Permasense turn to The Think Tank to launch new company in risk-averse sector

The challenge
Permasense Limited is a rapidly growing developer and manufacturer of permanently-installed sensor-based monitoring systems. The company was initially spun out of research work at Imperial College London by the technology transfer company Imperial Innovations. 

Led by a highly qualified team with many years’ experience supplying technology to the oil industry, Permasense was first to market with its robust continuous corrosion monitoring system. It needed to make the most of this first mover advantage.

Based on a patented, waveguide-mounted ultrasonic sensor that can be permanently fitted to pipework operating under extreme conditions, the system was been proven in application at BP refineries in Germany and the US as part of BP's Refining & Logistics Technology programme. Such monitoring was usually conducted by manual inspection, with resultant Health & Safety and cost implications.

The challenge was launch a new company and product to the risk-adverse oil and gas sector as the technology became commercially available.