Petaluma tech startup Innovative Labs, which makes next-generation air purifiers, is being acquired by a Canadian private equity firm for more than $5.4 million, the two companies said Monday.
The cash-and-stock deal will help the Petaluma business grow, said John Webley, the Telecom Valley entrepreneur who founded Innovative Labs in 2007.
"That's the whole idea," said Webley, a technology veteran who led Advanced Fibre Communications and Turin Networks. "The Canadians are getting very aggressive in acquiring green technology."
Thoroughbred Capital, an Ontario-based company on Canada's TSX stock exchange, said it is buying the Petaluma business with about $3.5 million in stock and nearly $2 million in cash from a private placement.
Thoroughbred chief executive Michael Inskip said Monday he can't talk about the deal until it closes. But Webley said Innovative Labs will stay in Petaluma and keep its current staff of eight employees.
"This will let us ramp up the business," he said.
Innovative Labs started shipping its "Sonoma Breeze" indoor air purifiers last year. They use ultraviolet light and photocatalytic technology to destroy airborne contaminants, including bacteria, viruses and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) such as formaldehyde.
The problem of formaldehyde and other chemical vapors drew attention after Hurricane Katrina, when displaced residents in government-issued trailers became sick from the fumes.
Last year, the federal government listed formaldehyde as a carcinogen, and said it can be found at unsafe levels in building materials, medical labs, hair salons and mortuaries.
Those are some of the markets for Innovative Labs' air purifiers, Webley said. The company's technology was a top performer in tests by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, NASA, FEMA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he said.
The system doesn't produce ozone and uses sensors to monitor air quality, reporting real-time VOC concentrations on an LED display.
The Sonoma Breeze units range in size from a desktop model to larger ones that can purify spaces up to 1,000 square feet. They sell from about $200 to $2,000.
After a career in telecom, Webley turned his attention to green technology. He headed Novato green engineering startup PAX Streamline before launching Innovative Labs.
The deal with Thoroughbred Capital will help take Innovative Labs to the next level, Webley said.
"We showed the potential for the company," he said.
UPDATED: Please read and follow our commenting policy: