Business

Queen's spin-off receives £1.2m investment to tackle antibiotic resistance

Jayne Brady, partner, Kernel Capital; Dr. Bob Pollard, CEO, Causeway Sensors; William McCulla, director corporate finance, Invest NI; & Odhran McNeilly, business advisor, Bank of Ireland UK.
Jayne Brady, partner, Kernel Capital; Dr. Bob Pollard, CEO, Causeway Sensors; William McCulla, director corporate finance, Invest NI; & Odhran McNeilly, business advisor, Bank of Ireland UK. Jayne Brady, partner, Kernel Capital; Dr. Bob Pollard, CEO, Causeway Sensors; William McCulla, director corporate finance, Invest NI; & Odhran McNeilly, business advisor, Bank of Ireland UK.

A TECHNOLOGY company, which spawned out of Queen's University has received £1.2 million investment towards tackling the global issue of antibiotic resistance.

Causeway Sensors has received the funding from the Bank of Ireland Kernel Capital Growth Fund (NI), QUBIS and private investors. The investment will see the firm grow its team, develop new technology and explore new market opportunities. Causeway Sensors has also availed of Invest Northern Ireland support for Research & Development, while further funding was secured from Innovate UK.

Causeway Sensors is working to tackle the global problem of antibiotic resistance and has developed a novel method of distinguishing between a viral and bacterial infection, enabling a reduction in the ineffective use of antibiotics for viral infections.

CEO of Causeway Sensors, Dr Bob Pollard said the latest funding will make a massive difference to operations.

"Causeway Sensors recently took a strategic decision to focus its ground breaking technology on applications in the medical diagnostics market. This investment validates this new strategy and we look forward to growing our team, developing the technology and exploring new market opportunities.”

William McCulla, Invest NI’s director of corporate finance, added:

“Causeway Sensors is a great example of an ambitious company which has used a range of Invest NI support to help it develop its pioneering technology which it is now targeting at the global biosensor industry. The development funds, one of which is managed by Kernel Capital, were specifically designed to help businesses like Causeway Sensors which have the potential to grow in global markets and scale quickly. This latest investment demonstrates how important these funds are.”

The Bank of Ireland Kernel Capital Growth Fund (NI) was designed to help SMEs in Northern Ireland to accelerate their growth. A total of £165m has been raised

through six separate venture capital funds up to 2015 and has been invested in the north and the Republic.