The company tasted success and started its financial windfall at the 2019 Texas A&M New Ventures Competition (TNVC) in the summer of 2019. The first-time TNVC competitors won the second place award and its accompanying $35,000 check as well as the Texas A&M Engineering Extension (TEEX) Product Development Center Prize of $10,000, walking away with a total of $45,000.
At the same competition, SurfEllent managed to snag the attention of several other interested parties, including the U.S. Department of Defense. Three months down the road and many discussions later, a private company, which wishes to remain confidential, invested $350,000 in seed funding.
In addition, the DoD encouraged SurfEllent representatives to apply for federal grants. About the same time, an independent study out of the University of Iowa proved the efficacy of SurfEllent’s current coating by trying it out on a jet engine. As a result, SurfEllent was also awarded a $50,000 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant and a $24,999 Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant this summer. Full details can be read about here.
