Milwaukee-based biotech company Aluvis International, Inc. is raising capital to produce a system that can sanitize a large volume of mobile devices in high-traffic locations.
Located in the Third Ward at 310 E. Buffalo St., the biotech company recently raised $649,999 with plans to launch its product in the summer, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The funds were raised by 5 investors and the total offering amount for the round is $750,000.
Aluvis International’s system uses UV patented technology to sanitize mobile devices and tablets in as little as 20 seconds. The user feeds the mobile device on one end of the system and a conveyor belt carries the mobile device across a UV lamp, which sanitizes the device, according to the company’s website.
The product would be used in hospitals, hotels, airports, and other high-traffic areas, said Greg Wachter, Aluvis International president.
“What we wanted was a device that has fast throughput,” Wachter said. “For hotels, airports and hospitals, you have a lot of people coming in all the time and what you can’t have is bottlenecking.”
Research shows that mobile devices are a reservoir of many pathogenic bacteria and viruses. Wachter said the goal of the product is to reduce another contamination point, which is top of mind amidst the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the reopening of the economy.
“I think everyone is contributing to reopening the economy and this is just one of the many solutions,” Wachter said.
The company’s UV light system is 99.9 percent effective against Clostridium Difficile (C.Diff), Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), Vancomycin Resistant Enterococci (VRE), and Acinetobacter Baumanii, according to its website.
By August, Aluvis International plans to launch its product in 36 states. The 25-pound system costs $4,999 but can also be rented for $165 a month.
Although Aluvis International is based in Milwaukee, the company will manufacture its product in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Aluvis International chose Milwaukee as its headquarters because two of the company’s partners, Mark and Matthew Wichman, are Aurora Health Care orthopedic surgeons, Wachter said.
Aluvis International began developing its UV sanitizing system in 2017. The biotech company purchased the patents for its sanitation system four years ago from Angelini Pharma Inc., a Maryland-based health care company that specializes in dialysis infection control products.
Get more news and insight in the April 27 issue of BizTimes Milwaukee. Subscribe to get updates in your inbox here.
