ceremony. Professor Landis said CCAS, which offers, for effective decision making, high- quality testing, fast turnaround time, and competitive prices, positions the Cave Hill campus as a centre of economic activity in the life sciences sector. He said the provision of on-island access to critical analytical services negates the need to send certain materials overseas, which results in a loss of foreign exchange. “The CCAS is, therefore, creating value for society by helping to build in-country capacity to reshore such analytical services within Barbados. But we are also creating value for the university itself, as CCAS is a commercial operation.”
“We will be working closely with Export Barbados to authenticate the geographical indication status of certain food and drink products for exportation; for example, Barbadian rum since our equipment can detect and certify the biological signatures that are specific to every authentic Barbadian rum.” Then Minister of Industry, Innovation, Science and Technology Davidson Ishmael said CCAS fits within the Barbados Government’s vision in its bid to position the country as a hub in the life sciences sector. Achieving this, he explained, will require commercial analytical services primarily for safety assurance and quality control. The minister said the intention is to explore and exploit all available opportunities in a range of areas, including research and development, the manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, biotechnology-based foods and medicines, medical devices, and food processing.
In a move that signals a seismic shift in its operational model, Cave Hill Campus is now running its first for-profit business. T he Centre for Commercial Analytical Services (CCAS) was officially launched in March 2023, a year after being approved by Cave Hill’s highest decision-making body, its Campus Council. It operates out of the Department of Biological and Chemical Sciences in the Faculty of Science and Technology. CCAS has been equipped to identify the structure of unknown compounds. More specifically, its two nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometers have the capability to analyse environmental samples, water, food, pharmaceuticals, industrial and commercial products, and
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