Q-Bot secures new investment to drive expansion in the UK, into Europe and the USA
More than £3.5M of investment underlines the growth potential of Q-Bot’s pioneering use of Artificial Intelligence and robotics to insulate people’s homes
With Q-Bot’s advanced insulation installed in over 200 homes every month and following a 60% increase in revenue over the past 12 months, Q-Bot has secured a new tranche of investment, totaling more than £3.5million. The new funding will support Q-Bot’s growth in its main market of the UK, in continental Europe and in the USA. In the UK alone, Q-Bot’s high performance retrofit insulation can help insulate the 8-12 million homes that have suspended floors and which are hard to treat using traditional forms of insulation.
The funding from a cohort of private investors and family offices has been led by EMV - the VC investor specialising in early-stage high-growth companies, Wealth Club - the UK’s largest investment service for high net worth and experienced investors and for the first time by Adjuvo, a London-based investment syndicate.
Today’s announcement of the new funding follows the recent visit to Q-Bot’s new head office and retrofit research centre in London by Lord Callanan, the UK Energy Minister with responsibility for Energy Efficiency and Green Finance. During his visit (August 1st), Lord Callanan praised Q-Bot’s cutting-edge work and the contribution that Q-Bot was making to improving the energy efficiency of homes across the UK and in reducing carbon emissions, a vital component in the journey towards Net Zero.
Professor Peter Childs FREng, Chair and co-founder of Q-Bot said: “This investment is a strong endorsement of our work and recognition of the market opportunity that exists in the UK and overseas. Our customers, from private individuals to energy suppliers and providers of social housing are assured by the comprehensive and professional approach that we take towards insulating homes whilst leveraging use of state-of-the-art robotics and AI.”
Dr Ilian Iliev, MD of EMV Capital and Investment Director of Q-Bot said: “We are pleased to see Q-Bot close out this important fundraising. The company continues to make strong progress in scaling sales with its innovative use of robotics and artificial intelligence in the Construction Technology industry, and in particular in the retrofit home insulation market. We look forward to seeing its continued success as it scales beyond the UK market, with a focus on market entry in the US and EU."
Using Q-Bot’s technology to insulate floors is quick, hassle-free and cheaper than other forms of insulation; it is verified by the Energy Saving Trust and the Residential Property Surveyors Association. Independent tests undertaken by Leeds Beckett University point to a 24% heat loss reduction in homes that have Q-Bot insulation, and in a separate study it has been shown that Q-Bot insulation reduces running costs for properties with heat pumps – by as much as 30%.
Whilst Q-Bot will reduce people’s energy bills, Q-Bot can as a result of a single measure upgrade people’s homes. Out of 12.6m homes in the UK that are rated Energy Performance Certificate D or below, 30% will only need Q-Bot’s insulation to reach EPC C (a key objective of UK Government policy), at less than a quarter of the cost of alternative methods and without disruption, making the transition to the low carbon economy far easier and pain-free.
John Kennedy, Chief Executive of Q-Bot said: “With this latest tranche of funding, the welcome endorsement that we have from our investors and the UK Government, the energy efficiency commitments in the UK and overseas, and the public sector funding available to do this, Q-Bot has a strong platform to become a major, mainstream player within the retrofit sector and insulation market.”
Alongside the funding agreement, John Kennedy has been confirmed as the company’s Chief Executive; John joined Q-Bot in late 2022. John’s career to date has included senior executive finance and business roles in the insurance and technology sectors.
Professor Peter Childs, Q-Bot’s chair, added: “Since joining Q-Bot, John has leveraged his extensive experience as CFO and CEO in growth businesses ranging from start-ups to publicly listed companies in technology and financial services. At Q-Bot, John has worked tirelessly to enable substantive growth of the company’s revenues, significant improvements in our operations and the onboarding of new partners for the company’s robot as a service offering. Importantly, John has led on pivotal aspects of this funding round, and he will now lead the company to further expand its commercial activities and growth trajectory.”
John joins Q-Bot’s Board with immediate effect.
For further information, visit www.q-bot.co or contact
John Kennedy, Chief Executive: john.kennedy@q-bot.co
Paul Taylor, Taylor Keogh Communications: 07966 782611 / paul@taylorkeogh.com
For EMV Capital enquiries, please contact Belvedere Communications:
John West: +44 (0)203 008 6866 / jwest@belvederepr.com
Llew Angus: +44 (0)203 008 6867 / langus@belvederepr.com
Notes to Editors
Q-Bot, founded in 2012 by Tom Lipinski (now Q-Bot’s Chief Technology Officer) and Professor Peter Childs FREng, is a provider to the UK Government’s Green Homes Local Authority Delivery Scheme, the Social Housing Decarbonisation Fund, Great British Insulation Scheme and Home Upgrade Grant.
Q-Bot’s floor insulation is installed in over 200 homes every month. The company works with over 50 registered social housing providers, energy companies such as E.ON and British Gas, as well as a network of accredited installers and property agents.
An average-sized UK household, insulated by Q-Bot, could typically save c£850 a year in an electrically-heated home, and c£270 a year in a gas-heated home. Studies show that the Q-Bot system reduces heat loss through the floor by 77% and cold draughts by 1/3 for the whole house. With retrofitting existing buildings seen as essential for the UK to reach Net Zero, a household using Q-Bot’s solution can cut its annual CO₂ emissions by an average 700 kg.
Using AI and robotics, Q-Bot’s insulation is deployed beneath suspended timber floors or to the underside of suspended concrete floors. A remotely operated robotic device applies a continuous layer of spray-foam insulation to the underside of the floor, resulting in a reduction in heat loss through the floor and a barrier to cold air draughts.
A technical survey is completed for all properties, with the evidence that is collected stored digitally in Q-Bot’s secure ‘Digital Retrofit Management system’. The survey determines the suitability of a property by assessing floor health, moisture content, physical conditions and the building’s ventilation. The robot is controlled remotely by qualified installers, spraying the underside of the floorboards to the desired thickness in the case of suspended timber floor construction, or the underside of solid concrete floors in solid floor construction.
Q-Bot’s work has received grant support from the UK Government and Innovate UK, and it has won numerous awards, including the CIBSE Building Performance Award and the Queen’s Award for Enterprise (Innovation).
Q-Bot has been in operation for over 10 years, installed in over 4000 properties across the UK and Europe and there have been no failures, nor any incidents where the insulation has needed to be removed. Q-Bot’s strict quality assurance process allows the company to offer customers a 25-year insurance backed guarantee with every floor insulation.
About EMV Capital
EMV Capital is an award-winning deep tech VC investor specialising in early stage high-growth companies in the life science, sustainability, and industrials sectors in the UK and internationally.
EMV Capital develops unique investment strategies for each portfolio company, drawing on its EIS fund and extensive network of private investors, family offices, institutions, and corporate VCs. Delivery and successful execution of these investment strategies enables innovative portfolio companies to raise funding to drive transformational growth.
EMV Capital is a wholly owned subsidiary of NetScientific plc (AIM:NSCI), the deep tech and life sciences VC investment group.
EMV Capital has a multi-disciplinary team of specialist investors, portfolio managers, capital raisers, legal, finance, marketing, and support staff. The company is focused on primary and secondary investments, through debt and/or equity.