IMD Cos. buys first marijuana-related company

TAMPA — IMD Cos. Inc. has acquired a 51% interest in R-Quest Hydroponics Inc., a company that makes an environmental master controller for medical and recreational marijuana hydroponic gardens. The Tampa-based company is partnering in the venture with Anything Technologies Media Inc. of Freemont, Calif. IMD Cos. traded 100 million common restricted shares to Anything Technologies Media Inc., for the acquisition and partnership.

As part of the agreement, Anything Technologies Media Inc. will continue to manufacture the EMC-5000 system.

R-Quest Hydroponics Inc. is a Placerville, Calif.-based hardware- and software-manufacturing company. It recently developed the environmental master controller EMC-5000 system to manage the operation of indoor gardens. The EMC-5000 is able to regulate and control lights, fans, nutrient pumps and CO2 level controls to optimize production.

“We feel that together with R-Quest and ATM we can accelerate the growth and market penetration of the EMC-5000 control system for marijuana grow rooms that are in the expanding medical, recreational marijuana industry,” Bruce Collett, IMD president and CEO, says in a press release. “The new laws, funding opportunities and expanding marijuana market have us poised for growth in 2014.”

IMD says this is the first of what it expects will be many acquisitions and partnerships it plans to make in the medical and recreational marijuana sector. The company expects to announce several more deals within the next 30 days.