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January 21, 2016: Evonik Industries' venture capital arm hasinvested in Finnish startup company Synoste, in whichEvonik now holds a minority stake.

 

The investment was made as part of an A-series roundtogether with companies, including German High-Tech Gründerfonds, and Finnish venture capital funds Finnveraand Polish Lifeline Ventures.

 

The overall volume of the financing round is in the single-digit million-euro range.

Synoste, founded in 2012, is a spin-off of Finnish Aalto University. The company, together with Orton, a Polish hospital specialized in orthopedics, developed a high-tech implant for a minimally invasive treatment of leg-length discrepancy, which can lead to chronic back pain and osteoarthritis in the long term.

Evonik's Vestakeep-branded PEEK will be used in theimplant. Synoste is expected to launch the implant on themarket in 2017.

 

Evonik has multiplied movements in order to push forward itsPEEK portfolio and to increase its lead on Chinese competitors.

• Last November, Evonik expanded capacity for PEEK polymers in China which started in 2006. https://engage-solvay.jiveon.com/groups/blog-competitive-intelligence/blog/2015/ 11/16/evonik-to-expand-capacity-for-peek-polymers-in-china
• As mentioned in its 2014 annual report (p.10, more…),Evonik also worked on the development of PEEK particles which are able to deliver pharmaceutical actives (API) into the bloodstream.

Comparatively:

• Victrex, market leader, announced last December a £15 million investment in order to support identified “mega-programmes” notably in medical sector.

https://engage-solvay.jiveon.com/groups/blog-competitive-intelligence/blog/2015/ 12/10/victrex-new-investment-of-15-million-in-peek-facility-to-support-identifi e d-mega-programmes-across-the-industrial-and-medical-sectors

• Victrex: new investment of £15 million in PEEK facility to support identified ‘mega-programmes’ across the industrial and medical sectors.Arkema sold its PEKK medical business in June 2011 to the original founders of Oxford Performance Materials to consolidate its industrial activities.

https://engage-solvay.jiveon.com/groups/blog-competitive-intelligence/blog/2011/ 06/06/arkema-consolidates-its-pekk-industrial-activities-and-sells-its-pekk-med i cal-business

 

Sources: Evonik, Chemweek. from Jerome Spiel in Solvay Blog Competitive Intelligence