The organizers of RDD 2014 have announced that the 2014 winner of the Charles G. Thiel Award is Dieter Hochrainer of Boehringer Ingelheim. The award was presented by Peter Byron at the opening of the conference, which is taking place in Fajardo, Puerto Rico.
The award, sponsored by 3M Drug Delivery Systems and an endowment at Virginia Commonwealth University, is named for Charles G. Thiel, co-inventor of the metered dose inhaler and the award’s first recipient. The award is presented every other year during the RDD Conference, which is sponsored by VCU.
The 2014 award committee included 2012 Thiel Award winner Andrew Clark of Novartis, Stephen Stein of 3MDDS, Anthony Hickey of RTI International, John Patton of Dance Biopharm, and Peter Byron of RDD Online and VCU.
RDD’s Richard Dalby commented, “As the pressurized metered dose inhaler closes in on its 60th anniversary it’s appropriate to remember what Charlie Thiel gave asthmatics all those years ago, and how those who followed his pioneering spirit have refined many aspects of pulmonary drug delivery. Charlie’s invention, and indeed Charlie himself, are not the only things which have stood the test of time.”
Dalby added, “Respiratory Drug Delivery meetings, too, have expanded from small biennial meetings to large conferences, and this year for the first time RDD Asia 2014 will provide an opportunity to exchange ideas and network in India. Like all recipients of the Charles G. Thiel award, RDD is constantly experimenting with new approaches, and seeks to advance the fields of pulmonary and nasal drug delivery.”
