Kromek Share Discussion Threads

[quepassa] 13/9/2021 11:32:01

Can anybody please explain in simple terms the underlying scientific methods which Kromek are using for pathogen/covid detection?

Thank you.

ALL IMO. DYOR.
QP

[b00mb0y] 13/9/2021 10:23:18

Sad state of affairs is this kmk. I was hoping AQC was going to be correct with his .25p target for Friday gone. Then some more considering Wednesday’s detectors showcase. Don’t look like it’s going to hit .25p ever.

[davethechef] 13/9/2021 09:01:09

Correction: Boris to talk tomorrow now, on living/managing with Covid going forward.

[simithy] 12/9/2021 17:35:25

I'm thinking that there's a massive difference between sequencing bacterial strains (eg. anthrax - who cares)) and Covid type viruses. Although whole RNA strands can now be sequenced using nanopore methods, such viruses seem to have a poorly understood error checking replication process, possibly involving the NSP14 protein amoungst others. Specificity is thus paramount. The Polio virus and its vaccine only now differ in one nucleotide, I believe, by way of an example.

A specificity at this level would be awesome.

IMO - GLA

[vickiitwo2] 12/9/2021 17:34:07

...because they've realised they've wasted more public money on pie in the sky gadgetry. Taken hook line and sinker like a lot in the early panic days i suspect.

[aqc888] 11/9/2021 22:46:49

Why are politicians shying away from mentioning the investment they’ve made in a U.K. company that is so relevant to the biggest news story of the last 1.5yrs? I just don’t get it. Absolutely zero mention of the detector by any politician apart from the mayor of Teesside. Usually politicians are desperate to show various ways they are attempting to tackle problems, take credit for ground breaking British innovations. Yet here it’s complete and utter silence.

[aqc888] 11/9/2021 22:28:58

What strikes me as a bit weird is no public mention of the detector by a government minister despite the government giving Kromek £1.25m, then another £350k to develop the covid detector. Even when Kwasi Kwarteng, Secretary of State for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) visited Kromeks office a month ago he didn’t even make a passing comment about the detector to the press in any of his interviews. Very odd given Kromek have been given government backing and Kromeks biological pathogen detector is so relevant to the news.

[aqc888] 11/9/2021 19:50:17

To be fair it wasn’t anything new from the annual report, see below...

Biological-Threat Detection
The outbreak of COVID-19 has exposed the world to the severity of biological threats and their potential impact on public health and the global economy, demonstrating the need to rapidly evolve bio-security systems and associated technologies. Kromek had already commenced development work on a biological-threat detection solution prior to the outbreak of the pandemic and significantly progressed its activities in this market during the year. This development has continued post period.
Since H2 2019, Kromek has been working with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (“DARPA”), an agency of the US Department of Defense, to develop a biological threat detection system that senses, analyses and identifies airborne pathogens under a programme that was established to combat bioterrorism. This activity was accelerated during the year and Kromek was awarded a contract extension worth up to $5.2m.
Over the past two years, milestones achieved under this DARPA programme have included the development of a vehicle-mounted biological-threat identifier that can be deployed as a mobile wide-area bio-surveillance system. Post period, the Group received a $6m contract from DAPRA for the next phase of the programme that will seek to deliver a completely automated wide spectrum airborne pathogen detection system that is fully mobile and runs autonomously. This system is being designed to be networkable and provide wide-area monitoring capability in near real time.
With the onset of the pandemic, Kromek also focused on the development of its technology for applications specifically related to COVID-19 detection. This included working under a programme funded by Innovate UK to customise the Group’s biological threat-detection solution to support end-use cases for COVID-19 detection and mitigation, and to then undergo piloting with those user groups. The Group engaged with potential customers for the system to develop deployment models and identify how it can best fit their needs ahead of customisation. In the second half of the year, the Group commenced piloting the system for the detection of airborne COVID-19 at an airport. Post period, the piloting has been expanded to include schools, a second airport, being Teesside International Airport, and other locations. The Group has also engaged in validation of the technology in third party laboratories and the results are very positive on both the detection levels, sensitivity and false alarm rates, making the technology performance comparable to existing RT PCR test protocols.

