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Clermont-Ferrand, June 11th 2013 - Acerde, an innovator and producer of rotating anodes for X-ray tubes used by the medical imaging industry, announces that it has received the ISO 9001 label and ended a round of fundraising with Truffle Capital that brought in €1.2 million.
“We are proud to have received the ISO 9001 label, which is an essential step in the industrial production of our rotating anodes. This certification of their quality will guarantee their acceptance by the major international corporations that are our customers,” noted Acerde Chairman Hervé Poirel. “We are grateful to Truffle Capital for once again demonstrating its confidence in us through this most recent round of fundraising, which will enable us to finish our production line and the tests in progress with our major medical imaging customers,” he added. Poirel concluded his remarks by saying “We are currently at a key stage of our development and all the necessary conditions have been met so that we can speed up our marketing stage. In the near future, Acerde hopes to receive the support of a major international company to establish its presence on a global scale.”
Funding
Acerde has raised a total of €5.4 million since its creation. Of this amount, €1.2 has come from the funders, start-up and business angel funds, and in 2011 €3 million came from Truffle Capital to launch the pilot anode production unit and establish ISO 9001 certification. Finally, €1.2 million was received from its historic investor, Truffle Capital, in 2013 to finish the installation of its production line and update its light rotating anodes.
Acerde also received €100,000 in the form of a start-up loan in 2008 from OSEO, from which it
received a further €300,000 in 2010 for innovation support. Through its three-year export assistance contract with Coface, it received €70,000 annually for exports to the USA, Asia, Germany and Italy.
Acerde expertise
Acerde has expertise in two areas: innovative use of materials and control of the entire manufacturing chain. When it was created, Acerde developed two activities based on innovative materials. The first involved the development of a material, aluminium nitride (AlN), which is used in the manufacturing of UV diodes for water treatment. The second activity was the commercial development of a technology based on the HTCVD (High-Temperature Chemical Vapor Deposition) method for the next generation of rotating anodes. In 2011, the company focused on anode production after achieving excellent results in tests with key participants in the market. As a result, Acerde has been mass-producing the technology, which has led to a transfer of activity to a specially designed site and an increased production capacity to anticipate future demand.
Acerde Rotating Anodes
Acerde Rotating are much lighter than existing anodes. This major innovation, which is based on expert knowledge of HTCVD technology, makes it possible to achieve excellent rotation speed, heat dissipation and noise reduction performance, which has a major impact on image quality, decreases X-ray doses for patient and increases equipment lifespans. Acerde is currently the only company in the world to offer a technological breakthrough of this kind and occupy a position as a leader in an indispensible development in the medical imaging sector.
“Our anodes have the innovations necessary to allow our customers to break into tomorrow’s medical imaging markets and technologies, including angiography, cardiography, mammography and the next generation of CT scanners,” said Hervé Poirel.
The global rotating anode market for X-ray tubes generates 300,000 parts per year (around €250 million), which are manufactured mostly for export (USA, China, Japan, Germany, Italy). The first manufacturing unit has been set up for annual production of 1,000 to 1,500 anodes. Acerde has signed several cooperation agreements with many key participants in the sector and already has numerous pre-production orders, thus giving it a position on various markets in the United States, Germany, Italy, France, China and Japan. In time, Acerde hopes to obtain 10% of this market. Acerde’s customers include some of the major names in medical imaging, as well as equipment manufacturers who make their own X-ray tubes.
Acerde receives support from Truffle Capital, a major European investment capital firm[1].
About Acerde
Acerde is a young innovative enterprise (Jeune Entreprise Innovante) created in 2006 and is based in the Grenoble region. It designs and develops components for medical imaging equipment used in CT scans, mammography, angiography, and interventional imaging equipment. At its creation, Acerde received support from Rhône-Alpes regional start-up and business angel funds and support from Truffle Capital, its historic investor, to enable its growth. Acerde has established its first production unit and signed several cooperation agreements with top-ranking participants in the medical imaging field. The company employs 15 people.
To learn more: www.acerde.com
Press contacts:
Acerde
Hervé Poirel, Chairman
hpoirel@acerde.com
04 76 26 48 27
ALIZE RP
Caroline Carmagnol - 06 64 18 99 59 caroline@alizerp.com
Christian Berg - 01 42 68 86 41
christian@alizerp.com
Truffle Capital was founded in Paris in 2001 and is an undisputed leader in European venture capital. It invests in and builds up technological leaders in the fields of Information Technologies, Life Sciences and Energy. Truffle Capital manages €550 million through venture capital funds and innovation funds (FCPIs). FCPIs enjoy reduced tax rates and the funds are frozen for seven to ten years. For more information, visit www.truffle.fr and www.fcpi.fr.
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