Eigen Innovations, a Fredericton-based IoT startup for manufacturing systems, has closed $1.4 million in equity financing to fuel its growth.
The funding round includes includes $250,000 from NBIF’s Venture Capital Fund, $100,000 from BDC Capital, and just over $1 million from angels. To date, NBIF has invested $500,000 in the company, which provides vision systems, sensors, and software that detect, learn, and correct defects in areas like raw material waste and inefficient energy use. In November, Eigen was the sole Canadian finalist at the Cisco Innovation Grand Challenge, and managed to place third out of six, a prize that included a $25,000 cash prize and business opportunities with Cisco.
At the same time, the company also announced that CTO and co-founder Scott Everett is taking over as CEO.
“To better position ourselves for the convergence happening between manufacturing and the Industrial Internet of Things, we are evolving our leadership structure to scale with the growth we are experiencing within our partner ecosystem and customer base,” Everett said.
Former CEO Richard Jones, who joined the company in 2013, worked on growing the employee base and establishing the company’s leadership team while acquiring customers in Canada, the United States, and Europe. Jones will remain on Eigen’s board of directors.
“Scott has grown from co-founder and visionary to an executive leader doing a great job shaping the strategic direction of the company,” said Jones. “Now is a good time for me to step away and let Eigen continue on its upward trajectory.”