Province of Limburg
Life Sciences &
Health in Limburg
Province of Limburg
Index
The Life Sciences &
Health sector in Limburg
What do we offer
you?
Contact us for more
information
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An introduction
Facts & figures
The Life Sciences &
Health landscape
Brightlands
Maastricht Health
Campus
Why Limburg?
Who is here?
Education
Testimonial
LIOF is your partner
Contact
Associations &
networks
Province of Limburg
The Life Sciences & Health sector in Limburg – An introduction
Strong Life Sciences cluster
The Province of Limburg and adjacent border region
(Germany and Belgium) represent a strong Life Sciences
cluster with core competences in biotechnology,
cardiovascular research and molecular imaging and
biomaterials. For life sciences companies the place to be
is Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus in Maastricht.
It houses a unique line of advanced imaging instruments
for MRI, electron microscopy and mass spectrometry
relevant for tracking molecular, cell, tissue and in-organ
or body processes
Research and clinical care focus
Research and clinical care focus is on the brain and
neurological system, the heart muscle and vascular
system, orthopaedics and spine, and ophthalmology.
Underlying health management methodology
concentrates on healthy living, pre- and early diagnosis,
minimally invasive technologies and regenerative
medicine applications
Logistics distribution hotspot
The Limburg region is situated where the Netherlands,
Germany and Belgium intersect. In 15-mile radius there
are four university hospitals (in Maastricht, Liège and
Aachen). This unique feature has proven to be an
advantage for ‘Euregional’ clinical projects and product
introduction & distribution in the large German market
nearby. For that reason Limburg has become the
European distribution hotspot for the international
medical device industry (Medtronic, Boston Scientific,
Abbott, Stryker, to name just a few)
Province of Limburg
The Life Sciences & Health sector in Limburg – Facts & figures
Companies already
established in Limburg:
no. of companies
300
no. of jobs
94,400
contribution to total
employment in the
Limburg region
18.30 %
130 world-class research
centres and groups in life
sciences
no. of students on
Brightlands Health
Campus
300 innovative companies in
medical technology and
biotechnology
4,000
no. of life sciences
students
5 top universities and
3 university hospitals
within a 15-mile radius
of Maastricht
17,000 life sciences
students and 11,000
university employees
17,000
Province of Limburg
The LSH sector in Limburg – Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus
Brightlands Chemelot Campus
Performance materials
Bio-based materials
Biomedical materials
Sustainable technologies
Venlo
Brightlands Smart Services Campus
Big data analysis
Finance & business
Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus
Sittard-Geleen
Maastricht
Heerlen
Regenerative medicine
Cardiovascular medicine
Biomedical imaging
Brightlands Campus Greenport Venlo
Food
Nutrition
Health
Province of Limburg
The LSH sector in Limburg – Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus
Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus and Maastricht
University Medical Centre (MUMC+)
Maastricht Health Campus & the Brightlands
framework
Maastricht Health Campus has a strong focus on
diagnostics and biomaterials. This is facilitated by a
unique collaboration within the Brightlands framework
with Chemelot Materials Science Campus.
Outcome: new biomaterials and biocompatible coatings
for medical use (implants, medication, cell growth and
commercial culturing) in conjunction with the
development of appropriate manufacturing
technologies, with pre-clinical and clinical work carried
out at the University Medical Centre
Focus on:
• Prevention, treatment and research on heart
diseases and the vascular system
• Regenerative medicine: cell therapy, tissue
engineering, bio-based materials with applications in
cardiac, orthopaedic & spine, and ophthalmology.
