Business Model - Case Study Innovation and Technology Transfer A breakthrough technology with a real industrial strength is not always enough. Successful marketing requires a clear marketing strategy. French start-up IT company concept was created in 1991 to a national research institute CNRS, tap Search in the laboratories of Robert Verger. Lipases, a group of enzymes that break down oils, are used widely in industry, detergents, in particular. Verger has found a way, oil-water boundary is caused by the disruption of oil study, differences in surface tension by measuring the lipase activity. Known effects, but designed and patented a prototype tensiometer Verger was a commercial instrument.

Cool Tools "Alain Cagna signed a license agreement, and quickly is the first tool is a concept that the enzyme activity at different temperatures and acidity of the media allows to develop the characteristic" partner Cagna, Bernard says Delorme. "It soon both producers and industrial users of lipases have attracted great interest."

In 1994, a device that was sold to Dutch multinational Unilever, but other potential customers are slow to order. Delorme Cagna and found that less hardware and software changes that tensiometers study not only the activity of lipase, but also the stability of foams and emulsions can be used, and to promote it as a tool to start with the interfacial generics to measure stress.

"The stability of the emulsion determines the useful life of foods such as mayonnaise, while a wide range of products is important for the stability of the foam of champagne for industrial cleaning," Delorme says. "Interfacial elasticity and viscosity stability in turn depends on the fault of the user interface of our software to quickly respond to a drop in the CCTV captured images of a sequence, by analyzing these factors can measure .."

Plan for success Shell Petroleum to study high-temperature water asphalt emulsions, and Unilever food production and assuring contact with the separation of Delorme Cagna bought a device that has capabilities in this area. But the concept was out of money. He had developed a number of excellent tools, but had almost no paying customers.