Krosslinker, a Singapore-based advanced materials maker, has secured US$1.25 million in a seed funding round, led by 500 Startups.
Seedscapital, Entrepreneur First and several unnamed angel investors also participated.
As per a press release, the funds raised will aid Krosslinker in the development of its patented technology to manufacture aerogels and conduct pilot trials with their customers.
Aerogel is an advanced material that is light and resistant to heat and cold. It primarily functions as a thermally insulating material.
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Founded in 2019 by a team of three scientists, Krosslinker develops technology that enables the advanced material to be produced faster, cheaper with low-energy consumption and reduced carbon footprint.
“This advanced material once considered expensive to commercialise can now be feasibly produced at a competitive cost with our disruptive manufacturing technology,” said Gayathri Natarajan, CEO and Co-founder of Krosslinker.
“Krosslinker’s aerogel innovation is solving an important challenge of protecting precious pharma products against temperature breaches during shipping,” said Vishal Harnal, Partner at 500 Startups.
“We believe this packaging innovation comes at an opportune time when the stakes and costs of temp-sensitive commercial and clinical drugs, including potential COVID vaccines, are undergoing a dramatic increase,” he elaborated.
Millions of biopharma products such as blood, vaccines and patient samples must be maintained at specific chilled temperatures to preserve their efficacy during shipping.
As such, packaging is of the foremost importance. Ineffective insulation has resulted in losses amounting to US$35 billion within the biopharma industry.
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These developed aerogels will be introduced in cold-chain biopharmaceutical packaging before being implemented in construction, reefer container and industrial sectors.
Krosslinker’s fabrication process technology will serve as a collaborative platform to develop multiple aerogel products with a broad array of application-specific properties for various insulation applications.
“We have been receiving interest for high-temperature industrial insulation application and automotive verticals to thermally insulate EV battery packs against thermal runaway and harsh cold weather conditions,” remarked Mahesh Sachithanadam, Director of Innovation & Engineering and Co-founder of Krosslinker.
Elmira Soghrati, CTO and Co-founder of Krosslinker added that global energy demand for heating and cooling systems is expected to rise. Therefore, she remarked thermal insulation would represent the new normal in energy conservation due to its efficiency and sustainability.
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Image Credit: Photo by Crystal Kwok on Unsplash
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