Light Science Technologies Holdings (LSE:LST) — Company Update

0:01 Good afternoon, and welcome to the LIGHT SCIENCE TECHNOLOGIES HOLDINGS PLC investor presentation. Throughout this recorded presentation, investors will be in listen only mode. Questions are encouraged, and they can be submitted at any time using the Q and A tab situated on the right hand corner of your screen. Simply type in your questions and present. The company may not be in a position to answer every question it receives during the meeting itself. However, company will review all questions submitted today and public responses where it is appropriate to do so. Before we begin, I would like to submit the following poll. And I would now like to hand you

0:32 over to CEO, Simon Deacon. Good afternoon to you, sir. Thank you, Alex. Good afternoon, everybody. Welcome to LIGHT SCIENCE TECHNOLOGIES HOLDINGS company update for September 2023. Presenting today is Andrew Hempsel, chief operating officer and Jim Snooks, chief financial officer and company secretary, and myself, Simon Deacon, chief executive officer.

1:09 I'd like to to run through the the group overview of the three companies within Life Science Technology Holdings. As you know, we've got a new acquisition we did in September, which we announced recently. So we've now got three companies within the group, UK Circuits based up in Manchester, which was established in 1997 and is in contract electronics manufacturing, the CEM, and we service multiple business sectors in that market. We have LIGHT SCIENCE TECHNOLOGIES, which is part of our CA division, controlled environmental agriculture, where we've got award winning products in lighting and lighting recipes and also sensor technologies and a whole array of different products, which we are amalgamating now with Tomtek.

2:05 Now Tomtek, which is a recent acquisition, was established in 1986. It's a UK leading in its control systems for commercial greenhouses, and it really puts us on the map in our CEA division, and we're really pleased to announce that we've now secured that and it's part of the group. So let's have a look at the market opportunity and where we are to date. We've got a combined group pipeline and forward order book of £40,000,000. The group's forward orders and contract value is 16,000,000, And our pipeline and four doors together is 40,000,000.

2:50 So we've got good visibility going forward, which is really pleasing, especially in challenging markets in the CEA side of of the market. We established in the the controlled contract electronics manufacturing side in UK circuits. We've got an opportunity there globally of 2,300,000,000. And we do see that market growing, which is really pleasing to see. And we've seen that in UK circuits, that the market is growing, and and we've got growth from that market. Everything we see today does have electronics in it. We touch and feel. If we use our remote controls or our phones, there's always electronics in in everything we seem to touch these days. So we see a growing market there.

3:39 In the controlled environment agriculture and our CEA division with TOMTEC and LIGHT SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY, there's a global opportunity of 29,900,000,000, just under £30,000,000,000. And what we've done here is we've we've broken that out. So it's a big number. And so we've broken that out on our what we are focusing on. And that focus is on grow lights. We've got a recipe of of lights that we have designed and produced, which I'll talk about in a bit, which is 1,700,000,000 and is growing at 21.1% CAGR. So it's good growth and lots of potential there globally. In the agriculture and sensor part, as you know, we've developed and got trials on on our sensors.

4:28 The market size is 2,100,000,000 and is growing at 11.4. So that's also growing at a good rate, and we see a lot of potential with our sensor growth, especially as now costs of producing produce has shot up globally due to energy crisis and other factors. So we see that as being a really key part of moving forward in the agricultural sector. The other side is the global control systems, and this is really where Tom Tech comes in. We've got 3,750,000,000 market opportunity there, and bringing Tomtek into our group and having a good, solid control system, which they've been running for over thirty years, really gives us an opportunity for a turnkey solution, which I'll come on to.

5:28 That area of growth is growing at 7.4% CAGR. So what's growing what's the growing trends in the market for our two key areas, contract electronics manufacturing and the controlled environment of agriculture? If I start with UK circuits and what we're seeing in the marketplace is onshoring back to The UK. We're seeing a lot of this, and we've seen a lot of growth in that, but also driving a lot of quality. There's a lot of electronic manufacturers out there, and customers are looking for that turnkey solution where you can build product in house and drive that quality of costs. And also the access, as we know, there's been a global shortage of components around the world, and having that access to those components is key. And with UK Circuits, you know, really good reputation with its suppliers, it's managed to keep good access through the market where it's been challenging and see growth through that.

