Shape Automation moves into the incubator

Shape Automation is the first company to be accepted by Odense Robotics StartUp Fund. The startup recently moved into the incubator at Danish Technological Institute – and they are excited about the journey they are about to take together with their mentors and coaches. Co-founder Morten Kristiansen explains just why they applied to the fund and what they hope to achieve.

Why is your technology/solution valuable – what challenge does it solve?

We can combine several laser manufacturing processes for sheet metal in one machine. Especially laser bending and laser forming of sheet metal is unique and brings new possibilities to sheet metal manufacturing business and at an affordable price.

It solves issues/pains in the industry such as:

–  Several machines, often also including manual operations, have to be applied to produce parts.

–  Manufacturing double curved sheet metal parts require either expensive moulds with long lead times or experienced workers doing manual metal forming.

 

What are your startup’s greatest challenges and opportunities?

One challenge is that we are doing deep tech development with high precision requirements – we are automating a manufacturing process there has never been done before. However, this challenge also leaves us with great opportunities to bring something new and valuable technology to the market for industrial sheet metal part manufacturing.

 

Why did you apply to the StartUp Fund and what do you hope to achieve during your stay in the incubator?

In order to bring the technology from many years of university research and projects to an industrial product, a change in environment is required. The incubator provides us with coaching, network and mentoring with people there have been on the journey before, as well as technical solutions in the industrial segment.

 

How did your company start and who is part of the team today?

The company is based on 10 years of research at Aalborg University where the technology has been developed in several research projects and supported by private funding. In order to bring the technology to industrial use, Shape Automation was established by Founders Morten Kristiansen, Ewa Kristiansen and Anders Noel Thomsen. The founder team is now looking for employees to help accelerate the process of bringing the first product to market.

 

Learn more about the Odense Robotics StartUp Fund here >> 

Learn more about Shape Automation here >>

And check out the video: