Investment

Braveheart Investment Group plc 20 August 2007 20 August 2007 Braveheart Investment Group plc ('Braveheart' or the 'Group') Alpha EIS Fund invests in Traak Systems Ltd Braveheart (AIM: BRH), the technology commercialisation and investment management company, announces that it has made its seventh investment from its Alpha EIS Fund, investing c£100,000 in Traak Systems Ltd ('Traak'), a spin-out from the University of Edinburgh. Founded in late 2005, Traak joined the Edinburgh Pre-Incubator Scheme ('EPIS') programme at the University of Edinburgh in May 2006, and was awarded a SMART: Scotland grant of £50,000 in January this year. Traak is developing intelligent self-learning radio frequency identification ('RFID') and sensor network products and services for the efficient processing of data in the growing RFID sector. RFID enables companies to track individual items or vehicles, store additional data and scan multiple items at one time. This can improve efficiencies in the supply chain, reduce waste and theft. The use of RFID technology is increasing to the point where large volumes of data created may overwhelm existing network infrastructures. RFID tag demand is projected to grow from $300m in 2004 to $3bn by 2009. RFID is commonly used for a wide variety of applications, such as payment systems (Oyster cards on London Underground) access control (new-style UK and US passports) and retail (Wal-Mart uses RFID to monitor its supply chain). The software Traak is developing will filter out unwanted noise thereby facilitating more manageable and efficient processing of raw RFID data. This allows essential data to be transformed into meaningful information in real time and avoids potential network and server overloads. To date Traak has already signed an agreement with a leading manufacturer of Wi-Fi based, real time location systems. The funds being invested will be used to provide working capital to complete the development of the RFID filtering technology, and to further develop partnering and / or licensing opportunities. Commenting, Chief Investment Officer of Braveheart, Carolyn Smith, said, 'The growth of the RFID market has been well-documented, with companies able to track vehicles, products and other items with exact precision, providing them with invaluable data. The products Traak is developing will enable users to cope with the impending avalanche of information that these technologies will generate. 'We are pleased to be investing in another University of Edinburgh spin-out. As announced in June, we are in the process of setting up a dedicated £25 million fund to invest in these type of projects and we expect this fund to be fully operational in 2008.' Colin Balfour, Managing Director, Traak Systems Limited added, 'Since establishing Traak in 2005, we have achieved a number of important milestones. This round of funding into the company will enable us to accelerate and complete the development of our core technology and enable us to further explore partnering or licensing opportunities, ahead of a formal product launch next year.' Braveheart Investment Group Tavistock Communications Traak Systems Limited Geoffrey Thomson Rachel Drysdale Colin Balfour Chief Executive Simon Hudson Managing Director Tel: 01738 587555 Tel: 020 7920 3150 Tel: 0131 478 4784 rdrysdale@tavistock.co.uk www.traak.com The Alpha EIS Fund ('the Fund') Established in December 2005, the £2.5 million Fund was set up as a tax efficient vehicle to invest in early-stage, university spin out companies, rich in intellectual property, with potential for significant growth, through the commercialisation of their IP. The Fund is managed by Braveheart and participants and co-investors include Bank of Scotland Corporate, Scottish Enterprise's Co-investment Fund and Braveheart's own clients. The Fund will deliver a minimum of ten EIS qualifying investments, sourced through the Group's unique framework of strong formal relationships with Scottish universities and business parks. To date the Fund has made 7 investments from the Alpha Fund, totalling c£1 million. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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