cobra:bio

Peter has 39 years experience in the international healthcare industry, including Chairmanship of Fisons Plc's multinational research-based Pharmaceutical Division and Consumer Health Division, where he led a series of strategic development initiatives, including acquisitions in North America, Europe and Asia, whilst achieving significant organic growth. He was a main Board Director responsible for the majority of the Group's profits when Fisons Plc was a FTSE 100 company.

Peter subsequently formed his own strategic management company that has been involved in management buy-out and buy-in arrangements, consultancies and the creation of new businesses in the private healthcare sector. He has been Chairman or Director of 16 companies and is currently Chairman of I Holland Limited, the world's leading supplier of tablet moulding tools to the global pharmaceutical industry. He is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing and sits on the boards of various charitable and public bodies.

Simon Saxby has 25 years experience in the biotechnology industry, latterly as CEO of Alpha Biologics Sdn Bhd, a Malaysian contract manufacturing organisation with an office and laboratories in Cambridge,UK. Simon was a founder of Murex Diagnostics, which was sold to Abbott Laboratories for $350m, a co-founder and Operations Director of Quantum Biosystems Ltd, he led the development of a CMO business for Unisyn Technologies in Massachusetts, USA for 4 years and has held appointments with KS Biomedix Plc, Xenova Group PLC and Synexis Ltd.

Peter has 13 years experience in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology industry and has been Cobra's Finance Director since its floatation on AIM in June 2002. Prior to Cobra he was employed in a variety of senior financial and corporate development roles. Peter qualified as a Chartered Management Accountant in 1996 and in 2001 was awarded an MBA with distinction jointly from the Manchester Business School and the University of Wales.

Paul was appointed Cobra’s Corporate Director of Quality Assurance in October 2005. He holds a degree in Biological Sciences and a PhD in fermentation and is registered as a Quality Person (QP) under the Permanent Provisions of the EU directives.

Paul has over 25 years of experience in the pharmaceutical/biotechnology industry. He spent 23 years with Eli Lilly in the UK, the first 10 years of which were in fermentation development and production before transferring to the QA department. During the following 13 years he gained extensive experience in QA with responsibility for projects, quality systems, engineering, clinical trials API manufacture and recombinant biotechnology products. He acted as a Senior Quality Advisor for Eli Lilly and travelled frequently to the US and globally in connection with these activities. In 2002 he moved to Aventis Pharma where he was Head of Quality Operations at their Holmes Chapel site.

After gaining an honors degree in Biochemistry and Physiology at the University of Sheffield, Tony completed a PhD at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, while conducting research over a period of seven years on autoimmune diseases.

He joined the research and development division of Cobra in 1994 and was involved in developing reliable, stable, high-level gene expression systems and cell-based delivery systems during seven years of research. In 2001, Tony joined the biopharmaceutical manufacturing division and was involved in setting up the Business Development and Account Management functions within the Group. During his time in the Business Development Group he has held the positions of Associate Director of Business Development, European Director of Business Development, General Manager of the Oxford facility and is now Director of Contract Management.
 

Tracey gained an honors degree in Business Economics from the University of Leicester in 1995. After graduating, Tracey worked for ICL Sorbus Ltd and then Spiral Packs (London) Ltd where she obtained commercial experience as an Account Manager. She later went on to complete the Chartered Institute of Management Accountancy examinations whilst working for Elks Biscuits Ltd, an operating division of Northern Foods Plc.

Tracey joined Cobra in Sept 2002 as Financial Controller, and became Head of Planning and Commercial Finance in October 2006.

After completing a management training course with a large retail organisation , Sheena was seconded to a training role with the responsibility for the training of over 100 staff and management. During this time she decided to specialise in the field of human resource management and spent the next 14 years in various training and personnel roles within two large retailing organisations.

In 1997 Sheena joined Cobra to set up a Personnel Department providing advice to staff and management on a wide range of personnel and training issues. She has spent the last nine years in the role and during this time has completed an NVQ Level 4 in Personnel Management. During this period, Sheena has played a fundamental role in the recruitment and selection of employees as part of the Group’s expansion plan.