Frontier IP Group Plc (LON:FIPP), which specialises in commercialising university intellectual property, today announced that Palintest, a subsidiary of FTSE 100 group Halma plc, is launching Siren BW, a water testing kit developed by portfolio company Molendotech, a spin out from the University of Plymouth.
It is the first commercial application for Molendotech’s novel test able to identify the concentration of faecal bacteria in water. Currently, it can take two days for local authorities and environmental agencies to assess the quality of recreational water because samples must be sent to a laboratory. Palintest’s field-ready kit produces a result in less than 30 minutes and is simple enough to be used at the sample point.
The kit is initially available in the UK and Ireland, with roll out to continental Europe and the US planned.
Further applications are now being developed in collaboration with Palintest to leverage the real-time availability of pathogen risk in water. It has a wide range of potential uses, including potable water and in food and beverage production.
Molendotech was incorporated less than a year ago to develop and commercialise the work of Simon Jackson, Professor of Environment and Human Health within the University of Plymouth’s Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry.
Frontier IP Group Plc chief executive officer Neil Crabb said: “We’re delighted the agreement with Palintest, announced earlier this year, is bearing fruit so quickly. It has taken less than a year from Molendotech joining our portfolio to the commercial launch of its first product.”
Director of Molendotech, Professor Simon Jackson, said: “Water quality is a global issue and fundamental to human and public health. Unfortunately, traditional, lab-based methods for testing water quality, particularly for faecal contamination, do not deliver the kind of rapid results required for in-situ investigation and decision-making. With this breakthrough, however, environmental agencies will be able to gain a much clearer understanding of water quality, which could lead to better and more effective management of beaches and other recreational bathing waters, and faster identification of sources of pollution.”
Open Innovation Product Manager at Palintest Ian Leahy said: “The opportunity to bring our ability to produce rugged, simple-to-use water quality testing kits together with this exciting Molendotech innovation is a perfect example of two organisations collaborating to answer a clear customer need in the markets we already serve. For many years we sought opportunities to deliver simple, real-time microbiological risk screening at the point of use and I’m excited to say we are finally at that point now.”
