DELUXE
PEOPLE
Thomas’s Island
RecommendaTIons
Sitting in the small beach bar
in Cala Sa Nau eating grilled
fish and looking out over the
beautiful bay
Eating at Es Mollet in Portixol
Riding a mountain or racing
bike with Markus Hess of
Easy Tours or one of the guides
from Club Robinson
Regeneration
The main occupation of Thomas hillenbrand, the German ceo of ds Technology
Gmbh, is marketing the Xstraw ® , the company’s patented new drug delivery
system, to the pharmaceutical sector. In march he took a short holiday at Robinson
club cala serena in santanyi, where he relaxed with friends on daily cycling tours.
delUXe asked him for his tips on what to do and see on the Island.
Herr Hillenbrand, your company is in the pro-
cess of launching two patented new pharma-
ceutical products. What is so special about
your XStraw ® ?
50% of all patients who take regular medica-
tion have problems swallowing tablets and
capsules. So they crush the tablets and open
up the capsules. This means the drugs are
absorbed by the stomach, which can alter how
they are supposed to work. It is a situation that
was crying out for alternative methods of
taking drugs to be developed and this is pre-
cisely where the XStraw ® comes in.
How does the XStraw ® work?
At the pharmacy, instead of receiving a box of
tablets or capsules, patients are given a packet
of drinking straws filled with the correct dose of
medicine. To take the drug, the XStraw ® is sim-
36 DELUXE
ply placed into a drink of the patient’s choice
and as they suck it up through the straw the
medicine is ingested in a simple and pleasant
way. Children from the age of three are able
to use the XStraw ® .
How does the drug get into the XStraw ® ?
Specially formulated pellets are used. The
system also works for food supplements, like
vitamins and minerals.
Which sectors does DS Technology operate in?
To start with we are encouraging pharmaceuti-
cal companies to change the form in which
their drugs are administered in favour of the
XStraw ® . We advise them on the technology
required for the production of the pellets, and
for filling and then packaging the end product.
Secondly we coordinate all the individual dis-
ciplines so that our customers can get their pro-
duct onto the market quickly and operate there
with maximum reliability. As our business is in
licence fees and royalties, our highly special-
ised control department then checks what is
delivered where, in what quantities, and filled
with what drugs. We are also involved with
other new innovative products. We recently
acquired the patent for a new method of manu-
facturing and packaging surgical sutures.
Do you have any tips for cycle training in
Mallorca?
In March we spent a week at a training camp
in Mallorca as preparation for the coming
cycling season. The beautiful Club Robinson is
the perfect location for this with its wealth of
cycling-related amenities. Good guides, the
right food, professional sports equipment,
spa... and most important for me, fast Wi-Fi. I
had to do some work while I was there, so I
cycled until 2pm and then spent the rest of the
afternoon dealing with emails and telephone
conferences.
Thank you very much for talking to us.
TRanslaTIon celIa moody