Nexsen Limited has secured more than $1.5 million in non-dilutive funding support aimed at advancing manufacturing scale-up and platform optimisation for its rapid diagnostics technology, following its admission as an industry partner to the Australian Research Council (ARC) Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Sustainable and Green Economy Manufacturing (SAGE-Manufacturing).
In a news release, the company said the funding will support the development of its proprietary rapid diagnostics platform, which is designed to deliver faster diagnostic results for conditions that traditionally rely on laboratory testing.
The partnership will also focus on strengthening Nexsen’s manufacturing capability and readiness for future commercialisation.
Under the five-year program, Nexsen will collaborate with SAGE-Manufacturing and RMIT University to apply advanced catalysis science to its diagnostics platform.
According to the company, the work will concentrate on catalytic signal enhancement and scalable diagnostic device manufacturing, with the aim of improving detection sensitivity, reliability and performance consistency across its testing pipeline.
As part of the arrangement, two full-time researchers will be embedded within Nexsen’s Australian research and development facility, working alongside the company’s scientific team on manufacturing and platform optimisation initiatives.
Nexsen said the support package is valued at more than $1.5 million over the life of the program and will require an annual cash contribution of $35,000, along with a further $35,000 in-kind contribution. The company said this represents more than eight times leverage on its annual cash investment.
The partnership aligns with Nexsen’s stated 2026 objective of expanding research and development capacity and manufacturing readiness through non-dilutive collaborations while supporting its broader strategy to establish scalable production capabilities for future commercial launch.
SAGE-Manufacturing is a five-year, $4.84 million national research centre led by Monash University in collaboration with RMIT University, the University of Melbourne, Deakin University and CSIRO. The centre focuses on advancing sustainable, circular and green manufacturing through catalysis science, which it notes plays a role in approximately 90% of commercially produced chemical products.
Nexsen Executive Chairman Reece O’Connell said the collaboration would provide access to specialist expertise while supporting the company’s manufacturing ambitions.
“Our mission at Nexsen is to become a global leader in rapid diagnostics, closing the gaps that exist today where clinicians are forced to make critical decisions without the tools they need,” O’Connell said.
“Every improvement we make to our platform brings us closer to that goal, and SAGE-Manufacturing gives us access to world-class researchers and some of Australia’s leading scientific minds to keep pushing that standard further.”
He added that securing non-dilutive funding while advancing manufacturing capability reflected the type of partnership the company intended to pursue.
“Doing so through non-dilutive funding, at minimal cost to shareholders, while advancing our manufacturing capability at the same time — this is exactly the kind of partnership we said we would pursue in 2026, and we are pleased to be delivering on that commitment,” O’Connell said.
The content of this article is based on information supplied by Nexsen Limited. For more information, please refer to the official company announcement and communications from Nexsen. Please consult a licensed and/or registered professional in this area before making any decisions based on the content of this article.
