CSignum water quality monitoring technology is set for wider commercial deployment after the Scottish company secured £2.6 million in new funding and appointed John Nicholls as CEO to lead its next phase of growth.
The investment will support commercial expansion and manufacturing scale-up of CSignum’s EM2 wireless communications portfolio, which is designed to transmit sensor data through water, ice, soil, rock and concrete.
Archangels, PXN Ventures, Scottish Enterprise, British Business Bank and a group of US-based angel investors participated in the latest funding round.
The new investment follows a £6 million Series A completed in April 2025, which supported expansion of the company’s underwater and underground communications technology.
CSignum water quality monitoring moves into wider deployment
CSignum said it has progressed from pilot projects to volume deployments with UK water utilities and international customers.
One of the company’s principal water-sector applications is continuous water quality monitoring, where submerged sensors communicate data without permanent cabling between the monitoring location and above-surface networks.
CSignum’s EM-2Q water quality monitoring system uses electromagnetic field signalling to transmit measurements from submerged sensors to a gateway positioned above or away from the water.
The technology is designed for applications including rivers, lakes, reservoirs and coastal waters.
H2O Global News previously reported on a CSignum deployment supporting Severn Trent Water’s continuous water quality monitoring programme, where the system was installed to provide cable-free monitoring in a challenging river environment.
Section 82 drives demand for continuous monitoring
CSignum said growing demand from UK utilities has been supported by new requirements for continuous monitoring of receiving waters.
Section 82 of the Environment Act 2021 requires sewerage undertakers in England to continuously monitor water quality upstream and downstream of relevant storm overflow and wastewater treatment discharges.
Delivery of these monitoring programmes is being phased through the AMP8 and AMP9 investment periods.
The regulatory programme is creating demand for monitoring systems capable of operating continuously in rivers and other difficult environments while providing reliable telemetry to utilities.
Funding follows £6m Series A
The latest £2.6 million round follows CSignum’s £6 million Series A funding round completed in April 2025.
CSignum said the new capital will be used to increase manufacturing capacity and support further commercial deployment of its EM2 product portfolio.
Beyond UK water utilities, the company is exploring applications for its technology in maritime, offshore and critical infrastructure monitoring.
It is also supporting sensing applications in a smart buoy project in the Gulf of Mexico and said it has completed pilots with two US water quality monitoring organisations.
John Nicholls appointed CEO of CSignum
Alongside the investment, CSignum has appointed John Nicholls as Chief Executive Officer.
Nicholls succeeds Jonathan Reeves, who will move into the role of Chief Strategy Officer.
Nicholls has previously held CEO and Chief Commercial Officer positions and brings experience in international sales growth, fundraising, mergers and acquisitions and strategic partnerships across sectors including photonics, quantum technologies, space, semiconductors and electric vehicle infrastructure.
John Nicholls, CEO CSignum said: “I’m excited to be joining CSignum at this pivotal moment in its journey. The team has built a differentiated technology and strong customer relationships across diverse market sectors, and my focus now is turning that potential into large-scale deployments. More broadly, CSignum exists to close the communications gap between inaccessible parts of the physical world and the digital and AI systems that increasingly depend on them. This investment lets us do exactly that, faster.”
Investors back next stage of commercial growth
Dan McKiddie, Investment Manager, Archangels said: “CSignum continues to make strong commercial progress, and this investment reflects our continued confidence in the team and the technology, which is beginning to fulfil its potential of disrupting established markets. We’re pleased to back John’s transition into the CEO role as the business enters its next phase of growth.”
CSignum was founded in 2020 and is headquartered in Bathgate, near Edinburgh.
The company said it continues to add staff in the UK, US and EU as it expands commercial operations.
For more developments in environmental sensing and monitoring, visit H2O Global News’ Water Quality coverage.
Source: CSignum
