A MANCHESTER biomedical company is relocating to Liverpool after a third tranche of funding from the North West Fund.
Kanichi Research Services, which develops ultra-sensitive electrochemical sensors for the healthcare market, is moving to the biomedical cluster at Liverpool Science Park on Mount Pleasant.
One of its first projects after moving will be to embark on plans to develop a handheld device for assessing chemicals in breath.
Kanichi has received a £285,000 investment from the North West Fund for Biomedical, managed by Spark Impact, making a total investment of £460,000 by the fund in the company.
The fund has also awarded an additional £125,000 to Liverpool Science Park-based Med ePad, which provides interactive devices and apps to assist patient care, taking its total funding in the company to £250,000.
Med ePad will use the latest funding to employ more staff and expand its project development pipeline.
Both companies received initial Pathfinder investments in 2011 and a second injection of cash earlier this year.
Kanichi chief executive David Killworth said: “We have developed an excellent relationship with Spark and we are extremely grateful to receive their continued financial backing and commercial support. They believe in what we are trying to achieve and that is such a boost to our overall ambitions.”
Rob Connell, chief technical officer and founder of Med ePad, added: “We have exciting plans for a range of new products and devices that could reap real benefits for the provision of patient care, building on the success we have already had with our existing projects.”
Spark Impact has completed 35 separate investments so far, with a strong pipeline of further follow-on investments, new, larger, investments, and a broad range of Pathfinder deals.
The North West Fund for Biomedical is a £25m sub-fund of the £155m North West Fund, backed by the European Investment Bank and the European Regional Development Fund. aimed at boosting small- and medium-sized enterprises based in, or relocating to, the North West of England.
