CrayoNano Case Study
What
Automated solutions for disinfection of water, air, and surfaces.
CoFounders role
CEO & Cofounder
CrayoNano is a spinoff from the Department of Electronics and Telecommunications at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU). Today, the company is a leader in the industry of photonics and electronic device technologies. They specialize in developing various automated solutions for disinfection of water, air, and surfaces, among other things.
CrayoNano’s solutions are designed for a healthier future.
The origin of CrayoNano stems from the work of its founders: Dr. Helge Weman, Dr. Bjørn-Ove Fimland, and Dr. Dong-Chul Kim. Together, they conducted research on a new hybrid semiconductor technology. The technology built upon Weman and Fimland’s expertise in nanotechnology and incorporated Kim’s knowledge of the emerging material graphene. The result was a hyper-material that combined nanowires on graphene, creating a revolutionary combination characterized by its strain-free nature and high crystal quality. This breakthrough laid the foundation for a new generation of nanomaterial-based semiconductor devices.
The founders collaborated with NTNU TTO in 2010 to patent the new technology. CrayoNano was established in June 2012 together with CoFounder, and Morten Frøseth served as the CEO until 2017. We worked closely with the founders to assess market potential and held customer meetings in Asia and the USA, gaining valuable insights. Significant capital was raised for early-stage development and the creation of an industrial production line.
CrayoNano’s innovative solution has the potential to revolutionize the UV-C LED market, overcoming previous technical limitations. Their energy-efficient and compact solutions can be seamlessly integrated into various disinfection applications, including water, air, and surface disinfection.
With a promising market opportunity, efforts were focused on industrialization. Capital was raised in 2017 and 2019 to establish a dedicated development laboratory in Trondheim. This eliminated the need for outsourcing R&D work abroad, resulting in streamlined operations and efficient industrialization.
The work at CrayoNano demonstrates how CoFounder can participate in spinning off early-stage technology from research and development. Together with the founders, we have collaborated on raising necessary capital and uncovering the market potential of the technology. This laid the foundation for where the company stands today.
— Morten Frøseth, partner CoFounder
Result
Today, CrayoNano has established a large-scale production in Taiwan. The company was listed on the NOTC list in 2021 and the next step is a listing on Euronext Growth. CrayoNano currently has around 40 employees.