Behind India’s largest series A round in IoT: how Flutura chose its investors

Flutura CEO and co-founder Krishnan Raman speaking at Tech in Asia Bangalore 2016

Vertex Ventures, the venture capital arm of Singapore government’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek, has led a US$7.5 million series A funding of Bangalore-based industrial IoT (internet of things) startup Flutura. US-based Lumis Partners participated in the funding.

This is the largest series A round for any Indian startup in the exciting new world of the industrial internet. Last year, Pune-based Altizon had a series A round of US$4 million led by Indian IT services giant Wipro.

But there’s more to it than the money, says Krishnan Raman, Flutura CEO and co-founder, to Tech in Asia.

Fitbit for machines

Instrumentation on an oil rig. Photo credit: Pixabay

First, a quick word about what Flutura does. Krishnan’s co-founder Derick Jose described it best to me in an earlier interview as a “Fitbit for machines.”

Flutura’s Cerebra product goes beyond using sensor data to monitor the condition of machines over the internet; it uses deep learning to predict outcomes and pre-empt problems. From an oil rig in Houston to the world’s largest adhesives manufacturing plant near Shanghai, a range of large industries are using the Indian IoT product to cut downtime and expenses.

The thought behind the funding was to get a team to help us move forward smartly. It wasn’t just the money.

An hour’s downtime in an oil rig, for example, can cost US$30,000-200,000. Henkel’s dragon plant in China can save time and reduce waste by nipping problems in the bud. The Flutura product tracks and analyzes data on ingredients and other parameters to predict faults in high precision adhesives that go into aircraft wings, for instance – before the adhesives are made.

Flutura, which already had an impressive roster of clients in the US and Europe, was one of the stars at the Tech in Asia Bangalore conference last year. This opened doors to Japan, leading to a sales and distribution agreement with Hitachi a few months after the conference.

See: How Tech in Asia Bangalore opened doors to Japan for this IoT startup from India

Now, the deal with Vertex Ventures will give Flutura access to Temasek’s global portfolio of engineering services and industrial manufacturing companies. “Our partners will open doors for us, conversion will be our responsibility,” says Krishnan.

“They are growing internationally, and we can help them grow. We can add more value than capital,” adds Ben Mathias, MD and India head of Vertex Ventures, who is joining the Flutura board. “As part of our diligence process, we introduced them to Temasek portfolio companies. All of these introductions led to more detailed discussions on business possibilities. Four or five engagements are going on right now,” Ben tells Tech in Asia.

Former GE bosses now bat for Flutura

The funding from Lumis is equally strategic because its chairman Scott Bayman headed GE India, and managing partner Rohit Bhayana headed GE Software Solutions.

The American giant is a pioneer in industrial IoT. Flutura’s Cerebra has been competing with IoT products built on GE’s Predix platform to win global clients.

GE’s Predix grew out of the software solutions unit that Rohit Bhayana headed. Rohit joining the Flutura board after the series A funding, therefore, has special significance.

If I wanted a feature and it would take me a year to get it done in GE, Flutura would do it in a month or less.

“I think the market will see a dozen strong players in the industrial IoT space. And as of now, there are only two or three. So we see a huge play for a company like Flutura,” Rohit tells Tech in Asia.

He believes Flutura’s nimbleness, combined with strong tech and experienced founders, gives it competitive advantages over even a behemoth like GE. “If I wanted a feature and it would take me a year to get it done in GE, Flutura would do it in a month or less,” says Rohit.

Cloud-based deployment plus tech talent’s preference to work with startups rather than large companies levels the playing field and even tilts it toward smaller companies in emerging fields like industrial IoT, he feels.

See: This IoT startup is competing with GE and winning. Here’s how.

“Vertex Ventures can help us with customer acquisition and market traction; Lumis Partners can help in improving operations and sharpening our product,” says Krishnan. “The thought behind the funding was to get a team to help us move forward smartly. It wasn’t just the money.”

The backing from global investors and clients for a cutting edge industrial IoT software product from India also has a broader significance. India is known as the backoffice of the world for IT services and outsourcing. The hope is that the country will move up the value chain with innovative software products and intellectual property. The success of startups like Flutura point the way forward.

See: Why India must fix its obsession with software services and pivot to products

The three co-founders of Flutura – Krishnan, Derick, and Srikanth Muralidhara – earlier worked together for over a decade at leading IT services firm Mindtree. They are experienced engineers and managers used to dealing with global clients. This stands them in good stead in competing with the likes of GE and winning global markets with their IoT startup.

This post Behind India’s largest series A round in IoT: how Flutura chose its investors appeared first on Tech in Asia.

from Tech in Asia https://www.techinasia.com/flutura-gets-funding-to-crack-industrial-iot
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