Kenya-founded Guidewheel raises $8m Series A for US expansion

Nairobi-based manufacturing tech startup Guidewheel has announced it closed an $8m Series A funding round to power its ongoing expansion in the United States (US). The round was led by Greycroft and joined by leading firms, angels, and Fortune 500 executives

Guidewheel was established in 2018 and operated as Safi until 2020. The startup is a leader in cloud-powered factory operations, empowering factories to digitize their operations and reach sustainable peak performance.

The startup operates a plug-and-play platform ‘FactoryOps’ clips onto any machine on the factory floor, to deliver prompt visibility that reduces lost production and improves performance.

Guidewheel’s chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder Lauren Dunford speaking on the funding said that every manufacturer can get more out of FactoryOps adding that the device democratizes access to cloud power.

“FactoryOps is now possible because the power of the cloud can democratize access to the tools once only available to elite manufacturers. And it couldn’t come at a more critical time.

“In an environment of increasing pressure and uncertainty, every manufacturer needs to get more out of the equipment they already have. Now, any factory can connect all of their machines to immediately identify and take actions to improve, and have all the tools to reach peak performance as a team. If all the world’s 10 million factories can reach maximum efficiency, the impact will be tremendous” said Guidewheel.

Though the startup still retains about 30 percent of its customer base in Nairobi, Guidewheel is now focused on sales in the US, and it is for that purpose that it has secured its US$8 million Series A.