Friendly Robotics, which develops robots for home use, has announced the signing of a five-year contract with Stiga, which is controlled by Swiss investment bank UBS. It is estimated that Friendly Robotics will supply 60,000 units for $50 million.
In May, Friendly Robotics signed an agreement with US company Toro for supplying several hundred lawn-mowing robots for at least $100 million. Under the agreement, Toro will market the lawn mowers in the US under its own brand name.
Friendly Robotics is the first start-up in which stock exchange-listed venture capital fund Technoplast Technologies invested. Technoplast currently owns 13.5% of Friendly Robotics. Other shareholders include company founder Udi Pelles (28.4%), Kardan Technologies via Concord Ventures (17%), US venture capital fund Coral Ventures Fund (10.4%), and China Development Industrial Bank (11.4%).
Stiga is a lawnmower manufacturer in the process of merging with Italian company Castel Garden, Europe’s biggest lawnmower maker, and with Alpina, an Italian manufacturer of electric saws and other garden equipment. The merged company, Garden International, will be Europe’s biggest lawnmower manufacturer, producing 1.7 million ordinary lawnmowers and 115,000 ridable mowers. UBS will own 81% of the merged company, Grimaldi will hold 15%, and company managers will own the balance.
Published by Israel's Business Arena on 12 September, 2000