Skip to main content

3D BioFibR

MaterialsHalifax, CanadaFounded 2020· One of 961 Materials companies tracked by AMPulse

Manufactures high-quality collagen fibers at commercial scale using a patented dry-spinning process for tissue engineering, 3D cell culture, and bioprinting applications.

CEO / Founder
Kevin Sullivan
Team Size
11-50
Stage
Active
Total Funding
$7.22M
Key Investors
Concrete Ventures, Innovacorp, NGen, Build Ventures, AoA Innovation Fund, Invest Nova Scotia

Technology & Products

Key Products

Collagen fibers produced using patented dry-spinning technology, including μCollaFibR (a bioink additive) and CollaFibR 3D scaffold (for 3D cell culture).

Technological Advantage

Scalable and cost-effective manufacturing of collagen fibers that mimic the natural extracellular matrix, providing a superior micro-environment for cell growth compared to hydrogels. This enables more accurate and predictive tissue models for research and drug development.

Differentiation

Value Proposition

Providing biocompatible, structurally sound collagen fibers at a commercial scale, enabling the creation of more physiologically relevant and complex tissue models that are not possible with traditional hydrogels.

How They Differentiate

Unlike competitors that primarily offer collagen as hydrogels or sponges, 3D BioFibR's dry-spinning technology produces individual, high-fidelity collagen fibers. This allows for the creation of scaffolds with controlled architecture that better mimic the structure of natural tissue, providing a more physiologically relevant environment for cells.

Market & Competition

Target Customers

Researchers and companies in tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, 3D cell culture, and bioprinting.

Industry Verticals

["Biotechnology","Pharmaceuticals","Medical Research","Regenerative Medicine"]

Competitors

Ecovative, Strong by Form, Woodoo

Growth & Milestones

Major Milestones

["Secured $3.52M in an oversubscribed seed funding round (July 2023).","Launched first commercial products: CollaFibR scaffold and μCollaFibR bioink additive (June 2023).","Established collaboration with PlantForm Corp and received $1.3M from NGen to scale manufacturing (January 2024).","Signed development agreement with Australian medical device company ReNerve.","Signed partnership with OkaSciences to bundle bioprinting materials."]

Notable Customers

While specific customer names are not public, the company targets research institutions and pharmaceutical companies. Partnerships with ReNerve and OkaSciences indicate adoption by device and material companies.

Why this company matters

3D BioFibR occupies a narrow but critical niche in the biomaterials market: commercial-scale manufacturing of high-fidelity collagen fibers. Most collagen products for tissue engineering are hydrogels or sponges that lack the structural anisotropy of native extracellular matrix. 3D BioFibR's proprietary dry-spinning process preserves the natural biomechanical and biochemical properties of collagen while producing individual fibers at a scale sufficient for research and preclinical use.

The company's core technology is an automated dry-spinning platform that spins collagen into continuous, uniform fibers. These fibers serve as the basis for two commercial products: μCollaFibR, a bioink additive for extrusion-based bioprinting (MEX), and CollaFibR 3D scaffold, a pre-formed matrix for 3D cell culture. Both products aim to give cells a more native-like microenvironment than conventional hydrogels, which can improve the predictive accuracy of drug screening and disease modeling.

Target customers include researchers and companies in tissue engineering, regenerative medicine, and pharmaceutical R&D. Partnerships with ReNerve (clinical nerve repair) and OkaSciences (bioprinting material bundling) signal early adoption by device and material developers. A collaboration with PlantForm Corp, backed by $1.3M from NGen, focuses on scaling recombinant collagen manufacturing. The company raised $7.22M from investors including Concrete Ventures, Innovacorp, and Build Ventures.

3D BioFibR's main competitive risk is the narrow adoption window for fiber-based scaffolds versus established hydrogel and electrospun alternatives. Its dry-spinning process is patented, but the broader biomaterials market is fragmented and capital-intensive. If the technology can demonstrate superior in vivo outcomes or enable reproducible complex tissue models at a price point competitive with hydrogels, it could become a standard substrate for bioprinting and 3D cell culture workflows.