6:33 In light science technology and Tom Tech, we all hear about cost of living. It's had a massive impact on the CA market in energy. It's one of the obvious ones, but everything else has gone up, fertilizer costs, water. We've also seen nutrient rising costs, moving produce around, seeds. Everything has gone up. So having our sensor products is a really important part of that. Soil degradation is is key as well, not having the land to grow in. But the big impact, really, which is happening for the global trends and we're seeing in in most places around the world is climate change and the extreme weather patterns we're having.

7:19 More growers who are growing outdoors are bringing their crops indoors, and that's purely to see that they can actually control the environment and grow the crops and and get the yields that they need. We've all seen the the the fires, the droughts, the flooding that we see in Greece is a a good example in Turkey recently where they had a huge heat wave, and then suddenly they've had enormous amounts of floods. And you can't grow in that environment outdoors. So to be able to grow indoors is really the solution for everybody globally, and that's what we're seeing with clients. They wanna grow indoors. Water shortage. Water shortage is gonna become a bigger problem globally, and we're seeing how we can control that.

8:06 And, obviously, growing in an enclosed environment, you can control the water that you use, and especially in vertical farming, you use a lot less than you do in outdoor farming. Dietary shifts and also growing population. We are seeing dietary shifts. People are eating better, eating more healthily, and so they're eating more leafy greens, salads, and so forth. And, obviously, we've got a growing population till 2050. So let's just have a recap on the the products in the CAE division. I think it's really important to to see, you know, what have we been doing and what are the key products in our product suite now. NurtureGrow, which is a lighting product, what does that do? What does it stand out from everybody else? Growers are now learning more about the recipe of light they require for different species of crops that they're growing and can they change the the crop recipe of light so that they if they change the crop, can they change the light, which we've designed, and we've designed it for for glass houses, polytunnels, but also for vertical growing.

9:18 So they've got a really, you know, you can have a light which is produced by the stalk of the plant as well as on top of of the plant. And our key factor from changing from everybody else, our product is reusable. So when it comes to the end of its life, you can keep the body of the product and reuse the the the body and put new electronics in it. And associated with our manufacturing facility at UK Circuits, we can remanufacture the lighting and the electronics to go into those products and service our customers. So it's creating a long term partnership with our with our clients. The sensor growth and collecting sensitive data, this has become really important to collect c o two, nutrients, heat, humidity, all the factors to having the perfect environment.

10:07 How do you control them? How do you get that data? There is other sensors out in the market, but where we stand out from our competitors is really having a product which doesn't require heavy amounts of infrastructure, less cabling, ours work on batteries so you can move our sensors around your facility accordingly. And they can work up to 10 kilometers away from the device that they're sending the signals back to to collect the data, which is really important. We refurbish these, so it's an ongoing partnership with the client after twelve months where we charge the battery on their behalf, refurbish the product, and put it out in the field. It's a really important product to collect the data. It's a growing product range, and eventually we hope to get that out in open agriculture as well going forward. So really exciting product that we've got going there.

11:00 And hopefully, over time, we will see that also producing AI technology so it's more automated throughout. Advanced Grow semi automated crop care. We're seeing, obviously, a huge labor shortage in various country around the world, but also, you know, the cost of labor. It's not just a shortage, but the cost of labor. So how can we reduce the cost of growing and and the picking of this? So having something which is automated where you're putting light over the product, where it can harvest the product for you, where it can plow and set the seeds is something we're working with with part of the UKRI grant and the Zenith contract, and that continues through its phases.

11:47 As I mentioned, we've bought Tomtek, which gives us an added suite of products

11:54 for our customers, really exciting suite of products. But what this all these product range does for for our company as a group in the CA division is create a turnkey solution in the market. So we can offer a full package or we can offer part of a package. And I'll come on to more of the Tom Tech products throughout the the slide deck. So turning to contract electronics manufacturing division. We're seeing growth in this area, and Jim will come on to the financials shortly. But it's really important. We've invested a lot of money in training with the SWIT staff and also in making sure the equipment is at the right standard to to really pivot and get the next tier of of of clients in place.

12:49 People like Rolls Royce is people that we want to work with and partner with, as well as all the other ones that we've gotten longer standing clients like Rent A Kill, Switch two, and Cloud. The Centimeters division is really important because we're not stuck in one marketplace. We produce products for all sorts of industries from lighting, fire industry, music, pest control. So it's a real wide range of products that we are producing on behalf of our customers, And we see a really good drive going forward, making this business more profitable, but also increasing the revenue as we move forward. I'd like to hand you over now to to Jim to go over the Thank you, Simon.

