Insu Health Design

Insu Health Design, a Puerto Rico-based technology firm, engineers portable cooling solutions for temperature-sensitive materials, with a primary focus on bio-medicines like insulin. The company was established in 2019, its genesis rooted in the widespread power outages that followed Hurricane Maria in 2017, which compromised the safety of refrigerated medications for countless individuals. This formative experience inspired the founders, a collaborative team of students from the University of Puerto Rico and the University of Houston, to develop a reliable alternative for medication storage. The founding team includes CEO Mason Lucich, who holds degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Design; COO Luis Blanco, a Chemical Engineering graduate; and CRO Doris Candelaria, whose background is in Public Relations and Journalism and who was personally motivated by the challenges her community faced post-hurricane.

The company's core business revolves around the design and future manufacture of a patented, battery-operated cooling device. This product addresses a critical market need for individuals who require consistent refrigeration for their medication, particularly during travel, power disruptions, or natural disasters. The market is substantial, with the biopharma industry losing an estimated $35 billion annually due to temperature-control failures. Insu Health Design aims to sell its cooling units directly to consumers, targeting the more than 6 million insulin users in the U.S. as an initial market. The device distinguishes itself from existing solutions through a proprietary heat transfer system that integrates a thermoelectric cooler, a water block, and vacuum flask insulation. This design significantly reduces power consumption, allowing the cooler to operate for extended periods—potentially days or weeks—on a single charge. The unit features a removable battery that can be recharged via multiple methods, including USB, car outlets, and solar panels, offering a level of versatility not commonly found in competing products.

Insu Health Design has secured significant non-dilutive funding to advance its research and development. This includes a highly competitive Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase 2 grant of nearly $1 million from the National Science Foundation (NSF), supplemented by $200,000 from the Puerto Rico Science, Technology and Research Trust. This capital is directed toward optimizing the device, miniaturizing components, and achieving a market-ready product capable of sustaining refrigeration for over 24 hours in extreme conditions. The firm has also participated in accelerator programs such as the Bravo Family Foundation's Rising Entrepreneurs Program and has received support from VentureWell, MassChallenge, and Parallel18.

Keywords: portable medical cooler, insulin cooling device, temperature-controlled logistics, bio-medicine storage, disaster preparedness medical device, thermoelectric cooling, battery-powered refrigerator, medication travel case, vaccine transport, cold chain solutions, off-grid medical storage, NSF SBIR recipient, Puerto Rico startup, health technology, chronic illness management, diabetes supplies, portable refrigeration, medication protection, power outage solutions, solar-powered medical device, advanced insulation technology, smart cooler, mobile refrigeration