In the group’s first investment ever in Prince Edward Island, members of the First Angel Network have committed to sink more than $250,000 into Zengo Inc., which has developed a seal to plug leaks in tanks carrying hazardous or contaminating materials.

With this financing, the pre-eminent group of private individual investors in the region will have invested in each of the Atlantic Canadian provinces.

Founded by former police officer Glenn Cox, Stratford, P.E.I.-based Zengo has designed and manufactured the RUPTUREseal, a patent-pending device that fits over a tear in an industrial tank and quickly stanches a leak, and limiting the damage it causes.  The pain it cures is profound as corporations and governments spend untold millions of dollars annually to clean up accidental spills, after which they often must clean up their sullied reputations.

The RUPTUREseal can be applied in less than 15 seconds to tears of less than two inches, which make up 95 percent of accidental ruptures. It provides a temporary seal until the contents of the tank, such as oil or a toxic liquid, can be drained. (The RUPTUREseal has been proven to work on less-hazardous materials as well, as it was used to plug a leak in a 15-tonne molasses tank in Charlottetown in August.) Even with the most corrosive materials, the seal does not begin to corrode for at least 10 hours.

The product has been fully tested and Zengo will begin production by the end of 2012.

“Over the last few months the company has been working with a number of potential customers to finalize the product offering; fleet managers, fire departments and manufacturing facilities,” FAN Director and Co-Founder Ross Finlay said in an email. “The feedback is overwhelmingly positive and orders have been coming in without any marketing activities undertaken.”

Zengo, which was founded in 2007, was seeking $250,000 from FAN’s members and Finlay said they have committed more than that amount – enough to last until the RUPTUREseal is in production.