Automation Alley Industry 4.0 Accelerator, North America's first Industry 4.0 accelerator, has Announced an Investment in the Detroit-based Andonix

The Automation Alley Industry 4.0 Accelerator, the nation's first Industry 4.0-specific accelerator, has announced its most recent direct investment in a startup business focused on using Industry 4.0 technology in Michigan's manufacturing ecosystem. Andonix, based in Detroit, received the investment. The company developed the Safely Pass app in 2020 to provide organizations with tools to digitally monitor workplace safety and health, including the daily staff screenings required for essential manufacturing employers during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Automation Alley Executive Director and CEO Tom Kelly made the announcement.

Andonix creates software solutions to bring frontline workers into the digital era to improve efficiency, machine productivity, quality, and safety compliance and assist businesses in moving toward the elimination of paper-based processes. Before developing Safely Pass, the firm created the Smart Work Station platform, which uses current technologies to quickly onboard and educate industrial workers. Addressing one of the most significant problems faced by industrial companies—the unconnected frontline labor force Work Station helps manage several ongoing issues, such as long training periods, turnover, machine asset underutilization, and scrap, which can cost millions of dollars operational inefficiencies each year.

The Automation Alley Industry 4.0 Accelerator is led by Automation Alley, Michigan's Industry 4.0 Knowledge Center. It is run in collaboration with Lawrence Technological University's Centrepolis Accelerator and Jackson-based Lean Rocket Lab. Startups worldwide compete to be a part of the accelerator because of the comprehensive training, education, and visibility that the accelerator provides both internally and via corporate partners. The accelerator works with global entrepreneurs to help them establish momentum in Michigan's manufacturing ecosystem and bring innovative innovations to market.

Andonix will receive a total investment of $110,000 from partner companies in the capital, programming, and contractual services; this is the biggest investment presently available from any Industry 4.0 accelerator in the world. While most accelerators are linked to a single major corporate funding partner, the Automation Alley Industry 4.0 Accelerator exposes its participating companies to over 20 corporate partners, including OEMs, Tier One, and Tier 2 suppliers.

The Automation Alley Industry 4.0 Accelerator program was launched in 2020, with $1.3 million in funding provided by the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). Early-stage businesses seeking to commercialize products, services, or technology in the Industry 4.0 industry can now access funding. The first investment was made in Autaza in October 2020, a business that focuses on using Industry 4.0 technologies, such as AI and computer vision, on automating quality inspection procedures for vehicle paint, automobile bodies, aircraft, glass, and surfaces (virtually). The accelerator has received over 300 submissions from companies in over 30 countries and now supports more than 25 startups at different stages.

About Automation Alley

Automation Alley is a World Economic Forum Advanced Manufacturing Hub and a non-profit Industry 4.0 information center with a global and regional perspective. To drive Michigan's economy and accelerate innovation, we promote public-private partnerships by linking industry, education, and government. Our programs provide companies with a competitive edge by assisting them at each stage of their digital transformation journey. We are obsessed with disruptive technologies such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, and automation. We work hard to make these difficult ideas simpler for companies to understand and execute.

About Andonix

Andonix provides a reliable, resilient, and scalable digital work instruction and communications platform to frontline automotive employees. By placing Andon Cord functionality in the hands of frontline employees, the Smart Work Station enhances the production process's safety, productivity, and efficiency. The Smart Work Station, based on the lean manufacturing pillars of continuous improvement, visibility, and standardization, enhances worker training, process deployment, and monitoring via multimedia-rich standard operating procedures and checklists. The Safely Pass app expedites and simplifies workplace safety and OSHA compliance while providing businesses with the ability to connect and communicate with frontline employees directly. Andonix uses the cloud and low-cost smart devices to improve operational performance with an easy-to-use, scalable, and quick-to-implement platform. Powerful data analytics provides insights into people and process performance.