13:41 So let's start with the group revenues, which are predominantly generated by the platform business, UK circuits. Simon just explained that's our manufacturing core that's in the contract electronics manufacturing sector. And we've achieved a growth of 22% for the half year from half year twenty two to half year twenty three from 3,500,000 just over back at half year twenty two to 4,400,000 just under half year twenty three. So a solid growth performance given, you know, what is an easing market. Alongside that revenue growth, we've also improved the gross profit margins, which were sitting at the 17.7% for financial year twenty two and have gone back up to the 20.9%.

14:41 And that reflects an easing of the CEM supply chain and also stability in pricing where we've been able to align much more easily with customers cost side to to revenue side. On top of that, the investment that we've put in up at Manchester at UK circuits is showing through. We've invested in plants and machinery, automating and making it more sophisticated. And those efficiencies are also pushing that growth gross margin in the right direction. We took the decision towards the end of last financial year and moving in this year to realign our cost base, which has been really important. We've we've achieved a 20% reduction in overheads through the first six months of this financial year.

15:35 And what what that's done is delivered an improved EBITDA. See from the the numbers on the the slide that this time last year, half year twenty two, there's an EBITDA loss of just over just under 1,100,000. We've moved that down to just under the 500,000 mark. Still, obviously, a way to go in the right direction, but very much following in line with our company policy there.

16:03 Alongside that, the cash burn has reduced significantly. Net cash from operating activities sitting at the half year twenty two mark was just under a negative 1.3, and that's reduced to just under 200,000. So really pleasing to see the policies that we've taken on the on the cost realignment alongside the revenue growth and gross profit improvement, seeing that through down to the bottom line. And indeed, the bottom line loss before tax has reduced to 800,000 for six months. That's a 37 percent reduction from the same point last year, of of where it was sitting at 1,300,000 loss.

16:50 So, you know, what is our group policy, center bank of our group policy? It's really to become profitable and cash, self sufficient. And, you know, very much we're moving in the right direction thus far up to the half year point. So turning to the balance sheet. There's been further investment in, development in the CEA, sector, the contract, sorry, the controlled environment agriculture sector. Further 130,000 has been developed through the first six months of of this year, predominantly in in our advanced growth product. Looking at noncurrent assets, fairly stable picture.

17:37 They comprise our properties, plants and machinery, fixtures and fittings, reflects the investment in UKC within those numbers, but pretty stable. We undertook a a fundraise, through the interim period, and, really, that's providing a good cash platform for us to to continue the progress that we've made in the first six months in terms of moving towards profitability and and cash sell cash generation. So, you know, it was a good platform for us to move forward with. Noncurrent liabilities, reducing very nicely over the six months, reflecting the the the the pay down of banking facilities, the term loan, and some of the HP agreements that we've got there. So very much moving in the right direction.

18:32 Looking forwards, you know, I've mentioned that, you know, it's a key center plank of our group policy to to in to move to profitability and become self cash generative. You know, to that end, we're we're actively reviewing opportunities, both organic and acquisitive. And, you know, TECHNOLOGIES is one such move in that direction. To that end, I'll let Simon give you some more detail on that particular opportunity. So I'll hand back to Simon. Thank you, Jim. So we're really pleased that we had our new acquisitions, our first acquisitions since we've been on on AIM. Tom Tech was acquired on the September 5, and it's a business which is longer standing in the marketplace founded in 1986, so well over thirty years of experience in the controlled environment of agriculture.

19:32 For us, that really puts us in a lot more prime position in the glasshouse and polytunnels and and labs around the country. Tom Tech very much supports and deals with customers who are in England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland, and they've done the odd product project down in South Africa as well. So it's it's a growing business. It's growing year on year. It's cash generative. We bought the business for £500,000, and we are paying that over a period of thirteen months. So it's it's a good solid business with a lot of synergies for us. And and the main synergies are having a control system and software.