[33mick] 11/9/2021 19:33:08

This little science article will help to answer your question Ark.
There are no Standards UK ,USA or world wide yet to bench mark Kromek's Patho detection system to as it's a novel design and the combination of technoliges has never be used before.

Guess it was a paper from 2014 ish

[b00mb0y] 11/9/2021 18:19:11

Very weird!

[ark87] 11/9/2021 18:05:32

Correct me if wrong but if we going by official RNS's we have no idea how well this thing actually works. But they are sending out emails saying the trials went "very well". All a bit weird isn't it?

[b00mb0y] 11/9/2021 09:21:42

It seems to me that the detectors are going to have to be a kind of “made to measure” unit depending on where it would be located due to “appropriate use-case models appropriate for the particular location”.
No accreditation as yet.
No orders yet received for these detectors.
Hmmmm……………

[paulbutcher1999] 11/9/2021 08:01:31

“Late reported Buys of 837,809 at 17.75p & 200k at 17.685p shows confidence!”

I never understand comments like thus. Every purchase is also a sale. Every sale a purchase.

[davethechef] 10/9/2021 17:35:41

Late reported Buys of 837,809 at 17.75p & 200k at 17.685p shows confidence!

[nick2412] 10/9/2021 10:27:22

Fair enough AC, I just asked Paul if it okay to copy and he requested I summarise hence my format. Good questions and answers though. I agree and it should be more of a media story. One to tuck away and await the formal test results and news on commercialisation imo.

[aqc888] 10/9/2021 09:44:43

Given all seems on seems on track in terms of progress and timescale I’d say yesterday’s sell off was a little over done. I’m just a bit bewildered why Kromek aren’t engaging with the media more.

[aqc888] 10/9/2021 09:38:45

Morning Andrew

Thank you for your questions and apologies for the slight delay in getting back to you.

In answer to your questions:

How did the biological pathogen detector do in the publicised trials? We have conducted a range of trials and pilots in locations with differing footfall densities and we are now working with those organisations to build and develop appropriate use-case models appropriate for the particular location. The trials went very well and the locations are now evaluating those use-case scenarios and how they might utilise the technology depending on the concentration of Covid or other pathogens present and identified by the technology.
Has the detector been accredited yet by an independent laboratory? The technology has been evaluated by an independent laboratory which determined that it has efficacy equivalent to PCR test standards. However, there is presently no official accreditation standard for measuring airborne pathogen detection so it has not been officially “accredited221;. For information, the equipment will be CE marked when manufactured.
Have any orders been received yet for the detector? We will update the market with commercial progress at the appropriate time.

I hope this helps and thanks for your continued support as a shareholder.

Best regards

Paul

[aqc888] 10/9/2021 09:37:55

Some more responses to questions from the AGM I just received from the CFO.

As questions and answers at an AGM are usually public, I don’t deem the email exchange as private.

[wilsonlough] 09/9/2021 21:01:32

Good points Mick, Santa will be here early this year, there`ll be fireworks too

[33mick] 09/9/2021 14:19:23

ARK87,
I can see you're a hard man to impress, Kromek a small UK company have developed and built the first Patho Airborne detection prototype and have them in testing off the drawing board (well CAD screen) in January this year....months..
There are to my knowledge a number of US and global companies many times the size and resources of Kromek who have tried and failed to crack this much needed design detection solution...it's an all UK tech world's first if you Weren't aware.

The core RNA sequencing tech being used here was deemed almost impossible only a few years ago, 5 years latter £200 mil spent in development and today they're in the news again one of the UK's true success stories.

My first old engineering boss's favourite saying was -

'The Impossible We Can Do at Once, Miracles Take a Little Longer'

He worked on the design of Concorde and knew his stuff.

Kromek are just about to showcase the system at a London Defence exhibition next week not bad going in my book.

[aqc888] 09/9/2021 14:04:06

Ark87, they are still within the timeframe reported in the IC it’s easy to forget with all the impatience by myself and others on here. The article 2months ago said expect news in the coming months. Also the article was reporting on the covid detector which as responses to Nicks emails from the CFO seem to suggest that’s still on track. Who knows what’s going on with it... hopefully we get a bit of news next week at the dsei exhibition. If it gets a little media attention we could see another sugar rush spiral upwards while we await the trial results. A small release of new news or regurgitated old news could see that.