FuVeX  signed the largest civil drone contract in Spain with the Naturgy group, consolidating its leadership in the inspection of electrical infrastructures. FuVeX was one of the companies participating in the fourth edition of the Business Factory Aero (BFAero), an initiative that is part of the Xunta de Galicia’s network of accelerators. 

This agreement will allow FuVeX to monitor UFD’s nearly 40,000 kilometres of overhead High and Medium Voltage lines in Spain until 2026, with an option to extend until 2028, using long-range drones equipped with visual, thermal and LiDAR sensors to create a digital twin of the grid.

FuVeX’s technology represents a disruptive innovation in the management of inspection and maintenance of electricity infrastructure. The long-range drones developed by this scale-up bring improvements in operational efficiency, as each drone is capable of covering 50 kilometres of power line per day, five times more than conventional drones. The company is already working towards a target of 200 km per day.  

The use of drones offers two further advantages: the reduction of CO2 emissions in each flight, minimising environmental impact, and increased safety in the inspection of infrastructures, as it reduces risk situations in complex environments.

Boosting BFAero 

FuVeX stood out during its passage through the consolidation itinerary of the 4th edition of BFAero, where it had the support of all the resources of this accelerator and a solid aeronautical and aerospace ecosystem.

Its participation in BFAero was an important step for the development and consolidation of FuVeX in the aerospace market, as Carlos Matilla, CEO of FuVeX, emphasised, ‘our participation in BFAero helped us to optimise the development model and focus on what is truly differential in our areas of specialisation. On the other hand, it gave us the opportunity to prepare ourselves for the growth of the company, through the management of large accounts’.

The work of BFAero over 5 editions has allowed the consolidation of a panel of high-value experts and mentors and the creation of a dynamic and fruitful innovation ecosystem that drives and consolidates projects such as FuVex.

The Galician aeronautical ecosystem offers more than 55 entities that cooperate with the aim of responding to the needs of entrepreneurs in the aerospace, aeronautics and unmanned vehicles industry, weaving a network of collaboration for the promotion and scaling of disruptive technologies that solve the challenges of companies and society.

The collaboration of the entire ecosystem has given the entrepreneurs access to 31 potential customers or ‘early adopters’ and 7 potential investors.

The Business Factory Aero programme is structured around a set of harmonised activities to respond to the milestones agreed in the Framework Agreement for each project. These activities are structured in three types: mentoring, training sessions and networkingevents.

In the last two editions, BFAero has focused its efforts on offering the projects a set of expert mentors in areas such as aeronautics, UAV regulations, intellectual property, business management and marketing, and on increasing the number of sessions for the benefit of the projects, reaching more than 157 in the fifth edition of the programme.

Proof of concept and financing

Mentoring is one of the activities of the training programme most valued by the entrepreneurs, both for the specialised knowledge it provides and for the access to strategic issues such as the possibility of carrying out a proof of concept with companies or validating a product with the needs of the market.

Another of the key factors for the future of projects is access to financing. In this line, it should be noted that the Business Factory Aero programme includes training for attracting funding from public and private entities, depending on the stage of maturity of each project.

Personalised training

The training sessions are adapted to the needs of each project, in accordance with the indications set out in the Framework Agreement signed between the entrepreneur and the accelerator when entering the programme.

Another of the characteristics is the markedly practical nature of the sessions, where specific situations are resolved for each project.

Finally, BFAero organises networking events dduring each edition in which all the entities of the entrepreneurship ecosystem participate.