BYOT.L Regulatory News (BYOT)

14 Nov 2006 07:03

Byotrol PLC14 November 2006 BYOTROL PLC AGREEMENT WITH SYNERGY HEALTHCARE PLC The Directors of Byotrol plc (the "Company") are pleased to announce that theCompany has entered into an agreement with Synergy Healthcare plc ("Synergy")which will see Byotrol's anti-microbial technology deployed into the NHS andindependent healthcare sector in the UK and the rest of the world. Synergy Healthcare plc is a leading provider of outsourced medical services tothe UK and the Netherlands, with an annualised turnover of over £130million andhas over 2500 employees. Synergy has been providing sterile services in the UKsince 1996 and is the UK's largest provider of decontamination and sterileservices for surgical instruments. The Company operates fifteen facilities andprocessing approximately 40 million instruments per annum. The contract gives Synergy exclusive sales and distribution rights to Byotrol'stechnology in the healthcare market. In addition Synergy will market, sell anddistribute Byotrol's Assure product range to the NHS and Byotrol's existinghealthcare customers. In the UK, Synergy will assume responsibility forsupplying products containing Byotrol to Byotrol's existing healthcare users,Sun Choice Europe Limited and DBM Holdings Ltd. The agreement will give Synergy the use of Byotrol technology in significanthealthcare markets for licences, fees and options totalling £2.3 milliontogether with an advance royalty payment of £400,000. The agreement commences immediately with the UK market and incorporates optionsthat will grant similar rights to Synergy for both USA, Europe and the rest ofthe world and these are exercisable between February 2007 and February 2008. In addition to fees and royalties, Synergy will be purchasing Byotrolconcentrates for use in manufacture of anti-microbial products. The agreement with Synergy demonstrates Byotrol's strategy to deploy itstechnology in partnership with leading businesses in its chosen markets. According to Stephen Falder, Deputy Chairman of Byotrol plc: "This agreement will see the rapid commercialisation of Byotrol technology inthe healthcare market and demonstrates our ability to licence the Company'stechnology to a major organisation allowing us to gain a significant and rapidpenetration into one of our chosen key markets. We continue to progress discussions with several major multinationals regardingan increasing number of opportunities that have been recently identified in theCompany's other target markets of Food Processing and Industrial & Technical." - more - Dr Richard Steeves, Chief Executive of Synergy Healthcare, commented: "The acquisition of the worldwide rights for Byotrol is a major strategic stepforward for Synergy. Byotrol is an ideal fit for Synergy and, coupled withAirCleanse will greatly enhance our product offering in the atmosphericdecontamination market. This is an area of critical concern to the healthcaremarket worldwide in order to counteract the ever-increasing threat of hospitalacquired infections." 14 November 2006 Enquiries: Byotrol plc 0161 277 9518 Stephen FalderDeputy Chairman David McRobbieChief Executive Charles Stanley Securities 020 7149 6457 Philip Davies First City PR 0207 436 7486 Allan Piper McCann Erickson PR 01625 822540 Jim Rothnie Notes To Editors: About Byotrol Byotrol's assure range has been specifically developed for the NHS covering allareas from acute care to care homes and comprises disinfectant sprays for useacross a wide range of settings, cleaning and sanitising wipes, and a handsanitising mousse. The Company's patented technology has been proven, throughextensive testing, to be effective in eradicating and controlling a wide rangeof organisms such as MRSA, c.difficile and e-coli. Byotrol remains active afterit has dried, providing anti-microbial protection for extended periods afterapplication and is able therefore to tackle the practical problems of odours andspoilage caused by microbe activity. Byotrol is not toxic to humans and does not require any specialist equipment oralteration to existing cleaning regimens to be effective. A further advantage ofByotrol is also its ultra low alcohol content, compared to competing products,which means it does not dry or irritate the skin when used as a hand sanitiseras part of infection control procedures. An independently supervised study carried out at Glasgow Royal Infirmary showedthat daily cleaning with Byotrol's patented biocide of the ward's high contactsurfaces (including door handles, tables, television handsets, patient contactsystems and bed rails), representing a small fraction of the total surfaceswithin the ward, resulted in a significant reduction in the incidence of MRSA. The cleaning regimen, which required no special equipment or extra resource, waspractised for 4 months and the incidence of MRSA was shown to have been reducedby 75% against the pre-trial condition of the ward. During this phase there weretest periods with no incidence of MRSA. The Company recently obtained CE Marking status approving Byotrol for sale inmedical and disinfectant products in Europe and approval from the US EnvironmentProtection Agency for Byotrol to be used as a disinfectant, sanitiser and anti-microbial product in a broad number of market sectors. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange