IROA Technologies launched its first product last year, and the Ann Arbor-based startup has started to reap some of the rewards of that hard work.
The 5-year-old company has signed up a couple of dozen of clients and entered into a lucrative licensing agreement with the University of Florida for its metabolomic testing kits.
"That (the product roll out) went really well," says Felice de Jong, CEO of
IROA Technologies. "We now have about 30 collaborators and groups using our product."
IROA Technologies got its started as NextGen Metabolomics in 2010. It changed its name to its current brand in 2013 and scored a $1 million Series A early last year. That money went toward the development of testing kits for yeast and bacteria, which can help identify key metabolites in the diagnosis of diseases, such as cancer.
IROA Technologies reached a big milestone last year when it signed its licensing agreement with the
Southeast Center for Integrated Metabolomics at the University of Florida. The agreement proved to be a big bit of validation for the testing kits , attracting new customers.
"That has played a key strategic role with us," de Jong says.
IROA Technologies plans to continue to line up more customers this year in an effort to increase its revenue. It has also added a sales person to its core team of 10 people. The company is not planning on raising a Series B anytime soon.
"We have been doing well on the revenue front," de Jong says. "We can reinvest in the company."
Source: Felice de Jong, CEO of IROA Technologies
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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