1 March 2018

The Sherbrooke company Agilean, which provides IT solutions and consulting services in operational excellence, has obtained funding of more than $186 000 for its pre-marketing phase, initiated in fall 2017.

Agilean offers a cloud computing management app and consulting services for manufacturing SMEs. The young company recently experienced a strong growth spurt: “We are excited about our rapid growth, as we’ve gone from two to seven employees in less than two years,” explained Alexandre Dubé, founding president of Agilean. “We know that things will not happen on their own, and this is why we highly value the support we are receiving from funding sources and experts. 2018 will be a big year, as we are currently preparing for the marketing phase of our product.” The software iVSM – Virtual SupervisorTM helps industries to become innovating manufacturers and to adopt the right technologies to quickly and seamlessly switch to the digital age.

Two investors contributed the funding needed to carry out the next steps in developing the company: Pyxis and Sherbrooke Innopole. “Through its studio, Pyxis, with an interest in manufacturing innovations, helped develop the iVSM app. We think that creating tools to help implement a lean approach has great potential,” said Danny Leclair, President of Pyxis Technologies.

For its part, Sherbrooke Innopole invested $58 000 in the project through its Pre-commercialization Fund. The company also relied on the organization’s expertise to validate its business plan. “Within the context of Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things movement for industrial appliances, Agilean provides manufacturing companies with effective technology solutions. The user-friendliness of its software for factory employees make it a great facilitator of the digital transition,” stated Marc-Henri Faure, Director of Business Services – Information and Communication Technologies at Sherbrooke Innopole. “This can only be good news for manufacturing companies in Sherbrooke, Quebec, and elsewhere!”

From the start of its journey, the company has also benefited from the assistance of Espace-inc, a business accelerator/incubator in the Estrie region. “Drawing on its recognized experience in the manufacturing sector, Agilean dared to develop an innovative solution adapted to ill-served markets,” said Chloé Legris, Executive Director of Espace-inc. The company’s rapid growth suggests it will make a name for itself in the market over the coming years.”

Agilean will continue its marketing phase in 2018. To support its growth, the company will hire new resources in software development, business development, and marketing. A second round of investment is planned during the course of the year.

Source : Agilean, Sherbrooke Innopole and Espace-inc