Meanwhile ready to turn a corner in 2020

L’équipe de Meanwhile compte 80 % d’ingénieurs.

The Lyon-based company, which is celebrating its two years of activity, is counting heavily on the first quarter of 2020 to confirm its potential on the market, with already around ten orders for collaborative robots to be fulfilled.

Meanwhile is developing simultaneously on two markets: that of industry and that of healthcare establishments. The automotive supplier Jtekt has just placed another order for an Agilog robot that can transport loads in factories, avoiding musculoskeletal disorders for its employees. As for the CHRU of Nancy, it wishes to equip itself with the Medilog model which transports hospital equipment through the various departments. « The first quarter of 2020 should allow us to consolidate our activity, with a dozen robots on order », assures Sacha Stojanovic , founding president of Meanwhile. To date, the company has already sold seven robots.

Collaborative robotics

Meanwhile is committed to developing machines in line with its values, i.e. collaborative robots « at the service of » and not « in place of ». “Hospitals call us to ask if we have robots that allow nurses to devote themselves fully to their patients rather than to various trips,” continues Sacha Stojanovic.

Meanwhile is one of the regional companies selected by Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes as potential market leaders within three to five years. « Our objective is to become one of the European leaders, but with French technology and an attachment to the region », proclaims Sacha Stojanovic.

Meanwhile’s turnover should be around 500,000 euros in 2019. The robots are sold at a unit price of 50,000 to 100,000 euros. The company, which plans to raise funds at the start of the year, should be able to offer around ten models by the end of 2020. The Meanwhile team is made up of ten people, 80% of whom are engineers. And the company already plans to hire around ten people in 2020.