Seven ventures will compete in the Global Impact Award finals on Monday, October 29th. Up to $50,000 will be awarded to one or more ventures.
Since the announcement of the 2018 finalists in April, all finalists have been paired up with industry mentors and have been polishing their pitches and Opportunity Summaries. Each week leading up to the finals in October, we will introduce one finalist team individually. Check back each week for a new profile!
This week is all about…
Smart Aerosol Technologies LLC:
Industry: Agrochemical
Total Number of Employees: 3
When They Formed: May 2016
Total Funding (as of September 2018): not disclosed
What problem are you solving?
SMART is introducing a revolutionary smart fertilizer that has produced an average yield increase of 56% and reduced fertilizer runoff by 60% compared to crops fertilized with the best considered conventional fertilizers. The developed fertilizer has been validated at small and large-scale pilot tests for its performance on over 10 crops. The patented smart fertilizer provides: 1) A strong return on investment for growers based on the price vs increased crop yields 2) Reduced runoff and discharge to the environment, which cuts down waste and deleterious soil impacts.
How do you solve the problem?
The SMART fertilizer is an NPK mixed macro and micronutrient, and is developed using advanced chemical engineering technologies based on bottom up molecular fabrication. To synthesize the fertilizer, we release active nutrients and packages them in uniquely created nano-porous surfaces on sub-micron nutrient particles specifically engineered (in a patented particle) structure to release slowly and utilized efficiently by the plants.
About the Founding Team:
Ramesh Raliya, Co-Founder, Smart Aerosol Technologies LLC (SMART). Source: Smart Aerosol Technologies LLC (SMART)
Ramesh Raliya, PhD
Co-Founder
Ramesh picks chemical elements loved by plants for their growth and development and engineers them in a way that they do not harm the environment but are efficiently used by the plant. He considers two factors while manufacturing: precision agriculture and sustainability while improving crop production. He has BS in Biotechnology from J.N. Vyas University, India and a PhD from Indian Council of Agricultural Research.
Pratim Biswas, Co-Founder, Smart Aerosol Technologies LLC (SMART). Source: Smart Aerosol Technologies LLC (SMART)
Pratim Biswas, PhD
Co-Founder
Pratim has a BS in Chemical Engineering from IIT – Bombay, India and a PhD from California Institute of Technology.
Jeff Melly, CFO, Smart Aerosol Technologies LLC (SMART). Source: Smart Aerosol Technologies LLC (SMART)
Jeff Melly
CFO
Jeff has a BSEE in Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering from University of Missouri-Rolla.
What has been your biggest lesson learned since starting your venture?
Ramesh Raliya (RR): Tailor your product in line with the market or disrupt a saturated market by solving a problem for the customer. We chose the latter.
What do you love about being an entrepreneur?
RR: Talking to customers, investors and independent evaluators. It helps me to learn different perspectives of business.
What words of advice do you have for those who are interested in starting a business?
RR: Choose the right people on your team, have a capability to complement and propel your disruptive idea.
Like what you see? Follow along SMART’s journey:
