BASIC INFORMATIONS

Introduction

Science and technological park Nové Hrady is a member of The Science and Technological Parks Association CR.

The key goal of this technological incubator is to create the most suitable conditions for a succesful start of the innovative and progressive projects. Besides a lucrative lease during incubatory period of the project, there is mainly a wide offer of supportive services with the aim to help the project to get to the stage of succesful commercialization.

Services

Our services include:

• consultation and assistance in working out the programme of an innovative or progressive project
• consultation and assistance in looking for the appropriate money sources
• support in leading the project
• education focused on development and innovative business
• intellectual property protection - consulting and cofinancing
• examination and demonstration of the project in real conditions

The exploitation of these services is not exclusively offered to firms physically residing in this technological incubator. The purpose is to make them available for all the companies and individuals with proper concept to realize this type of project.

All prospects concerned, those who have a concept or who have already started an innovative or proggresive project, and are interested in service of our technological incubator can contact us.

The beginnings and the present (briefly)

Back in the fifties and sixties of the last century, there was a rapid increase of famine around the world. There was an intensive search for a new sources of proteins, the interest was focused on cell microorganisms, the algae. Another important point was the spread of various deseases, e.g. holarthritis or rheumatiz. Hence many scientists and doctors started to concern in farther possibilities of man immunity support. As a result of this movement, many laboratories were established around the world (USA, Japan, Germany, Izrael, etc.). Their aim was to verify the possibility of cultivating the algae in artificial conditions and whether they would be a contibution for the society.

Similar expert laboratory was found in the Czech Republic as early as in the year 1960. It is today`s Department of the Authotrophic Microorganisms, Institute of Microbiology, ASCR in Třeboň. The processes of algal biotechnology and cultivation are investigated there. In the course of time, other technological facilities for cultivation of specific strains were developed. These are intended for dietary, farmaceutical, medicine and feeding purposes. Nowadays there is the specialised workplace in Nové Hrady, where is the algal biomas cultivated with the use of the newest technology. This workplace matches all the neccessary requirements. New methodics and strains useful for the society are investigated here.

The project "Biotechnological centre" was realized with the financial support of The State Environmental Fund of Czech Republic, The University of South Bohemia and EU.

Bioincubator

In the frame of PHARE Project No. Cz 01.11.01.01 BIO-TECHNOLOGY CENTER (BioIncubator), Nové Hrady, Czech Republic, was build up the bioincubator, consisted of the technological hall and the laboratories. The building will be devolved on the user in January 3th 2005. To this date the bioincubator will be fully operable.

Bioncubator is divided into 4 parts:

• technology hall - autotrophy and heterotrophy cultivations, down-stream processing consisted of the continuous centrifuge, the cooling box, the disintegrator of biomass and the sprayed dryer
• clean room of quality class C with flow-box providing the quality class A - inoculum preparation and final product processing
• technical utilities for productive and processing lines
• laboratory facilities, rooms for testing and cultivation of microorganisms, chemical, analytical and physical laboratories

During the last 10 years is undertaken in the Institute of Microbiology, Academy of Science basic research aimed to searching of autotrophy organisms and cultivation conditions suitable for the production of carotenoids, mainly secondary carotenoids.

The results and experiences obtained in close cooperation between the Institute of Physical Biology, University of South Bohemia and the Institute of Microbiology, Academy of Science were employed during the cultivation of selected microalgae strains in the unique solar semi-pilot photo-bioreactor in Nové Hrady. Given prototype of autotrophic solar photo-bioreactor became an initial point for the construction of Bioincubator and technology hall in Nové Hrady.