An IoT start-up that helps manufacturers to maximise productivity and reduce energy use has raised £1.8m from NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance, which is managed by Mercia and is part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund, Mercia’s EIS funds and private investors.
The funding will enable Sheffield-based FourJaw Manufacturing Analytics to further enhance its machine monitoring platform and expand its customer base. FourJaw’s award-winning platform acts as a fitness tracker for machines, monitoring ‘vital signs’ such as machine utilisation and energy usage. It then turns the data into actionable insight that enables manufacturers to remove inefficiencies from the factory floor.
Unlike traditional monitoring systems which are usually costly to set up and have to be hardwired into each machine, FourJaw’s technology can be installed in minutes, connected to any machine and is accessible to manufacturers of all sizes.
FourJaw was founded in 2020 by Chris Iveson and Robin Hartley-Willows, who had previously worked together at the University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre. Its platform is now used by over 120 manufacturers worldwide in sectors ranging from aerospace and automotive to energy and food production.
The company currently employs 20 staff. The latest funding brings the total raised to date to almost £4m and will enable FourJaw to accelerate product development and invest in its technology and customer success teams, creating seven new jobs.
Chris Iveson, co-founder and CEO, said:“Improving productivity, sustainability and profitability are the three key challenges facing manufacturers today. FourJaw provides an affordable solution to overcome them and unlock opportunities by providing real-time insights to inform operational and commercial decisions. The funding will help us accelerate our vision to maximise manufacturing productivity across the globe which in turn will help elevate lives, communities and society.”
Chris Borrett of Mercia said: “Manufacturing is an enormous industry that is undergoing massive digitisation. Until now individual machine data across the entire assembly line has been prohibitively expensive and cumbersome to install. FourJaw is changing the game, providing the data, the platform and the intelligence required for manufacturers from all sizes and sectors to radically evolve their operations.”
Keira Shepperson, Director at British Business Bank said: “The £1.8m investment is a significant boost for FourJaw, which underscores the growing importance of IoT technology in optimising manufacturing processes. Not only will this investment enable FourJaw to enhance its platform, but it will facilitate its growth to expand beyond Sheffield. It’s exciting to see innovative small businesses like FourJaw make a real impact in the manufacturing sector, and it’s great to see Sheffield leading the way.”
The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.
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