A Southampton company is gaining
world-wide recognition for its unique approach to pest control.
A spinout company of the University of
Southampton, ExoSect has moved into the Business Incubator at
Southampton Science Park, Southampton. Formed in 1999, ExoSect
commercialises the innovative pest control technology developed from
more than 30 years' research work by Professor Philip Howse OBE and his
team.
The pressure to use alternative ways of
controlling pesticides is growing and so ExoSect's aim is to reduce
pesticides in the environment, by trapping or disrupting the mating
cycle of insects in an environmentally friendly way.
The patented technology consists of
electrostatically charged powders or magnetic powders to disable the
insects so that they fall into a trap or to coat the insect with
pheromones to disrupt mating.
Phil Harris, Business Operations Manager
at ExoSect, said, "At present the company has seven full time employees,
four of whom have been recruited from the University, the remainder from
industry, so we have a good blend of R & D excellence with business
acumen. We are continuously researching and developing new technology as
well as concentrating on basic concepts to focus new products on a wider
range of insect pest species."
