British startup Isembard has secured approximately $9 million in a seed funding round, led by Notion Capital, to reshape precision manufacturing for critical industries. Founded by Alexander Fitzgerald, Isembard’s name — inspired by that of the legendary British industrialist and engineer Isambard Kingdom Brunel — represents a belief in impossible dreams. Either way, the company is apparently on a mission to develop an aesthetically pleasing solution. It will address the wasteful practices embedded in conventional manufacturing, particularly in the aerospace, defense and energy sectors.
Isembard opened its initial production facility in London earlier this year. Since coming out of stealth, it has been using that proprietary software layer, MasonOS, to power and connect its operational hubs. This technology enables Isembard to be agile and flexible in fulfilling short lead time and high precision parts requests. It’s a faster, cheaper and more efficient approach to manufacturing than existing processes. The biz currently has a core staff of 12 passionate people. They are crucial to advancing the mission of realizing economies of scale across its operations.
As part of its strategy, Isembard focuses on companies that wouldn’t necessarily have the time or the resources to invest significantly in their own manufacturing facilities. Fitzgerald hammers home the point that we need to ditch the old playbook of one large factory.
“We take the view that it takes too long, too much capex, and too much concentration of talent in one single place to build these large, 100,000 square-foot factories,” – Alexander Fitzgerald.
Isembard’s aim is to shake up this status quo by delivering a much more flexible and agile manufacturing approach. Fitzgerald went on to explain that MasonOS goes way beyond being just a medical OS.
“Everything from quoting and estimating work to a customer, through to managing our own supply chain, automating scheduling and the prioritization, but also the core manufacturing and how you code the machines themselves,” – Alexander Fitzgerald.
As an early trim-development process, the startup claims that existing manufacturing processes tend to fall back on legacy practices. Fitzgerald highlighted it’s not an easy time for most businesses.
“At the moment, the problem is either that’s all paper-based or it’s all software built in the 70s,” – Alexander Fitzgerald.
Isembard first operates the aerospace and defense industry. Their focus is on cutting out the production bottlenecks for next-generation technologies such as advanced, uncrewed aerial systems.
“Let’s say you are making an uncrewed aerial system, like a drone,” – Alexander Fitzgerald.
Isembard employs a dramatically different, systems-oriented approach focused on bringing out solutions aligned with the needs of today. Simultaneously, it hopes to bring a new era of industrialization to Western economies.
“We want to help solve industrialization for the West,” – Alexander Fitzgerald.
The recent funding will allow Isembard looking to grow its reach and improve its technological prowess. The company’s approach shows what’s happening all across the manufacturing industry – an increasing investment in digitalization and efficiency gains.
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