Company incubator Frontier IP Group Plc (LON:FIPP) has received a 20% stake in MolEndoTech Limited – a spinout from Plymouth University.
MolEndoTech was set up to develop and commercialise the work of Simon Jackson, the Professor of Environment and Human Health at the south coast university.
Jackson and his team have developed a rapid assay that screens water for faecal contamination in under 15 minutes. Current tests available generally take hours or, in some cases, days.
Rapid, point-of-use testing to determine the water quality significantly improves the ability to identify and track the pollution source, Frontier said.
A patent for the technology – which has already attracted interest from industry – has been granted in the US for recreational waters.
“We are looking forward to working with Professor Jackson and his team to help accelerate the commercialisation for this promising technology,” said Frontier chief executive Neil Crabb.
“We believe that MolEndoTech has an exciting future in the critical area of water quality assurance and are pleased to see the technology is already generating interest in the marketplace.”
Water quality has been a hot topic in recent weeks after ice from Costa, Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) and Caffè Nero was found to contain an alarming level of faecal bacteria.
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