20:23 As you know, in light science technology, we have lighting and sensors and our own software. But with Tomtek, they have their own designed control system. And so all of these items, if it be motors, sensors, vents, control system, irrigation, they all go back to a central point. And years gone by, they were all hardwired back into the central point in this control system. And then from there, what you would do is monitor your your environment that you're growing in. And out of that, items would change. Events would open. Heating would come on. Lights would go on if it goes dark. Where we'd like to see this is really use the the Tom Tech name, but also use their their product product suite of products that they have in irrigation, the motors, the venting, and their control system, modernize that without including into our software, which is really important so that you can then use it on any device, if it be a laptop or or an iPhone.

21:34 And we see the importance of controlling your environment even more so now than we did five years ago due to the changes happening globally through the weather patterns, but also the cost of of producing product now. It's become more important to control those costs and monitor those and so that you can not just increase your yields, but save money while you're producing them, and you can understand them. Tom Tech have have got a database of over a thousand clients that they've serviced over the years and a 150 live clients currently. And for us, the synergy is is bringing in our products into their client base and revisiting that polytunnel and glasshouse. And what we're seeing in the market is, you know, refurbishments of those glasshouses and polytunnels. Polytunnels and glass houses don't last for forever.

22:34 They need refurbishment. And so they don't necessarily have to be a new building, but the refurbishment of those and bringing in our technology to these growers, it is really important. So we want to bounce off that that customer base going forward. And vice versa, in Tomtek's products into our LST products and customer base globally where we can offer that turnkey solution I mentioned earlier to clients who might be growing vertically or in glass houses. So it's really important acquisition, a well established name, and they also do maintenance and refurbishment with an installation team as well. So they've got the full suite of what we need to create that turnkey solution.

23:23 So looking at the products and the offering that we've got and the synergies is on the left hand side, on the bottom left, you'll see a control panel and what it looks like, the control system looks like with, as you can see, electronics and wires in there. And, obviously, at the moment, Tom Tech either sub out the manufacturer of their product or make some of them in house, we'll obviously be able to bring that in house, all of that manufacturing house with our Armour UK circuits to be able to manufacture a turnkey product for them. And so that really gives us strength to have the full control of manufacturing the product in house and be able to deliver it. On the vice versa, lighting going in, they buy lighting into their customers at the moment. So our competitors' product, they'll be able to sell our lighting into their customer base and offer that unique reusable product with the correct recipe, which is really important.

24:26 Having these products really does give us in the same market a good advantage going forward. You know, I can't say it enough that, you know, TECHNOLOGIES HOLDINGS name in the market is very strong, well established business, and it really puts us in the forefront going forward. So really pleased about the progress and the synergies going forward and working with the team there. They've got some really clever staff in Tom Tech who've been in the the controlled environment of agriculture for a long time and bringing our staff in LST to to together with with them, I believe we've really got a good strong future in the CA market going forward. So having a look at the group's focuses going forward, what we're focusing going forward, it's really important that we we increase our margin.

25:22 We've seen that in the last six months that we've achieved that, we want to continue doing that. And that's by buying better, being more efficient in in our factories, you know, going forward. So increasing that margin is really important. Also increasing revenue and continue the growth that we've managed,

25:43 it's really pleasing to see that we've grown by 22%, you know, in a challenging market, both in the CEM and the CA market that we're managing as a team to to continue that growth. We continue to reduce overheads till the end of the year. We successfully achieved that so far in the last six months, but we want to continue that. So monitoring the overheads, reducing where we can, where we see an advantage to do so. Creating being cash generative is important to every business, and moving forward to to achieving this is really important to that. So as we see profits increase and revenue increase, we will become cash generative, and that's our our real focus for for us as a as a management team. We continue to launch and develop products so that we can create partnerships around the world. It's really important that we keep developing our products, especially in the sense of technology and the control systems and software to bring AI in. So we're focusing on bringing those those control systems in and launching those products so we can get a broader reach globally.

27:00 We will certainly be, you know, making sure that the Tomtek product range is out there in the market in the countries like Australia, The Middle East, and Americas where we see really good potential growth in those markets compared to what we've seen in Europe. Creating those global partnerships is is important to us and to be able to establish our name out in different parts of the world where they haven't got as many challenges as they have as we have in Europe. So we'll continue to focus on those, and, hopefully, we'll have some good announcements coming up in in the future in the short term that to talk about those partnerships.

