Rolls-Royce invests
in Oxford BioSignals
November 2003 - Oxford BioSignals Ltd (OBS)
announces that Rolls-Royce plc has made a strategic
equity investment in the Company, in a wide-ranging
agreement for future growth and development. The
partnership between the Oxford University spin-out
company, a leader in the intelligent signal processing
field, and the international aerospace company will
provide a comprehensive foundation for OBS to achieve
its commercials goals.
In addition to a cash contribution of £3.2m,
Rolls-Royce is also making a commitment to significant
future business with OBS who will provide intelligent
signalling processing products and solutions for
engine condition monitoring technology across all
Rolls-Royce market sectors. The total consideration
values OBS at a substantial premium to the initial
investment round of May 2000.
Dr Chris Floyd, Business Development Director for
Rolls-Royce said, “The technology provided
by Oxford BioSignals enables us to analyse output
from multiple sensors on an aircraft engine in an
integrated way, rather than relying on several different
instruments. This will allow us to detect trends
in engine performance more effectively. Our investment
in Oxford BioSignals also gives us an opportunity
to capitalise on the value of this technology to
other markets. All in all this is a very exciting
development for the company.”
As part of the new investment, Rolls-Royce is assigning
patented technology to OBS. In support of the partnership,
the University of Oxford and its technology transfer
business, ISIS Innovation, are contributing intellectual
property and extending existing healthcare licences
held by the company to cover all areas of application.
OBS has been developing and supplying innovative
diagnostic monitoring solutions to the healthcare
market since it was founded in May 2000. Over the
last two years, it has expanded its activities to
supply jet engine condition monitoring products to
the Rolls-Royce aero engine business in the UK, Europe,
US and Far East.
The unique technology underlying the company’s
comprehensive diagnostic and monitoring systems derives
from the work of Professor Lionel Tarassenko’s
group in the Department of Engineering Science at
the University of Oxford. The main application of
this technology to jet engines won the Rolls-Royce
Chairman’s Team Award for Technical Innovation
in 2001.
Oxford BioSignals believe: ‘This
investment by Rolls-Royce provides us with an excellent
platform for the next stage of our development. We
are poised to deliver innovative diagnostic products
to the healthcare industry and to develop solutions
for the various Rolls-Royce market sectors. In addition,
we can now target other engineering markets where
our core technology will provide significant advances
in condition monitoring. ’
Allan Cockell, Chairman of Comvest says "OBS
is a world leader in the select but fast-growing
market of predictive diagnostic systems. The ability
to identify with accuracy precursors to significant
events within a complex system such as a jet engine
is part of the information OBS provides its customers
via its advanced monitoring and diagnostics products.
Rolls-Royce's investment will immediately boost the
range, scope and markets for these and Comvest Limited,
which provided the start-up capital to launch the
Company, is delighted to share its vision for OBS
with a company of Rolls-Royce's pedigree." |
