iiCON has bolstered its team by making a senior appointment to establish the Category 3 AI Robotics Laboratory.

The Infection Innovation Consortium: iiCON has welcomed a new senior member to its team with the appointment of Dr Michael Egan.

Dr Egan, a Chartered Engineer (IET) and Chartered Manager (CMI) joins the consortium, which works to propel the discovery and development of innovative treatments and products for infectious diseases, as Senior Business Development Manager.

iiCON, led by Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM), is comprised of partners Unilever, Liverpool University Hospitals Foundation Trust, University of Liverpool, LifeArc, Evotec, and Infex Therapeutics.

The consortium has recently received £10 million in funding to develop what is believed to be the UK’s first Category 3 AI Robotics laboratory as part of the Liverpool City Region Health and Life Sciences Investment Zone. Investment Zone funding will support the development of the high-containment laboratories within LSTM capable of handling deadly pathogens and fitted out with leading-edge robotics and AI technology.

Dr. Egan joins iiCON from his previous role at the University of Liverpool’s Materials Innovation Factory, where he led the development and commercial/academic use of laboratory automation for materials chemistry. His expertise includes the development of a £3 million Henry Royce Institute-funded automated robotic platform called the Formulation Engine in collaboration with Labman Automation Ltd.

In his new role, Dr Egan will be a key part of an expert team that will specify and design the new laboratories. His expertise in developing automated robotic platforms will aid the development of new products in the iiCON portfolio, helping to commercialise industry innovations. Additionally, he will support the development of new partnerships, offering expertise and guidance on using robotics to facilitate new product development.

Dr. Egan has extensive experience in academia and industry, specialising in robotics, machine design, manufacturing, formulation, processing, scale-up, and project management. Before joining the Materials Innovation Factory, he managed the Ultra Mixing and Processing Facility (UMPF), where he developed new fluid processing technologies in collaboration with Unilever and TecExec Ltd. This resulted in numerous patents, a joint venture, development of process scale up rules and installation of pilot plant machines at two commercial sites.

In 2022, he was appointed as Technology Platform Lead for the automated formulation of materials at the Henry Royce Institute, supporting the commercial and academic exploitation of the MIF’s automated capabilities.

Dr Egan said: “I am really excited to be joining the iiCON team and tackle a very ambitious, multidisciplinary project to create pioneering Category 3, AI-driven robotic laboratories which will support a number of iiCON’S research platforms and the development of groundbreaking novel therapeutics.

Professor Janet Hemingway, iiCON’s founding director, said: “Mike brings a wealth of expertise in automation technologies and we’re very pleased to be welcoming him to the iiCON team. With his engineering experience, he will be a key part of the team we are bringing together to support the design and development of our next-generation Category 3 Robotics laboratories.”

Founded in 2020 with an £18.6m UK Government grant, iiCON brings together industry, academia and clinicians to accelerate the discovery, development and deployment of new treatments and products for infectious diseases – saving and improving millions of lives across the world. The consortium has quickly grown into a £260m programme working with a global network of more than 800 companies.

By enabling industry access to world-leading facilities and expertise, it has supported 36 new products to market, with more than 5 billion units of life-saving products and treatments reaching communities across the world. It has also created 559 jobs and bolstered the region’s R&D infection spend by £700m.