A Toronto-based biotechnology company is coming to London and investing $1.2-million to produce materials for masks and other personal protective equipment (PPE).
BIOSA Technologies is a research and development firm that supports other organizations in creating eco-friendly products. The company is currently building a 4,000 square foot facility in London where it will manufacture an anti-viral and anti-bacterial non-woven material for use in N95 and N99 masks.
On Monday, the Ontario government announced it will invest $615,000 to help BIOSA ramp up production. The endowment is made through the Ontario Together Fund, a grant focused on supporting homegrown manufacturing and innovation to combat COVID-19.
The company said it was attracted to set up shop in the forest city as it has strong ties with Western University and saw the potential industrial and commercial partners London has to offer.
"We know London is poised to be a leader in pandemic prevention – it has such a strong academic and research community, and great commercial resources. This was a big draw for coming here," said BIOSA's chief executive officer, Nicholas Ledra. "It's also a great spot for collaboration. We use a lot of biomass and landfill-bound agricultural waste in developing our products since they are designed to be eco-friendly and compostable, and by being in London, we're close to local agricultural groups."
Ledra added that he's looking forward to expanding in London and plans to scale up the company's capabilities in the next year to match market demands.
"Through this investment, we can have an even greater impact through our advanced PPE material, as well as pursue novel applications of it for HVAC filtration in schools and hospitals. We're excited to see where the technology can go."
BIOSA was founded in 2018. It went on to develop a filtration product with pores that are a fifth of the size of the pores in current N95 masks. The material provides protection when wet and can be composted or cleaned for re-use.