• Precision imaging: from nano to macro (nanoscopy,
mass spectrometry, high-resolution imaging); from
research to ground-breaking clinical applications
(Iknife)
Unique imaging infrastructure
The presence of three ultra high-field whole-body
clinical MRI scanners: a 3T Prisma, an actively-shielded
7T system, and one of only five 9.4T systems in the
world, complemented by high-power electron
microscopy and advanced mass spectrometry
Province of Limburg
The LSH sector in Limburg – Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus
The Heart-Vessel Center
The Heart-Vessel Centre (hospital department and
research school) has expertise in prevention, treatment
and research on patients suffering from heart and other
cardiovascular problems. Its main areas of expertise are:
• Cardiology
• Heart surgery
• Vessel surgery
• Phlebology
• Internal vascular medicine
• Vascular neurology
Clinical practice facility (for industry and medical
clinical training)
International medical teaching environment in which
doctors and other professionals in health care can
increase their cardiovascular knowledge and skills in
accordance with the latest developments in technology
and science
Province of Limburg
The LSH sector in Limburg – Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus
Medical centres
Knowledge institutions
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Maastricht University Medical Centre
MAASTRO Clinic (cancer radiology treatment)
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CARIM: medical school for cardiovascular diseases
MERLN: institute for technology-inspired
regenerative medicine
Brains Unlimited: neurological institute
Centre for Integrated Healthcare: centre for medical
and psychological care
Province of Limburg
The LSH sector in Limburg – Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus
Ranks 14th in the Times Higher Education top
100 ‘most international universities in the
world’
Maastricht University Medical Center
Europe's largest integrated academic center. 44th in
the Times Higher Education rankings for clinical, preclinical and health care
Medtronic is one of the world’s leaders in the medical
devices industry. The Medtronic Bakken Research
Centre, with approximately 300 employees, is located
at Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus, from where
it coordinates its European research and clinical
programmes
This organization’s multinational research centre for
medical and pharmaceutical products is located at
Brightlands Maastricht Health Campus
Province of Limburg
What do we offer you?
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Why Limburg?
Access to the best clinical research
The Clinical Trial Centre Maastricht is the leading academic clinical research
organization of the Netherlands.
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100 employees, involved in 450 studies per year
€4.5 million turnover
Maastricht University Hospital is the only shareholder and largest customer
Some other customers: Pfizer, Quintiles, ECRIN, BioActor, VitaK, Zuyderland,
VieCuri and many smaller start-ups and SMEs
• Customer satisfaction: 8.2 out of 10
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Why Limburg?
Access to the best clinical research
The Netherlands has one of the best-documented populations in the world.
String of Pearls Initiative: bio-bank infrastructure (largest in the EU) linking all
university medical centres gathering clinical data and biomaterials for nine
different disease areas, ‘pearls’
The Maastricht Study: unique 10 k cohort phenotyping study on type 2 diabetes
and its customary complications, including cardiovascular disease
Special advantage of Limburg: access to three university hospitals (Maastricht,
Aachen, Liège) in three countries (NL, DU, B) within 30 minutes
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Why Limburg?
Access to state-of-the-art facilities
Laboratories
Clean rooms
Large cohorts
Scanners: 3, 7 & 9 Tesla MRI,
pet scanners
Incubators
Business parks
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Why Limburg?
Access to state-of-the-art facilities
for MRI imaging
Access to state-of-the-art facilities
for bio-imaging
M4I: basic, instrumentation and applied studies in
molecular imaging. High-resolution imaging of biological
surfaces; mass spectrometry & nanoscopy. MI
instrumentation centre unique in Europe
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3T – a multi-purpose system for many kinds of
clinical applications
7T – on the edge of clinical utility, developing the
next wave of scientific breakthroughs
9.4T – a unique system providing unparalleled
insights into the workings of the brain and the body
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Why Limburg?
Access to world-class medical equipment
builders
Have access to state of the art facilities
for BIO imaging
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M4I : fundamental, instrumentation and applied studies
in molecular imaging. High resolution imaging of
biological surfaces; mass spectrometry & nanoscopy.
Unique MI instrumentation centre in Europe.
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EU customers like Biotronik, MEKO and Boston
Scientific working with the NSI-7
Spin-offs to US customers: Boston Scientific, Abbott,
Cordis, etc.
100% inspection of stents: geometry, surface and
wall thickness
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Why Limburg?
Access to world-class medical equipment builders
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Why Limburg?
