Thu, 10 Apr 2014 | ADMINISTRATION
Westco Medical, the creator of an innovative feeding tube checking product, has entered administration.
The joint administrators, Matt Dunham and Andy McGill of accountancy and investment management group Smith & Williamson, are optimistic that a sale of the company will be achieved, to secure the future of the product.
The business, based in Liverpool’s Science Park, is behind a device called NG POD that detects the correct position of a feeding tube in a patient’s stomach.
The NG POD is used to simplify the daily procedure that ensures the correct position of feeding tubes, which can be tricky, and potentially life-threatening, and involves taking X-rays, which may be inappropriate to all patients. The NG POD also cuts costs, it is £2 a test, where an X-ray costs about £31.
The device is geared towards the nasogastric incubation market, which is said to be worth over £500 million. Hospitals have regular requirements for feeding tubes such as scenarios when patients are unconscious, sedated or are unable to eat for other reasons.
Sean Thomas and George Gallagher founded the business in 2009, and have received three bouts of funding from different companies, including Spark Impact, already.
Westco entered administration after finding it difficult to secure funding in the current economic climate, joint administrator Mr Dunham told the Liverpool Echo.
“Westco is a victim of the current investment climate where it can be difficult to secure even final round funding.
“In the case of NG POD, it was in the latter stages of product development and was about the enter user trials.
“Discussions had been held with a number of distributors in the UK who could see the NG POD was fulfilling an unmet need in the NHS,” he said.
The product has already generated a lot of interest from potential buyers. The administrators are optimistic that the product will make it through to market.
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