nanoTox, the first company
to provide complete risk assessment exclusively for nanoparticles, announced
today that Gary W. Pankonien has joined the company as Chief Executive Officer
and Vice Chairman of the Board. Mr. Pankonien was formerly CEO for the nanoparticle
firm, Nanotechnologies (now NovaCentrix), a provider of custom engineered nanopowders.
“As an early producer of nanomaterials, there were not a lot of resources
available to evaluate the safety of nano-materials,” said Mr. Pankonien.
“nanoTox fills that gap by offering a complete Risk Assessment Analysis
of materials and products under Good Laboratory Practices conditions. We are
all about enabling the nanoindustry by providing assessment and guidance to
our customers, their investors and insurers. This industry is the next evolution
of technology that must be approached safely and developed into next-generation
products.”
"We could not be more excited to have Mr. Pankonien at the nanoTox helm,"
said Harry Bushong, president of nanoTox. "He has intimate knowledge of
the need for our services and the industries with which we work. His expertise
was instrumental in the growth of not only Nanotechnologies but other highly
successful companies, and we believe he will provide the leadership necessary
for nanoTox to fully realize its vision of ensuring the safety of nanomaterials
for the world market."
Prior to Nanotechnlogies, Mr. Pankonien was president and CEO of CALEB Technologies
and founder and CEO of 1st TECH Corp., which merged with Tanisys (Nasdaq: TNSU).
He also was president of both Emergent Technologies, Inc.’s Fund III and
WesTech Ventures I, L.P. and CEO of Auxano Biomedical, a fund portfolio company.
Mr. Pankonien spent seven years at Compaq Computer Corporation where he co-developed
and currently holds the patent for the first notebook computer and several other
patents. He graduated from Texas A&M University in 1972 with a BSEE degree
in electronics.
Located in Austin, Texas, nanoTox is the first company to provide complete
assessment – and solutions – exclusively for nanoparticles. nanoTox
determines the toxicity of its clients’ nanoproducts and offers strategies
for managing, reducing or eliminating risk to meet state and federal safety
guidelines and shorten time to market. Because nanoTox uses methodologies that
are performed under recognized international data quality standards (GLP, ISO,
etc.) in its laboratories, the results and associated assessments are suitable
for use to support regulatory decisions, product registrations, litigation and
for acceptance by the insurance industry.
nanoTox ensures complete client confidentiality for all of its clients, which
include companies or entities that require government approval to market their
nanoproducts, venture capital firms that invest in nanoproduct companies, law
firms engaged by such companies and insurance companies considering insuring
such companies from liability.
nanoTox is headquartered in Austin, Texas, with offices in Maastricht, Netherlands.