Excelsior Bio-System (EBS)

Company Description

Excelsior Bio-System (EBS) was founded in October 2004 by Dr. Martin Hsiao and Mr. K.J. Chen with the goal of developing alternative therapy products, holistic natural food supplements and probiotics, and creating a series of diagnostic systems using biochip detection technology to detect immune system related diseases in both people and animals.EBS originated in the Industrial Technology Research Institute&＃39;s Cultivation Center, and during its formative years received major investments from companies located in Tainan&＃39;s Science Park, including Kaiwood Technology Co., Ltd. and other automated and optometric equipment companies. EBS&＃39;s mission is to maximize the health and Excelsior Bio-System (EBS)ll-being of people and small companion animals by providing products which support immune health, balance the immune response, and provide gastrointestinal relief and protection.From 2004 to 2007, EBS&＃39;s first chairman and general manager, Mr. Bowen Huang, skillfully steered the company in the right direction by helping to establish key fundamental technologies which would lay the foundation for future developments. The company utilized some of these core technologies-including allergen protein extraction, fluorescence-labeling of antibodies, protein chip platforms, and functional probiotics-to develop a fully functional allergen-specific IgE diagnostic chip, self-antigen IgG autoimmune disease test chip prototype, as well as various immune-regulating probiotics, and then subsequently carried out functional testing on these newly-developed prototypes.In August 2007, EBS received further financial support which enabled it to relocate its offices to Neihu District (7F, No. 8, Lane 143, Xinming Road, Neihu District, Taipei City), where the Operations Center, Research & Development Department, and Laboratory Medicine Department were subsequently established. EBS also took this opportunity to expand its team by recruiting highly talented individuals, such as Mr. Wu-Hwei Cheng, the Charoen Pokphand Enterprise Taiwan Co. Ltd&＃39;s former Chief Executive and EBS&＃39;s current Chairman, and Mr. Cooky Chen, the newest addition to the management staff and EBS&＃39;s current Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Chen specializes in animal allergy testing and alternative therapy products, and was the founder and former Chief Manager of Merial Taiwan Co. Ltd, which was later acquired by Merck & Co. Naturally, EBS also continued its concerted effort on researching and developing new biochip technology during this time, and its achievements went on to earn the company the Distinguished University-Industry Collaborative Research Award, conferred by Taiwan&＃39;s Ministry of Education, in 2008.By 2010, EBS&＃39;s overall business scope expanded significantly, moving from a company focused solely on biotechnology research and technology services to one that incorporates both manufacturing and research into its core business model. As a result of continued growth and expansion, the EBS offices were relocated once more from the 7th floor to a more spacious location on the 5th floor of the same building, and a large-scale half-year renovation project was kicked off in May 2010 in order to build a production floor containing class 10,000 clean rooms (with three production lines: the protein biochip, rapid test kits, and immune system enzyme diagnostic kits), as well as a prep room, formula room, supply room, quality control room, research development labs, and P2 biosafety labs. EBS&＃39;s new manufacturing facilities were certified upon completion in December 2010 and subsequently registered in early 2011 with an added industry field: in vitro diagnostics reagent manufacturing.In light of the company&＃39;s rapid growth and steady business expansion, EBS&＃39;s board of directors passed a resolution during its August 2011 meeting aimed at formulating a long term strategy for issuing an Initial Public Offering by 2014. EBS&＃39;s chairman at the time, Mr. Wu-Hwei Cheng, later retired-though he continues to serve as