TOP 100 Startup Award 2017: Third place goes to Flyability with the flying data collectors
07.09.2017
FLYABILITY Elios drones: the new safety managers.
 Flyability with its flying data collectors
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A successful startup can’t afford to stand still. It constantly has to launch new products and refine its business model. Just like Flyability does. The EPF Lausanne spin-off was founded in 2014 and today offers far more than just innovative drones. It collects data during inspection flights inside pressure tanks, paper factories or the ballast tanks of ships, which helps customers to analyse their facilities.
“Our customers don’t need drones, they need peace of mind that their facilities are running smoothly,” says Patrick Thévoz, CEO and one of the company’s two founders. If Flyability manages to go from being a drone manufacturer to a safety manager – which is their strategic plan – this will drastically increase their value creation.
Flyability (tagline: “Safe drones for inaccessible places”) hit the market promising customers a new generation of drones that feature entirely new flight characteristics. The drones consist of a spherical structure made of composite materials, which encases the flying device and protects it against collisions with obstacles. Combined with a high-definition camera, these flight characteristics have opened up previously undreamt of possibilities for indoor use. “We have created our own market,” points out Patrick Thévoz, “we fly indoors”. Flyability is the market leader in this segment of the inspection industry. And that, according to their stated aim, is how it should stay in the future, too.
Elios model drones, which Flyability develops and manufactures in Lausanne, are attracting more and more interest from potential customers. The startup now has sixty employees and so far this year they have managed to triple their 2016 revenue, bringing in six million francs. But the company’s massive market potential doesn’t develop all by itself. The Lausanne team relies on numerous distribution partners. Over the past few months they have established partnerships in countries such as the USA and Australia, among others. The challenge: “We’re operating in a new industry, so first we have to explain to potential partners what we’re selling and how to make money with our products.”
TEXT: KASPAR MEULI
“Our customers don’t need drones, they need peace of mind that their facilities are running smoothly,” says Patrick Thévoz, CEO and one of the company’s two founders. If Flyability manages to go from being a drone manufacturer to a safety manager – which is their strategic plan – this will drastically increase their value creation.
Flyability (tagline: “Safe drones for inaccessible places”) hit the market promising customers a new generation of drones that feature entirely new flight characteristics. The drones consist of a spherical structure made of composite materials, which encases the flying device and protects it against collisions with obstacles. Combined with a high-definition camera, these flight characteristics have opened up previously undreamt of possibilities for indoor use. “We have created our own market,” points out Patrick Thévoz, “we fly indoors”. Flyability is the market leader in this segment of the inspection industry. And that, according to their stated aim, is how it should stay in the future, too.
Elios model drones, which Flyability develops and manufactures in Lausanne, are attracting more and more interest from potential customers. The startup now has sixty employees and so far this year they have managed to triple their 2016 revenue, bringing in six million francs. But the company’s massive market potential doesn’t develop all by itself. The Lausanne team relies on numerous distribution partners. Over the past few months they have established partnerships in countries such as the USA and Australia, among others. The challenge: “We’re operating in a new industry, so first we have to explain to potential partners what we’re selling and how to make money with our products.”
TEXT: KASPAR MEULI