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Rhode Island Biotechnology Company Wins Grand Prize at MIT Enterprise Forum of Japan Award
[September 27, 2004]

Rhode Island Biotechnology Company Wins Grand Prize at MIT Enterprise Forum of Japan Award

PROVIDENCE, R.I. --(Business Wire)-- Sept. 27, 2004 -- e-Membrane is receives international recognition for its business plan

e-Membrane announced today that it won the Grand Prize at the 4th Annual MIT Enterprise Forum of Japan Business Plan contest. The Company received this award for its business strategy targeting the development and sales of multifunctional polymeric materials and membranes by use of nano-grafting technology.



"This is a tremendous validation of the business strategy that e-Membrane has put together with its team of international leading experts in the fields of science (i.e., radiation-induced grafting, gene therapy and tissue engineering), business and intellectual property," said William Lee, President, CEO and Co-Founder of e-Membrane. "Being awarded this coveted prize will allow us to aggressively move forward in our Series A round of financing."

The MIT Enterprise Forum of Japan event, which was recently held in Tokyo, Japan, reviewed business plans from 47 international companies. e-Membrane was one of two American companies selected to participate in this competition.


"The judges in this competition were extremely impressed with e-Membrane's technology and market opportunities, but it was also the Company's experienced entrepreneurs and talented scientific team that made them stand out from their competition," stated Karl Ruping, Senior Managing Director, incTANK, who served as one of the judges for this international competition. "e-Membrane's business opportunity extends beyond the U.S. market and beyond standard biotechnology applications. It was clear in this case, that the Japanese venture capital community was interested in e-Membrane's business strategy. I would also expect this from the U.S.-based venture capital community."

About the MIT Enterprise Forum of Japan

In these times of rapid technological change and mounting global competition, it is essential to nurture the spirit of entrepreneurship that underlies the continued competitiveness, success, and prosperity of global societies. To sustain and expand this creative tradition in Japan, the MIT Enterprise Forum of Japan has been established mainly by the MIT Alumni and Alumnae. This Forum will present new business concepts through the networking of the other eighteen MIT Forum chapters around the world, to industry experts, venture capitalists, and technology leaders.

About e-Membrane

e-Membrane, Inc. (Providence, RI), is a development stage venture focused on commercializing a proprietary technology known as electron-beam-induced grafting of combinatorial nano/micro polymer brushes. The technology functionalizes common polymeric materials, membranes and films by adding to their surface long polymer brushes (from nanometer to micron dimensions) at an extraordinary high density (several trillion brushes per square centimeter) that bestow onto these materials new high value added functions and enhanced performance. These polymer brushes have chemical groups that perform novel and varied functions such as binding of specific target molecules, enhancements to adhesion or improvements to conductivity. The Company's core technology is extraordinarily versatile and can functionalize polymeric materials of varied shape, composition and final application. The range of applications of materials treated with the Company's core technology will include functionalized films used in electronic, functionalized membranes used for separation and purification process, and functionalized materials for novel uses in proteomics. The value added by treatment of these materials, membranes and films with the Company's core technology will provide distinct technical and/or economic advantages that will make each product competitive in all growing billion-dollar markets. To learn more about eMembrane please visit our web site: www.eMembrane.com.

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