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4D Biomaterials secured seed investment from SFC Capital and grants from Innovate UK totaling £478,000 (~USD $647,000). Funds will support development of the company’s first range of implantable medical devices based on polycarbonate-based resins that can be printed into solid 3D scaffold implants. The resins are novel bioresorbable materials with good shape memory, tunable mechanical and chemical properties and promising tissue-healing performance.
Ultimately, the aim is to build a substantial business, supplying liquid resins and 3-D printed components to medical device manufacturers and medical practitioners across the UK, EU and the U.S.
The next investment opportunity will be a Series A round in Spring/Summer 2021.
The company has also made solid progress on the commercial front securing a first letter of intent from a potential customer in the U.S. and an encouraging response to independent market research covering three potential medical device applications. CEO Phil Smith said, “We are now approaching potential investors with the aim of raising a further £1 million to fund the next stage of product development and pre-clinical testing.”
4D Biomaterials is a spinout from University of Birmingham Enterprise and Warwick Innovations. The company has made several senior appointments to advance its product development and operational capabilities.
The new head of R&D Operations is Dr. Andrew Naylor, an industrial chemist whose career has spanned polymer and pharmaceutical process and product development, as well as a leading role in the set-up of an MHRA licensed manufacturing facility. Dr. Naylor will build operational capacity for the company, including capabilities for resin and device production, and testing and characterization of resins and 3D-printed parts.
Dr. Naylor will work with Product Development Chemist Dr. Siobhan Kilbride, who recently completed her Ph.D. and has first-hand experience of producing the resins in Birmingham’s laboratories.
Complementing the operational and laboratory based teams, 4D Biomaterials is now also working with consultant Dr. Phil Reeves, a highly experienced 3D printing technologist and strategist who has worked with leading global companies on additive manufacturing in the medical device sector.
Philip Smith said, “Thanks to Innovate UK, we have been able to establish a fully-equipped laboratory at MediCity in which we will develop our product range and scale-up manufacture in preparation for a comprehensive pre-clinical testing program. Andrew, Siobhan and Phil have brought a highly valuable mix of experience and talent to the team and have already made good progress in scaling production of the resins and developing designs for our first range of 3D printed medical devices.”
