Stirling-based nanomaterial producer iGii has secured £8.8 million in new funding to accelerate its growth.

Formerly known as Integrated Graphene, the company will use the funds to grow and scale customer projects, increase its manufacturing capacity, and deepen its research and development to explore further applications of its patented Gii™ material.

iGii also plans to expand its facilities and continue creating highly-skilled local jobs.

The latest funding round was led by a £4m injection from the Scottish National Investment Bank, with a further £4.8m from existing shareholders Archangels and Par Equity, both of which first invested in the business in 2020.

It follows Jean-Christophe Granier joining the business as CEO in September 2023 to enhance its commercial performance.

Gii™ is a 3D foam made from carbon atoms. It combines the desirable physical properties of graphene, such as sensitivity, flexibility, and conductivity, without its scale-up and mass application challenges.

It’s also an environmentally sustainable material as it is manufactured using a proven low-energy and chemical-free process, producing minimal waste and making the material more cost effective than traditional sensing materials, such as gold.

The cash injection will help iGii scale manufacturing of Gii-Sens™, its highly-sensitive and accurate component for point-of-care diagnostic sensors.

The firm said that this application of Gii™ is experiencing strong demand globally due to its ability to deliver precise, laboratory-level results for a range of illnesses and indicators of illness, such as cancers, pathogens, and liver and heart failure.

The company will also deepen its R&D into other applications of Gii™, targeting improved performance for water and food quality sensors, agricultural sensors, and battery storage.

A recent collaboration with the University of Bath used Gii-Sens™ to underpin a new battery-free sensor for testing lactic acid in athletes.

This opens up the possibility for an easy-to-use sensor that is available in remote locations—such as an athletics track—without the need for electricity-powered sensing equipment.

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Speaking on the new funding, Granier, the chief executive officer at iGii, commented: “We are laser-focused on bringing our revolutionary Gii™ technology to markets, with immediate and significant opportunities in the healthcare sector.

“This additional funding will enable us to accelerate ongoing customer projects and invest in our reel-to-reel manufacturing capabilities to deliver commercial quantities of Gii™ worldwide for our customers.”