JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israeli company Percepto, which uses drones and robots to monitor and inspect industrial sites, said on Monday it received a waiver from U.S. federal regulators for its systems and raised $67 million in a private financing cycle.
Heavy industry faces major challenges to operate efficiently, maintain reliable critical infrastructure, meet high productivity expectations and increase levels of safety – all in the face of complex, dangerous and often aging infrastructure assets.
Percepto said it helps industrial companies meet challenges such as maintaining reliable critical infrastructure, meeting high productivity expectations and increasing levels of safety through real-time visibility into the integrity of the infrastructure of their installation and the detection of failures before they degenerate into incidents.
It said it received a national Beyond Line of Sight waiver from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, allowing the company to supply any U.S. critical infrastructure site with remote-controlled automated drones without needing specific approvals. at the FAA website.
Percepto said this waiver removes logistical and cost barriers, such as the need for radars or people on the ground, fueling the adoption of autonomous drone technology.
The equity and debt financing round was led by Koch Disruptive Technologies (KDT), alongside new investors Zimmer Partners and one of the largest US energy companies. Existing investors US Venture Partners, Delek US Holdings, Atento Capital, Spider Capital and Arkin Holdings also participated.
In total, Percepto has raised $120 million.
(Reporting by Steven Scheer; editing by David Evans)