All it takes is a little Brainz

Nurse practitioner Angela Pantano with a BrainZ injury monitor. Picture / Kenny Rodger

The Australian listing of Auckland medical technology company BrainZ Instruments is stirring other firms to consider overseas options, the company says.

Chief executive Justin Vaughan said he had been approached for advice by other technology companies since BrainZ listed on the ASX in December.

"It's starting to open the eyes that the ASX is not just for Australian companies," he says. "And that it's a realistic option for more advanced New Zealand companies who are seeking additional capital."

BrainZ decided to list in Australia to tap into a broader investment base. And the company's first month's performance, albeit in the quieter holiday period, has left Vaughan confident it made the right choice.

BrainZ share price jumped 32 per cent within two weeks of listing, before beginning a steady fall back towards the initial offer price of 50Ac. Shares closed up 1Ac yesterday at 56Ac.

The company makes medical monitors for detecting brain injuries in newborn babies and early paediatrics.

Listing on the ASX raised A$13 million ($14.3 million), most of which was earmarked for developing sales and support operations in the United States and Britain.

In December, BrainZ made its first Swiss sales to three hospitals and Vaughan expects to make further inroads into Europe during the next six months.

Meanwhile, the company will move into its new US offices in Maryland this week.

Closer to home, BrainZ is in discussion with the University of Queensland about a collaborative project on adult stroke monitoring.

Vaughan said if progress could be made on early diagnostic information on the nature and prognosis of stroke, the company would be better placed to have a positive effect on the disorder. BrainZ was spun out of the University of Auckland's Liggins Institute, before being bought by agri-tech company Tru-Test in 2002.

Since Tru-Test fully acquired the company, it has not posted a profit and, in the year to last August, returned a net loss of $1.5 million.

Tru-Test has retained a 57 per cent stake since the ASX listing and Vaughan expects BrainZ to be cashflow positive within two years.

Sales of monitors will generate most revenue during the next three to four years but service agreements and the sale of disposable items, including sensors, will become increasingly significant in the long term.