Innovation Mentoring by Proteus

In the recent WBT2012, 110 companies gave six minute presentations showcasing emerging technologies representing a variety of industry sectors ranging cleantech to medical device, to software and advanced materials. These companies include university spin-outs, startups, market ready university and federal lab innovations. Most of these companies had been funded by the founders and their family, angel funds, venture capital, state and federal grants; and through the exposure at WBT, they were seeking angel capital, venture capital (including seed and early stage), exclusive and non-exclusive licensing partners, co-sponsored research partners, corporate strategic partners.

Five of those teams were mentored by Proteus Consulting. They were:

• eQube™ & EmirSM by Groundmetrics
• Water Conservation Technology for residential, commercial and Institutional Buildings by Eco Products Group, Inc
• "Super Whale" Caudal Cycle Propellers-Pumps and Fans by Admiral Fluidics
• GestyMe by Shailah Interactive
• iWatchLife

We also sat through dress rehearsals for six other presenters. Through the mentoring process we helped these companies to hone their presentations to make the maximum impact and gain recognition. Every company has their challenges, be it funding, communication, presentation skills or others. We helped them to stay on message and connect with the audience. 

It was great to see that mentees present during the conference with confidence. And we are VERY HAPPY to announce that one of the above mentioned teams, Groundmetrics, won the Runners Up award!

Technology Spotlight: Aquaporin

We live on the blue planet, yet only 1% of the 'blue gold' is available to the 7+ billion people.

We all think desalination is the solution to our impending water problems. If we can somehow take the 97.5% of salt water and cost effectively desalt it, we will have enough water for everyone! But, this comes at a cost. The current technologies for desalination are expensive, not only in capital, i.e. to build treatment plants, but also require a lot of energy to operate. The most common desalination technology is reverse osmosis (RO), where we push water against a very thin membrane with tiny holes. (Think kidneys) These holes allow only water molecules to go through and leaves behind the salt (concentrate / brine). To push water against the membrane requires high pressure and hence is very energy intensive. However, it is interesting to note that the energy requirement for RO desalinated water has reduced by half over the last decade. This is primarily because membrane manufacturers have designed better performing membranes. The technology is about 65% efficient at this stage. It will be foolish to expect that we can achieve 100% efficiency in the next decade, as you can never get 100% efficiency in any technology. However, it is reasonable that we will be slowly edging towards 70-75% efficiency. Moore's Law will not apply to this technology, and further 'fine-tuning' of this technology will  yield diminishing returns.

So where is the innovation? Can we reduce the need for pressure all together? A Danish company is using biomimicry and embedding proteins in membranes that can regulate the flow of water. Ever wonder how mangroves grow in brackish water? How do they filter out the salts and absorb water? The protein is called aquaporin and it sits within cell membranes. In 2003, Dr. Peter Agre was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (which he shared with Dr. Roderick MacKinnon) for his discovery of aquaporins. These proteins are also in our red blood cells, kidneys, eye lenses, almost anywhere there is water transfer across membranes. The company, Aquaporin A/S, is currently working on developing membranes that will desalinate water by a very different mechanism from the current traditional RO methods, and possibly with smaller energy footprint.



This technology is still in development phase but shows great promise. The initial trials with NASA have proven quite successful. We wish Aquaporin A/S success in their endeavors, and look forward to their product in the market in the near future.

The Challenge for CleanTech

PROTEUS Consulting is very involved in CleanTech and we are pleased to see the innovation happening in recycling, renewable energy (wind, solar, hydro, biofuels, biomass), energy efficiency, water efficiency, gray water, lighting, electric motors, information technology, and green transportation. The aim of these technologies are to create a smaller environmental footprint and reduce pollution. This indeed great that it's happening, it was needed.

The concern that we have, however, is about sustainability. Sustainability is about incorporating all the three aspects - economic, environmental, and people, and to look at viability of a technology / project on a long-tern life-cycle scale. This is best shown in this graphic by Water Corporation.

Most CleanTech projects we are finding these days are predominantly in the second Economic slice (i.e. "Find Efficiencies"). Most technologies deal with "Prevent Harm" in Environmental slice with very few actually looking at "Conserve Environmental Value". As for the Social aspect, most of these technologies are also in the first slice - "Protect Health & Wellbeing".

We feel that the push has to be towards "Create Value, Enhance Ecological Resilience, and Enhance Communities". For that life cycle analysis of the proposed technologies is essential and imperative. As an end-user, owners should ask for a comprehensive assessment of the entire technology and evaluate it's complete impact. As a clean technology provider, one should also look at presenting this information to the client. How else can a technology really be proclaimed as a 'CleanTech'? What are the metrics?

Another post on this issue can be found here.

Incubator for Promising New Technologies

Proteus acts as an Incubator for promising new technologies that have the potential to benefit the water and wastewater industry. Right now, Proteus has one client in this arena and is having initial talks with four other clients.

As an incubator for a new technology, Proteus provides the following services:

• Marketing. Introduce the business to water and wastewater clients who need the new technology.
• Strategic Partners. Help network with other businesses with complementary services to create a strong team.
• Funding. Review technology and find Federal / State/ Other funding opportunities for project implementation.
• Training. Train the business leaders on the 'way-to-do-business' with the water and wastewater agencies, municipal organizations, State and Federal government.
• Business Development. Help with regulatory compliance and permitting. Help chart out the path to future in the water and wastewater industry.
• Mentor. Help with presentations targeted to clients' needs, help with business basics, technology commercialization advice.

Why does Proteus do this? At Proteus we believe that "You do not invent the transistor while trying to perfect the vacuum tube". Our water and wastewater industry has been too slow to adopt new ideas and technologies. Most of the development in this industry over the last three decades has been trying to perfect what we already have. We have almost as many associations as there are people in the industry and in most of these meetings you find the same kind of presentations and thoughts. We are spinning our wheels! 

With the CleanTech and Social Connectivity revolution sweeping the planet right now, our industry has a lot to benefit from it. There are innovative technologies being developed and some of them have great promise. Proteus wants to introduce these new and fresh ideas to our industry and help the industry and the entrepreneurs find a perfect match. Yes, we are a kind of 'match-making' service!

How do we do this? Proteus is here to help both the entrepreneur with the new idea and the municipal client. We understand and appreciate the issues from both sides. Our core philosophy in operating our business is to help create a win-win situation - the municipal client gets their need resolved with a fit-for-purpose solution, while the entrepreneur gets established as a credible technology provider in the water and wastewater industry. We do not push or peddle a technology where there is no need for it, we are not a sales representative. Rather we are a business consultant to both parties, enabling a perfect fit between 'the need' and 'the solution'. This is how we do it:

• We will need to know details about your technology, it's promise and it's limitations. We will gladly sign an NDA. Please be very frank with us on the details. We are not here to steal your intellectual property, we are here to help you build a successful product and business.
• We work with you as a consultant on retainer.
• We will be your guide and be on a constant look out for opportunities for you. We will be your support for marketing, finding strategic partners, help you look for funding, chart your course through permitting, etc. We will be your friend, through thick and thin.

At Proteus, we have a penchant for sustainable solutions - economic, environmental, and social. The technologies that we support need to be environmentally viable, provide a measurable benefit to the water / wastewater industry, and have a way to ease the life of everyone using the technology.