Frontier IP Group has announced that subsidiary of FTSE 100 group Halma plc, Palintest, has begun commercial roll out of the rapid water testing kit named Siren. The technology used in the water testing kit is developed by the portfolio company Molendotech Ltd.

“It is a great achievement for the applications of our research to be commercialized with the launch of the first bathing water testing kit by Palintest that will allow a rapid assessment of bathing water quality. Molendotech researchers are working on further developments of the assay that will have many applications in a range of settings and benefit both industry and the public,” said Molendotech’s Chief Executive Officer, Professor Simon Jackson.

The group identifies strong intellectual property and accelerates its development through a variety of commercialisation services.

The commercial roll out of the water testing kit will focus on the UK and Ireland initially.

Currently, it can take over two days for local authorities and regulators to assess the quality of recreational water. This is because samples must be sent to a laboratory and undergo a complex analysis. But, with the new Siren kit, this process can now take place on location, producing results within 20 minutes.

Frontier IP owns a 14.1% stake in Molendotech.

Ian Leahy, Palintest’s open innovation manager, commented on the announcement:

“It sounds strange to be discussing bathing water quality in the middle of a British winter but the fact is that people want to enjoy safe and high quality bathing water all year round – even on Boxing Day! By combining Palintest’s core competence of simplifying water safety validation with Molendotech’s technology we can finally deliver a screening tool that matches the behavior of recreational water users.”

Additionally, Chief Executive Officer of Frontier IP Group, Neil Crabb, said:

“We’re delighted with the rapid progress the agreement with Palintest is making. It has taken less than 18 months from when Molendotech was first incorporated to the full commercial roll out of the first product based on its novel intellectual property. We are confident the Company will continue to make strong progress.”

Thursday’s stock market news also includes the FTSE 100 opening roughly 0.5% higher this morning following the Christmas break. Elsewhere, Visa will buy Earthport in a £198 million deal and the UK High Street’s £675 million fund will aim to create “community hubs”.

At 16:30 GMT today, shares in Frontier IP Group plc (LON:FIPP) were trading at -0.66%.

At 16:35 GMT today, shares in Halma plc (LON:HLMA) were trading at -0.52%.