British CloudNC raises $20 million to automate CNC machining
British manufacturing software developer CloudNC has raised $20 million in an additional Series B round. The total amount of investment raised by the company to date has reached $128 million, TechCrunch reports. According to co-founder and CEO Theo Saville, CloudNC conducted its previous major funding round four years ago.
Automation of CNC machining
The company was founded in 2015 by Theo Saville and Chris Emery, who is now its chief scientific officer. CloudNC is developing CAM Assist, an artificial intelligence-based system for automating part of the machining processes on computer numerical control, or CNC, machines.
CNC machines use computer control to precisely cut and shape materials into parts used, among other things, in the automotive and defense industries and in consumer electronics manufacturing. Before machining begins, specialists must determine how to secure the part and select the tools.
CAM Assist integrates with traditional CAM systems, including Autodesk Fusion and Mastercam. The software selects tools, approach directions, feed rates and cutting speeds, and also prepares code for the CNC machine. The user can review, edit and approve the proposed approach.
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Scaling and Quote Agent
According to Saville, CAM Assist is used by more than 1,000 machining workshops worldwide. About 80% of CloudNC's customer base is in the United States. The company employs 80 people, and it plans to use the funds raised for broader deployment of CAM Assist, strengthening commercial operations, expansion in existing and new markets, and the development of new products.
Among them is Quote Agent, which is scheduled to launch next month. This tool is intended to help manufacturing workshops estimate the approximate cost and risks of new projects in order to make decisions more quickly on accepting or rejecting orders.
The round was led by Nimble Ventures. Calculus Venture Capital, Entrepreneur First and LM Capital, Lockheed Martin's venture arm, also participated.
