Harald Pedersen (engineer)
Harald Pedersen | |
|---|---|
| Born | Peter Harald Pedersen 1878 Øster Hurup, Denmark |
| Died | 1966 (aged 87–88) Denmark |
| Occupations | Engineer, industrialist |
| Known for | Co-founder of Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium, today Novo Nordisk |
Harald Pedersen (born 1878 in Øster Hurup – died 1966) was a Danish engineer and industrialist who, together with his brother Thorvald Pedersen, co-founded the pharmaceutical company Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium in 1925, predecessor of Novo Nordisk. Their work played a key role in the early Danish insulin industry.[1]
Early life and education
Harald Pedersen was born in Øster Hurup, Denmark, in 1878. He began his working life as an apprentice blacksmith at age 15. He later worked as an engineer at Frederiksberg Electricity Works until 1918, when after a workplace accident in which he lost an eye, he left that employment and became manager of the mechanical workshop at the Laboratory of Zoophysiology, University of Copenhagen.[1][2]
Career
In the early 1920s, Harald Pedersen worked with Nobel laureate August Krogh (and others) at the Laboratory of Zoophysiology; his mechanical workshop produced machines used in early insulin production.[3][4]
In autumn 1923, his brother Thorvald was hired by Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium to analyse chemical processes in insulin production; Harald also worked at Nordisk.[5]
Founding of Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium
In 1924 a dispute occurred at Nordisk: Thorvald was fired by Hans Christian Hagedorn, co-founder of Nordisk, and Harald resigned in solidarity.[1] In February 1925 the brothers formally founded Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium.[4] The company developed a dedicated insulin production facility and a specialty injection device (the "Novo Syringe").[5]
Work
- Development of dedicated machinery for insulin extraction and purification at the Zoophysiology Laboratory workshop.[3]
- Design and implementation of early insulin delivery technologies (the "Novo Syringe" for self-injection).[5]
- Co-development of Insulin Novo, marketed by Novo Terapeutisk in the mid-1920s.[4]
Family
Pedersen was the son of the village schoolteacher Niels Christian Pedersen and Karen Marie (Ane) Pedersen and one of ten children; he was the elder brother of Thorvald Andreas Pedersen (1887–1961), with whom he co-founded Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium.[1] He married twice: he was widowed in 1916 when his first wife died in childbirth with their fifth child; a few years later he married Ane Thomine Thomsen, and they had a daughter, Gudrun.[6] Gudrun married Knud Hallas-Møller, who later succeeded Harald in leading Novo; their daughter Lise married Mads Øvlisen, who later served as CEO of Novo Nordisk and helped bring about the 1989 merger of Novo and Nordisk.[6][7]
Legacy
Harald Pedersen's engineering contributions helped developing the early Danish insulin industry. He and his brother also established the Novo Foundation in 1951, of which Harald became a life-member of the Board.[1] The Pedersen brothers founded Novo Terapeutisk Laboratorium in 1925 and competed with Nordisk until the 1989 merger that created Novo Nordisk.[8][7]
References
- ^ a b c d e "Our History". Novo Nordisk Foundation. Retrieved 1 November 2025.
- ^ Sonne, Ole (2020). "Nobelprisen i Fysiologi eller Medicin 1920 til August Krogh [The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1920 to August Krogh]" (PDF). Dansk Medicinhistorisk Årbog (in Danish): 153. Retrieved 1 November 2025.
Peter Harald Pedersen (1878–1966) var maskinmester og kom til Kroghs laboratorium fra en stilling ved Frederiksberg Elektricitetsværk. [Peter Harald Pedersen (1878–1966) was a chief machinist and came to Krogh's laboratory from a position at Frederiksberg Electricity Works.]
- ^ a b Larsen, E. H. (17 December 2001). "August Krogh og Dyrefysiologisk Laboratorium i Ny Vestergade 11 [August Krogh and the laboratory of animal physiology situated at Ny Vestergade 11]". Ugeskrift for Læger (in Danish). 163 (51): 7240–7248. PMID 11797555.
...Harald Pedersen, der var maskinmester hos Krogh, og som konstruerede og fremstillede de apparater, der blev anvendt til insulin-fremstillingen... [Harald Pedersen, who was the chief machinist under Krogh, and who designed and built the apparatus that was used for the insulin production]
- ^ a b c Schmidt-Nielsen, Bodil (1995). August and Marie Krogh: Lives in Science. American Physiological Society and Oxford University Press. p. 295. doi:10.1007/978-1-4614-7530-9. ISBN 9781461475309. Retrieved 1 November 2025.
- ^ a b c "Novo Nordisk". Defining Moments Canada. Retrieved 1 November 2025.
- ^ a b "Peter Harald Pedersen". AugustKrogh.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 1 November 2025.
- ^ a b "From insulin to Ozempic, history of Novo Nordisk's CEOs". Reuters. 16 May 2025. Retrieved 1 November 2025.
- ^ Lambert, Carmen; Delgado, Elias (2024). "100 Years since the Discovery of Insulin, from Its Discovery to the Insulins of the Future". Biomedicines. 12 (3): 533. doi:10.3390/biomedicines12030533. PMC 10968222. PMID 38540146.