27:46 Improving efficiencies in the manufacturing division, as I mentioned, we've invested in that company, and we've seen the returns by making that that investment. So we continue to modernize, automate, putting software in training staff, and we see those, you know, that investment really coming and seeing that in the margin that we're producing. So really important. Integrating Tom Tech, exploiting economic of scale, really important to us. As I've mentioned, their product suite, our product suite, and the knowledge that we've got between both companies really now sets us apart moving forward and creating those global partners to sell our products through. I think we will see some good growth opportunities.

28:35 Actively exploring cash generative acquisitions. We're always looking around for opportunities. We've seen a great deal in in Tom Tech that we've acquired in the CA market, and we'll continue to explore other opportunities in different markets as well as our own to create that cash generative acquisitions going forward. So they're not only just growing organically, but also through the acquisitions.

29:05 So just to to summarize the group, where we are, what we've done in the last six months, we've got a great global opportunity in the CEM and CA side of the business with over 32,200,000,000 globally. So early mover advantage there. We've got a strong forward order book and contract potential of £16,000,000 in both divisions. We've got a strong pipeline of opportunity of 40,000,000 in CEM and CA divisions. So it's really important that we keep strengthening that pipeline, keep building that forward order book, and we continue to do that. We've seen good revenue growth in the last six months of over 22% compared to 2022, And we've also seen increasing in margin from 17.7% to 20.9% in the same year. So the things that we're doing are taking effect, and we're seeing those in the results and the financial figures, which is really pleasing with the team that we've made that progress.

30:15 Overhead reduction, Jim mentioned it earlier. We have focused on that, and we continue to do, and we've reduced the overhead so far by by 20% in those six months. We continue to develop products. Our NurtureGrow and SensorGrow, those products are are being tested with trials in all sorts of different countries now and different clients from vertical growing to glass houses. So it's a good spread of of products that we're we're testing out in the market, which then will lead through that pipeline of 40,000,000 to come into to forward orders. The Tom Tech acquisition being our first on AIM, we're really pleased about that, and we continue to look at other opportunities and synergies and bringing companies together.

31:04 So we feel that we at the moment, we're going in the right direction,

31:09 and we're growing and increasing those margins, and we continue to do so for the next six months. Can I hand back now to to Alex and any questions that you might have? Perfect. Simon, Jim, thank you very much indeed for your presentation. Ladies and gentlemen, please do continue to submit your questions using the Q and A tab situated on the top right corner of your screen. While the company take a few moments to review those questions submitted today, I would like to remind you that a recording of this presentation along with a copy of the slides and the published q and a can be accessed via our investor dashboard. Simon, Jim, Andrew, as you as you can see, we have received a number of questions throughout today's presentation. And, Andrew, if I may hand back to you to chair the q and a, read out the questions if appropriate to do so,

31:50 and I'll pick up from you at the end. Thanks very much, Alex. Hello, everyone. Yeah. We've got a couple of questions expanding on the the Tomtek acquisition side. First one is how long will the integration of the of Tomtek take into the group?

32:04 In reality, there there's minimal operational integration required. We want that team to run the business. It's not our start to go in there. We're all big brother and put in process on them. We want them to run that business. We see it as our role really to give them the tools to do their job. The so main areas of integration Simon was talking about really relate to kind of, you know, moving for example, moving the product manufacturer to UK circuits. Sort of that allows that team then to focus on the bits that they're good at. And then they Tontek taking on our lights and our sensors.

32:35 And then from the LST side, you know, giving them access to the sort of we spent around £500,000 on the software security sort of upside of the sensor. And as Simon was saying before, most of their products are hardwired. This would give them another dimension, really. The next question is, will the Tomtek acquisition expand your market reach significantly?

32:57 I think one of the reasons that we did it really was with light purchases, you're only buying lights every five to seven years. So if if you're on the sort of commercial side, you're phoning up the grower saying, how's things going? You know, when you're looking at your next lights, oh, in another seven years. You know, that phone call in another year is gonna be exactly the same. Yeah. In another six it'll be another six years before I need lights. And by the time that you get to seven years, the contact's probably left, and you're starting all over again. The good thing about Tom Tech is they're literally in the glasshouse doing the venting, doing the control systems, doing, you know, the irrigation, all sorts of different facets. It's a time when the glasshouse are revamping. They're in the perfect place, and they, you know, they do get opportunities when they're for, you know, could you do this while you're at it? So it gives us that opportunity to relationship build, you know, have a reason for more contact with the growers than once every seven years.

