University System of Maryland Venture Capital Fund and Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund Invest in PaverGuide, Inc.
Baltimore, MD (April 22, 2019) – PaverGuide, Inc., a company located in Kent County, Md., which has developed a permeable paving system that lessens harmful storm water runoff while removing detrimental substances such as phosphorous, has received a $650,000 investment in a funding round led by the University System of Maryland’s (USM) Maryland Momentum Fund and the Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund (CBSCF) at $300,000 each, with Pin Oak Capital as the other investor in the round.
PaverGuide, Inc. holds exclusive intellectual property licenses with the University of Maryland, College Park (UMCP). Additionally, Salisbury University’s Philip E. & Carole R. Ratcliffe Foundation Shore Hatchery Competition supported PaverGuide with a $35,000 grant in 2015.
The Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund invests in Maryland-based startup companies with innovative technologies that may help improve air and water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Supported by funding from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the fund is administered by the Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute (Mtech), a unit of the A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland.
Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund investments are jointly selected by Mtech and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources
The Maryland Momentum Fund, which was established by the USM Board of Regents to support promising commercial opportunities arising from advances in research and intellectual property at USM campuses, has previously invested in four other startups: Zest Tea, NextStep Robotics, MF Fire, and the North American Wave Engine Corporation. The Fund is designed to fill gaps in the funding pipeline to push USM’s most innovative ideas into the marketplace.
The CEO of PaverGuide, Inc. is Charlie White, an alumnus of Towson University. The company’s system to make new sidewalk and landscaped surfaces permeable has national and international applications, and it also has the potential for Maryland-specific impacts:
Offering a permeable replacement for impervious surfaces that harmfully channel stormwater into the street, such as Ellicott City experienced. Management of stormwater runoff that carry nutrients and other pollutants into streams and rivers flowing into the Chesapeake Bay. Aspiration to eventually create 70-120 new jobs on the Eastern Shore.
About PaverGuide
PaverGuide, Inc. is a Maryland corporation formed in 2015. PaverGuide Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells products that reduce stormwater runoff and improve water quality.
About PinOak Capital
PinOak Capital and its private partnership invest in early stage companies across the mid-Atlantic with and emphasis on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. PinOak invests in companies where it feels it can make a substantial contribution to management by way of expertise, industry contacts and strategy. PinOak is based in Easton, Maryland.
About the Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund
The Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund invests in Maryland-based startup companies with innovative technologies that may help improve air and water quality in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Supported by funding from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the fund is administered by the Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute (Mtech), a unit of the A. James Clark School of Engineering at the University of Maryland. Chesapeake Bay Seed Capital Fund investments are jointly selected by Mtech and the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Learn more at: http://www.mtech.umd.edu/funding/cbsc/.
About the University System of Maryland (USM)
The USM is the state’s public higher education system. USM’s 12 institutions, two regional higher education centers, and system office work closely together to leverage their collective expertise and resources, share best practices, increase the system’s effectiveness and efficiency, and advance USM’s mission to improve the quality of life in Maryland.
About the USM Momentum Fund
The Maryland Momentum Fund is a new initiative of the University System of Maryland (USM) to provide late seed investment funding for promising technology ventures that come out of any of the twelve constituent USM institutions, its research parks, and its students, faculty, or graduates. With a $10 million commitment from the System already in place, the Fund is collaborating with UM Ventures (a joint initiative of the University of Maryland, Baltimore and the University of Maryland, College Park to commercialize technologies and expand industry collaboration) to reach out to area venture capitalists and angel investors for additional funds.
Contact-Maryland Momentum Fund
David Wise
Phone: 410-706-3361
Email: dwise@umaryland.edu
Contact – PaverGuide
Charlie White
866-721-3590 Ext. 101
Email: cw@paverguide.com
Contact: Mike Lurie
Phone: 301.445.2719
Email: mlurie@usmd.edu
