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Management Team
Frank Menzler Harmel S. Rayat Christopher W. Kemp
Frank Menzler: President, CEO and Chairman
In addition to his technical know-how, Mr. Menzler has medical device and life science research, development, and sales and marketing management experience, which spans the globe and ranges from early stage start-ups to executive positions with multi-billion dollar corporations.
Mr. Menzler was at ABIOMED, Inc., developer of the world’s first completely self-contained total artificial heart, where among other positions he served as General Manager for the company’s European division in Germany. Among other European appointments, Mr. Frank Menzler served at Guidant Corporation's, Cardiac Surgery Business Unit for Europe, Middle East, Africa and Canada (EMEAC) in Brussels, Belgium. In 2006 Guidant was acquired for $27.5 billion by Boston Scientific Corporation. Prior to joining Guidant, Mr. Menzler co-founded Impella Cardiotechnik AG, Germany, helping raise more than $30 million in grants and venture capital for one of the nation's first academically-sponsored medical device research effort to receive private venture capital funding. In 2005, Impella was acquired by US-based, ABIOMED, Inc.
Mr. Frank Menzler holds a Master's degree in Business Administration (MBA) from Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management and a Master of Science degree in Mechanical and Biomedical Engineering from RWTH Aachen, Germany.
Harmel S. Rayat: Secretary, Treasurer and CFO
Mr. Rayat brings over 20 years of experience in the venture capital and corporate finance industry to HepaLife Technologies, Inc., and is credited with founding numerous companies based on novel, emerging technologies with broad commercial applications.
A well-established venture capitalist, Mr. Harmel S. Rayat's wide investment portfolio ranges from commercial real estate to cutting-edge technology-centric companies, including a Princeton, NJ-based biopharmaceutical company developing entirely new classes of novel compounds for type-2 diabetes and cancer, and a technology incubator currently developing the world's first 'spray-on' nanoparticle coating to create transparent glass windows capable of generating electricity from sunlight.
Mr. Rayat serves as President of Montgomery Asset Management Corporation, a privately held firm providing financial consulting services to emerging growth corporations, and has served in numerous capacities on HepaLife's Board of Directors since December, 2000.
Christopher W. Kemp: Director R & D
Dr. Christopher W. Kemp has over thirty years of experience in the development of cellular based processes. For the past fifteen years Dr. Kemp has served as President of Kemp Biotechnologies, Inc., a private contract manufacturing organization servicing the pharmaceutical research market.
Dr. Kemp founded Kemp Biotechnologies, Inc. in 1992, subsequently acquired in 2006 by Pelican Life Sciences, a life sciences research company backed by $100 million in equity capital commitments. Kemp Biotechnologies specialized in the scale-up of cellular based expression systems using novel bioreactor technologies. Prior to 1992, Dr. Christopher W. Kemp developed serum-free animal cell culture media formulation for BioWhittaker, Inc. for seven years, and previously at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD worked on process development applications for the production of human vaccines, where he received four awards during his decade-long tenure.
Dr. Christopher W. Kemp earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Microbiology from University of Maryland and a Master of Science degree in Biomedical Science from Hood College, MD. He completed his PhD in Microbiology at George Washington University, Washington DC.
