A Bristol tech startup has caught the eye of Richmond-area investors in the form of a $3 million investment.
Micronic Technologies, founded in 2008 by Karen Sorber and Kelly Rock, announced that it has raised a $3 million seed round that it will use to scale its industrial wastewater cleaning technology. The round was led by the Center for Innovative Technology and The Pearl Fund, with participation from CAV Angels.
Sorber said her desire to develop a better way to clean water stemmed from a 2007 trip to Peru. She and Rock married a year later and got to work on the startup. They have spent the last several years working to develop patents for technology that can remove dissolved and suspended solids, bacteria and heavy metals from water in a fast, energy efficient manner.
"I saw, front and center, the devastating effects [unclean water] had on the children I visited," she said. "I didn't know how or what, but I knew I wanted to do something to help developing countries."
Sorber said the company's water evaporation system, called the Tornadic One-Pass, can remove contaminants from almost any water source and cleans to federal and state standards without using high heat, filters or chemicals.
"We've validated the tech from here to San Francisco and back," she said. "This raise will allow us to bring on sales and marketing folks to help solidify strategic partners who want to test the tech."
One such partner is the Environmental Protection Agency. Sorber said they have a research and development agreement with the EPA in Cincinnati that will allow for testing of the technology's capabilities to ensure it meets agency standards before it's commercialized.
"2021 will be all about testing and making sure we've got the tech properly vetted and tweaked for our first sale," she said. "We have a letter of commitment from a company in the cheese industry saying that once it passes EPA testing standards, they'll purchase it."
Sorber said Micronic will also begin focusing efforts of a Series A round of funding late next year to help support heavier manufacturing needs once the technology is commercialized. To date, the company has raised $7 million through capital investments and federal grants.