Access to world-class medical equipment
builders
Medical quality system
• ISO 9001:2008
• ISO 13485:2012 AC2012
Advanced Instruments Manufacturing B.V. (AIM B.V.)
The only Dutch FDA-registered contract manufacturer
with more than 40 years of experience in medical devices
production and life cycle management.
In compliance with
• 21CFR820 (USA)
• CMDCAS (Canada)
• MLHW Ministerial Ordinance No. 169, 2004
(Japan)
Equipment qualifications
• UL and CE certified equipment
Equipment production, e.g.
• EEG
• ECG
• Continuous blood pressure
• Ultra Sound
• High-frequency equipment
• Hypothermia
• Physiotherapy
• Laboratory equipment
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Why Limburg?
Access to world-class medical equipment
builders
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Connecting devices to patients and transferring their
bio-electric signals
Disposable and reusable electrodes, like EMG
needles, multiple electrode patches and nerve
stimulation probes
HQ in the Netherlands, production facility in Asia,
service hub in USA (Minnesota)
Turn-key development and manufacturing, including
all regulatory activities (eg. CE / 510k)
Province of Limburg
Why Limburg? – Showcase Medtronic / Bakken Research
Bakken Research Maastricht
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Most of its 300 employees are engaged in designing and
managing clinical studies and in generating data for regulatory
and reimbursement dossiers in Europe, Japan and the USA
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About 30 scientists, engineers and technicians work closely
with medical innovators in mainly European hospitals and
universities to develop, build and study new devices or
methods
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Close to 50 linguistic specialists manage the translation of
Medtronic’s product manuals and the texts on our product
display screens
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25 quality and regulatory affairs professionals ensure that our
products and services meet or exceed all applicable
requirements
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Who is here
Province of Limburg
Education in Life Sciences & Health
Education
Type of education
Focus areas
Maastricht University/
University Hospital
University
Biomedical sciences, European public health, health sciences, medicine,
neuroscience, research, epidemiology, health food innovation
management, and more
Zuyd University
University of Applied Science
Care and technology, midwifery, health care
Fontys Limburg
University of Applied Science
Pedagogy
Gilde Opleidingen
Vocational education
Assisting in health care, nursery
Arcus College
Vocational education
Pharmaceutical and physician assistant, technical care, nursery
ROC Leeuwenborg
Vocational education
Pedagogy, nursery
Province of Limburg
LSH sector – Testimonial
‘In Europe we are number one in the surgical treatment
of extensive aneurysms, in volume and complexity.
And the annual European Vascular Course event in
Maastricht is the meeting place for sharing related best
clinical practices among vascular surgeons and the
medical industry.’
Maastricht UMC+ and Uniklinik RWTH Aachen
Province of Limburg
LIOF is your partner
We are your partner for making a successful start in the region:
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Advice on setting up your business and finding the best location
Use our extensive local & national network
Information on business climate
Go on a Fact Finding Tour
As your guide, LIOF
Assistance in finding skilled personnel
ensures that your
Information about the region: Quality of Life
company finds the
best location in
Limburg: from here
you will succeed in
achieving your
European expansion!
Province of Limburg
Contact us for more information
Limburg Development
and Investment Company
Maastricht Office
Boschstraat 76
6201 BH Maastricht
The Netherlands
Innovatoren 3n
Sint Jansweg 15
5928 RC Venlo
The Netherlands
Venlo Office
Contact person:
Sjoerd Boomsma
Foreign Investment
Development Logistics
[email protected]
+31 6 54 64 06 45
www.liof.com
Province of Limburg
The LSH sector – Associations & networks
Relevant Limburg-based associations and network
organizations active in the Life Sciences and Health
sector
Association
Goal
URL
LifeTecZone
Networking
www.lifeteczone.nl/
Brightlands
Brightlands hosts four campuses in Limburg that focus on research
and business in materials, food, smart services and health.
Brightlands offers accommodation, business and talent support,
and a community focused on innovation in a global context
www.brightlands.com/