33:50 The other side of it is then, you know, we'll have proven case studies that, what, 37 years old. So we'll have both proven case studies that we can put in there, and both companies are gonna have an enlarged product portfolio and a 150 existing customers to go at to start with. This is one probably, Simon, you could take is relating to sort of what opportunities in the CA division are there in sort of Australia, Middle East, and Americas, And are and are we world class to play on them? It's all part of of creating partnerships globally. It's really important for for life science technology. Australia is an interesting market. They're really into their their tech and having technology to control their environment. So I think there's great opportunities in Australia.

34:40 In Middle East, we we can see the challenges there that the ground, when we look at soil, etcetera, is having the ground to stop so that you could if you can grow in internally, you can stop the imports, and that's what we're seeing in The Middle East. So Australia is about having the technology. They thrive on having technology. In The Middle East, it is more about not having the ground to grow in, and so creating that CA side and the the vertical farms, are are being built out there and having the the control systems and the lighting recipes, and we continue to to quote in both of those countries.

35:19 In America's really huge area to to cover, but we've been doing quotes in in Colombia and Brazil, in center of America as well. So, really, that's all sorts of of produce from from tomatoes to growing flowers to growing leafy greens. So it's real wide range of crops that we're looking at to to support technology in growing. So there's great opportunities there. Some of our largest quotes come come from America and building glass houses there and putting the technology in them. So we keep pursuing those those markets and creating those partnerships to support those customers is key for us going forward.

36:12 Okay. Thank you. We've got some questions on the CEM division now. So somebody's asking what the outlook for the CEM market in The UK and globally. And the CEM market's currently growing around 11% a year. Most importantly, as Simon alluded to, the the global trip shortage is not over, but it's it's getting a lot better. The situation's easing, and this will really help sort of our stability on margins. So I think what it will do is it will reduce the length of forward orders back to more historic levels where we would get, say, forward orders of three to six months instead of six to twelve months. But I suppose what's it's not gonna reset the clock back because I think the big change is the reshoring, you know, Far East reshoring. We are seeing that quite a lot, you know, with with increased transport and things like that affecting China, that differential between the two manufacturing and then particularly the more automated you make something, there's less labor to save on. That gap's narrowing all the time. So, you know, that's the that's the big opportunities, really. And, you know, that's why we're doing a lot of things around automation in the factory on the SMT side, particularly.

37:14 So in that question, Andrew, from Charles, it also says is that opportunities in the CEM similar to what has been in the CEA, I. E, the Tontech acquisition. And I think, you know, the answer to that is they certainly are. At Centimeters, it's quite a fragmented sector, and there are targets there that, you know, in time might be attractive to us. And, know, we will be seeking those and and reviewing those accordingly. Thanks, Jim. And then, yeah, how are you protecting your margins in the Centimeters market? You know, the team there have done a really good job in terms of working with the clients. We work very transparently, often on an open book basis for the building materials. So what we're able to do is in a in a quite short window, we would go to the market, we come back, and we kind of confirm this is your price, this is your lead time, which then protects our margin. Obviously, the longer your distant orders go out, if somebody's placing twelve months of supply, you know, we don't really necessarily always purchase everything upfront because that would place crazy challenges in terms of cash flow and things like that.

38:23 You know, then you are a little bit exposed, which hit us last year a little bit. But but yeah. Yeah. That's that's where we're at. But, you know, we're we're kind of in a situation where we are working with them. We are kind of in control as long as we're communicating efficiently. Simon, one for you. Is it expected that the CE market will remain the main revenue generator for the foreseeable future? I think in the the medium term, the the answer is is yes. You know, with the company continues to grow, which is is really important in the CEM market, and the market is growing as is the CA market. So we will see a turn, but I I don't expect it to be in the short term. I think in the medium term, we will see that see a turn where, you know, both sides of the business are doing equal and then eventually the CA side taking over from from that.

39:19 But at this stage in the short term, definitely, we will see the Centimeters continue as is and and continue the growth. Couple of just come in. Do Do you have lock ins in place for the senior team from Tom Tech? Yes. We do. I mean, Jim, do you want to clarify that a little bit more? Sure. Yeah. We've we've given quite an incentive scheme really for the senior management at Tom Tech to stay on board and to achieve, you know, a combined group target that will, you know, generate what we're looking for as a group. But also, you know, the the the senior management involved will will be incentivized and gain from that too. So, you know, we've had a very positive start post acquisition from the team. You know, they seem very engaged, and, you know, they will be rewarded accordingly.

