MAISI

Anne’s research is in the field of neurotechnologies, from technological innovations to their interactions with the (human) nervous system. She develops technology for the next generation of implantable electronic devices to improve the quality of life of patients, through applications such as: neuromodulation and electrical stimulation for the restoration of movement in paralysed muscles; and biopotential recording for control of prosthesis and artificial organs. Anne is the Director of MAISI, a national facility for the Manufacture of Active Implants and Surgical Instruments housed at St Thomas' hospital. MAISI is not only a unique facility to manufacture the most complex medical devices, but the team also brings together engineers and experts in regulatory affairs to support researchers, whether in academia or SMEs, to bring their ideas to the first tests in humans. Anne trained as an engineer in Belgium (ULB) and the Netherlands (Eindhoven), then had the opportunity to undertake a PhD under the supervision of Prof Donaldson in the Implanted Devices Group at UCL. She has worked in Germany (IMTEK, Freiburg) and Australia (UNSW, Sydney), where she was fortunate to meet some of the most influential people in her career. Anne is also a keen teacher with a concern for Diversity Equality and Inclusivity, and actively seeks new strategies to develop more inclusive learning spaces and improve the university experience of non-mainstream students. She has been an active member of the International Microelectronics Assembly and Packaging Society (IMAPS-UK) since 2012. Opportunities to join MAISI or her research team as a PhD student or postdoc are regularly advertised through King's webpages and on LinkedIn. You can also view Anne's people page.

Gabriel joined the school of BMEIS and MAISI team in the early stages of the project to assist with the conceptualisation of the cleanroom and required manufacturing processes. He has a deep technical and operational process experience combined with a talent for data-driven innovation. Gabriel is a Mechanical Engineer with more than 15 years’ experience at a leading pharmaceutical and medical device company where he managed several projects in multiple countries.

Dr Clare Heaysman is the Medical Engineering Quality Systems Manager in the Wellcome /EPSRC Centre for Medical Engineering. Clare started working with academic groups on applying the design practices adopted by regulated industries in translational research projects in 2014. She also has 10 years’ experience working in industry on the design and development of drug device combination products for interventional oncology, generating intellectual property and working on the technical transfer from academic and industrial partners.

Michael joined King’s College London in January 2021 as a Process Engineer for the School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences. He is responsible for the development and delivery of the new facility for the manufacture of active implants and surgical instruments (MAISI) and the associated manufacturing equipment and processes. After graduating from the University of Hull with a first-class degree in Mechanical Engineering, Michael spent 5 years at a leading medical device company where he held various Engineering focused roles and developed several multimillion-dollar processes for new and existing medical device products.

Laurence joined King’s College London in July 2019 as the Research Administrator for The Centre of Medical Engineering supporting researchers and fellows with major projects. Laurence has been involved in some major grants and projects including KCL Check (research study on the impact of Covid-19). He joined the MAISI team in July 2021 as the Operations Officer for the facility and the directors PA. He is currently working on the MAISI’s marketing and branding strategy as well as supporting the team with the projected timelines.

Hannah joined MAISI in early 2022 as Regulatory and Clinical Research specialist. Having previously worked for the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency delivering post-EU exit regulatory change, she provides customers and internal project teams at KCL with expert advice on medical device regulations and assists with the clinical translation of research prototypes.

Kam Kahlon joined MAISI in 2022 as Manufacturing Quality Assurance Lead to provide quality support in designing and establishing a new cleanroom facility for the production of first-in-patient medical devices. Kam transferred from another flagship clinical manufacturing facility within KCL where she spent 20 years working in various roles.

Fintan joined MAISI in early 2023 as Quality and Compliance Officer providing quality support in establishing a new cleanroom facility for the production of first-in-patient medical devices. Fintan spent over 6 years in leading GMP Contract Manufacturing and Research Organisations where he held various Quality positions supporting release and manufacture of ATMP and Biologic products used in clinical trials and commercial batch release.

Pamela joined in March 2023 as the Cleanroom Manufacturing Technician to support the qualification and validation of the process equipment. She graduated with a degree in Biomedical Engineering from Lodz University of Technology and holds a degree in Applied Biotechnology from the University of Westminster. Prior to her current role, she worked in various part-time jobs that allowed her to adapt to different working environments.