Sep 17 2010
FibeRio Technology Corporation, a company that is transforming the materials market through the unlimited availability of nanofibers, recently announced the completion of a Series A financing, a $1.5 million award from the Texas State Emerging Technology Fund, and has taken steps to complete its senior management staff, board of directors and Technical Advisory Board.
The Company is built on the foundation of nanofiber technology developed at the University of Texas-Pan American by Dr. Karen Lozano and Dr. Kamal Sarkar. Dr. Lozano, who serves as the Chief Technology Officer of FibeRio, expresses her “delight seeing the progress the Company has made to bring this technology to commercial fruition.” Mr. Ellery Buchanan, FibeRio’s CEO and Co-Founder, reiterates the importance of collaboration between academia, government and the private sector, reiterating FibeRio’s “continuing thanks to UTPA and local community leaders and our commitment to advancing economic growth and the technology industry in the Rio Grande Valley.”
“I am pleased to announce that we have attracted a world class team of academic and industry talent that will ensure the widespread acceptance of FibeRio’s disruptive technology for nanofiber production called Forcespinning™. The team of scientists and executives we have assembled is committed to advancing the use of nanofibers for improved material performance in filtration, energy storage, textile, biomedical and various other nonwoven applications” adds Mr. Buchanan. Mr. Buchanan went on to say “The following individuals will now be contributing to FibeRio’s success:
Larry F. Thompson, PhD, Managing Partner of the IPSS Consulting Company has joined the Board of Directors of FibeRio Corporation. Dr. Thompson brings 35 years of materials research and capital equipment experience and has held CEO, President, CTO, and board member positions through his career. Dr. Thompson holds a PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University of Missouri and has over 160 publications to his credit, is a past member of the Board of Directors of the American Chemical Society and a past Bell Labs Fellow.
Roger Lipton joins the Company as Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing and has a history ofbuilding early stage companies. Mr. Lipton’s background includes being a former CEO with 30 years of sales, marketing and corporate development experience focused in medical devices and tissue engineering. Mr. Lipton currently serves on the Board of Directors of SpineSelect, LLC.
Chris Ellison, PhD, has accepted an invitation to join FibeRio’s Technical Advisory Board. Dr. Ellison is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering at the University of Texas at Austin. His experience with nanofiber production methodologies, material’s characterization and interest in advanced polymer and ceramic fiber development makes Dr. Ellison an invaluable addition to the TAB. Dr. Ellison received his PhD in chemical engineering from Northwestern University.
FibeRio was formed to make Forcespinning™ Technology, the next generation of nanofiber production equipment, commercially available for both research and development and high-volume industrial applications. Originally developed as a solution to the tedious and costly electrospinning process of fabricating polymeric nanofibers, Forcespinning™ is so thoroughly innovative that it can also process metals, ceramics, carbon and conductive polymers in the nanoscale – all at commercial production levels. Forcespinning™ technology utilizes centrifugal force rather than electrostatic force. Without electrostatic force, an entire new realm of possibilities opens up. FibeRio is launching the Cyclone L-1000 Series lab scale systems by year-end, which is targeted for both academic and industrial research communities. Subsequent products are being developed for commercial applications and will offer unparalleled levels of production capacity.