40:19 The one on does LST have AI AI expertise in house already or it needs to recruit it? We did a project finished it about eighteen months ago, which was a two year project with Nottingham Trent University where we had a data scientist for two years working on AI. And what they were able to do is very accurately forecast the growth of a plant in certain conditions over that period of time. But but with AI, you need a huge amount of data. So we really need to have lots of sensors out there. So it's almost a feasibility study. Will this work? The results were fantastic. Go away. Gets loads of sensors in place. So we're getting that data book coming in, and then we will then revisit the AI side of it. So what we do and also the other thing at the moment is while we haven't gone totally down the AI route, it's quite a departure for my growers at the moment.

41:13 We're quite often in the story of when I go around and touch the leaves, and I know exactly where I'm at. So to try and get from that mindset to everything that's gonna drive you through a dashboard without you even touching it is a way to go. So we're trying to so we're going in a halfway house with the sensors at the moment that are out in the field where they give them data to allow them to control what's called vapor pressure vapor deficit environment so that they keep their readings within a certain area, vapor pressure deficit. So that's what we're doing with them at the moment. So then when we AI comes in, they're already halfway kind of trained to that mindset, if you like. So that hope that answers that one. Couple on the finance side, Jim. Is revenue growth a priority for management? Yes. Revenue growth is important because if it's at the right margin, obviously, it generates the contribution that that drops down to the the bottom line.

42:06 But I would add that, you know, revenue growth, the tenant cost is is not, you know, the top priority. We're very much looking at turning profit into a profitable company and and therefore becoming cash self sufficient as we move into that into that area. So revenue growth important, but but I would say not at any cost. The next two questions kinda lead into each other. So I'll start off with you again, Jim. Are you looking to do another fundraising by issuing more shares? So if if we were looking to do another fundraising, it would be on the basis of an opportunity that to the reason that you would we need to raise those funds for. So for example, you know, if a very attractive acquisition opportunity arose and we needed to to look to the market to to raise funds to do that, we, you know, we would obviously consider that.

43:07 However, you know, operationally, it's important to us, as as I've said, you know, a number of times that, you know, the group group becomes cash self generative in its own right. And, you know, that is certainly the aim, but we would definitely consider raising funds if the right opportunity arose. Well, that goes on to the next question quite nicely for Simon. So what can you tell us if there are there any more acquisitions in the pipeline? I think we're always looking for for good opportunities in the marketplace. You know, the the TECHNOLOGIES deal was a good deal for us and and how it works and the mechanics of it as well as the products and the name of the industry. I think if we can see other opportunities, you know, out there which are creating cash generative and not gonna affect our cash runway, then we'll certainly be looking at those opportunities going forward. So, yeah, absolutely.

44:08 Okay. I think that's it, Alex. Think that's all the questions covered. Perfect. Andrew, Simon, Jim, thank you for that. I think you have addressed those questions you can for investors today. And of course, the company can review your questions submitted today, and we'll publish those responses on the investment company platform. But before we direct investors to provide you with their feedback, which I know is particularly important to the company, Simon, could I please ask you for a few closing comments? Thank you, Alex. We're looking forward to the rest of the year, continuing growing the business and the margin. Working with the team at Tomtek that the new acquisition is really exciting position to be in and being our first on AIM as well.

44:53 And also creating those global partnerships, which will then give us the opportunities to spread our our brand and our product suite in both Tom Tech and also LIGHT SCIENCE TECHNOLOGIES So looking forward to the future. It's exciting times for Life Science Technology Holdings HOLDINGS and the team within it. Perfect. Simon, Jim, Andrew, thank you once again for updating investors today. Could I please ask investors not to close this session as you will now be automatically redirected to provide your feedback in order that the management team can better understand your views and expectations. This will only take a few moments to complete, and I'm sure will be greatly valued by the company. On behalf of the management team of LIGHT SCIENCE TECHNOLOGIES HOLDINGS PLC, we'd like to thank you for attending today's presentation, and good afternoon to you all.

45:43 K. Thank you.