Artificial Intelligence is the new hue these days, encompassing all the sectors quickly. Aviran Yaacov, Co-founder, and CEO of EcoPlant have always been fascinated by AI. He further adds, “The fact that actions can be taken automatically and dynamically without human intervention, the possibility of spreading this gospel so quickly and influencing so widely, is the inspiration that led me to establish EcoPlant.”
Facing Setbacks Boldly
Aviran describes the entire journey via 3 pivots that the company has gone through in 5 years. The company began operations as a project company that handled IoT connectivity projects in industrial plants. The three pivots witnessed in the journey were: the invention of their current technology, shifting in focus from the European market to the American market, and the company ECOLAB that focusses on one of the great problems that humanity faces nowadays i.e., Global warming and the effort to reduce pollutant (CO2) emissions.
Exhaustive services, vision and of EcoPlant
EcoPlant is a firm that relies on machine intelligence to power the field of industrial compressed air and save about 30% of energy consumption. The best part is that it also lowers down the risk of downtime by 50%. Aviran says, “In 2018, the company developed a unique technology in the field of Industrial Automation and Artificial Intelligence that simultaneously manages a large number of machines, synchronizes their activities, and through this – saves energy, reduces the risk of shutting down the production line, and helps extend the life of existing equipment.”
He adds, “The company maintains continuous contact with our customers and business partners to stay up to date with the latest trends. I can say that at the end of a competition it is a good thing and it only focuses on giving customers better value and sharpens the need to differentiate ourselves all the time.”
The company has a vivid vision to develop the first URP (Utilities Resource Planning) system in the world based on AI automation/control. He shares, “The vision is to connect all the different infrastructures – from air compressors, chillers, cooling towers, pumps, etc. to one platform that can control everything at the same time, in a smart and efficient way and allow the plant to work efficiently and continuously.”
Every public company has an annual sustainability report in which it reports to shareholders about the projects it has done and the results it has achieved in reducing pollutant emissions. EcoPlant technology connects to this vision, and helps achieve between 15-30% of the annual goals of any such company!
Contributing in the growth of the firm
In the last 10 years, the firm transitioned to conduct operations an “as a service” model. Since all companies are changing as per this dynamics, it seemed to be the right thing to do be it for customers or manufacturers. He adds, “I myself came from SAP before we founded EcoPlant and also there, started already in the previous decade to provide SAAS software services to the manufacturing industry. I’m out of my place, I brought the vision to a solution that is best of suite instead of best of breed.”
Incorporating both excellence and innovation forms the core foundation of the firm. He shares, “Our team consists of compressed air people, alongside software and product people who are experts in IoT and AI. We are based on the services and microservices of the largest cloud companies in the market. Our technology is patented and is in fact the dynamic engine that optimally controls the air compressors.”
Before and After EcoPlant
Aviran has tremendous experience prior to working at EcoPlant. He says, “I worked at SAP as a national sales manager. I managed and sold ERP systems for medium-sized businesses, factories, etc. In the more distant past, I broadcast on the radio as a newscaster.”
He states that his greatest achievement was to manage projects which have tens of millions. He adds, “It should be understood that most ERP projects fail due to 3 main reasons: 1. Lack of champion on the part of the client who will lead the project. 2. Software vendors who do not ask the right questions even before implementation and build the project according to the real needs of the customer 3. Work plan and long-term budget for the project with pre-defined milestones.” He had the crucial role to augment all those 3 points and manage all the associated risks to reach the success top.
He shares, “As the company’s CEO, I am responsible for meeting business goals, raising funds, and day-to-day management. In the last year, I have also been responsible for the establishment of the company’s operations in the USA and as a result recruit new employees, sign agreements with new business partners and of course – bring new customers to the American market.”
Future roadmap of EcoPlant
Aviran and his team know that their technology results in boggling down hundreds of tons of CO2 each year to an average plant. The hems are huge when you think of companies like Nestle, Danone, or Cargill that each has hundreds of factories!
He shares, “We are highly motivated – first and foremost because we love what we do. We are compressed air people and software people who love what we do.” For him, Team is the most important thing needed in any company and is increasingly critical as the company gets smaller. That is, when you think about building a company, you will think that the first 5, 10 people are most critical to its growth and success.
They all wake up with self-motivation to pursue success in the best way. They are in peace with the fact that they reduced the energy consumption of the customers by 30%, brought down the number of pollutant emissions and overall air pollution, and make the world be a cleaner and better place. He adds, “We intend to continue to grow with our partners, with our customers where the main goal is to connect to the vision of sustainability of many organizations that are committed in the coming years to reduce CO2 by tens of percent.”
