Robot goes where drones mustn’t fly
Invert Robotics has won an international contract to help with airline safety and maintenance after raising $6 million from investors.
Invert Robotics is one of several technology companies that had its initial investment support from Christchurch-based ‘‘incubator’’ Powerhouse Ventures recently suspended by state-owned startup investors Callaghan Innovation and the New Zealand Venture Investment Fund (NZVIF).
Invert Robotics managing director Neil Fletcher said his company’s market capitalisation now outstripped that of Powerhouse, whose share price has fallen dramatically.
The robotics company had outgrown the incubator stage, had conducted the capital raising itself, and was expanding, Fletcher said.
Powerhouse chief executive Paul Viney remains a director.
Invert Robotics has clinched a contract with Zurich-based aircraft maintenance group SR Technics, which was the first European company to use its technology.
The robot has high-definition cameras and a patented suction mechanism allowing it to move around vertical surfaces of aluminium, glass and carbon fibre, even when wet.
Fletcher said the aviation sector could become one of the company’s biggest customers as the work could not be done by drones, which are prohibited at airports.
The device can find defects that are invisible to the human eye. Fletcher said setting up the checks on a tarmac or hangar could be done quickly, and it eliminated risks of staff working at height.
The technology will soon include ultra-sound and thermographic testing.
Over the coming year, Fletcher expected to double the current staff of 20.
About half the $6.4m raised would be used for working capital and the rest would go towards developing new products.