Liverpool Science Park News & Press

Albert Medical Devices, based in Liverpool Science Park, has secured £50,000 from the £25m biomedical fund.

The biomedical fund is part of the £185m North West Fund that is jointly financed by the Brussels funded European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and the European Investment Bank (EIB).

The idea for an intelligent leg bag was developed by Albert Medical Devices' founder Trevor Wills, who wanted to find a way to improve his father's quality of life following a severe stroke.

Existing leg bag products have remained unchanged for more than 70 years and are difficult for some people to empty. Also, wearers have no way of knowing when the bag is full.

AMD's new Melio system overcomes these disadvantages by replacing the tap with a tiny pump and employing a simple computerised level detector. A miniature computer controller clips onto the waist belt and puts the wearer in charge.

Mr Wills said: "We have been trying for a number of months to raise finance for this opportunity, and the Biomedical fund have been a great help in not only filling this round but in helping us close this investment."

Dr Penny Attridge, senior investment director at fund manager Spark Impact, said: "We are hoping the company will grow rapidly, and achieve significant sales in a short period of time.