Meet the Innovator aiming high with wall climbing robots

New technology tends to be developed in order to solve a problem. “But we had a solution – a climbing robot – and were trying to find a problem for it to solve,” remarks entrepreneur Jack Cornes, co-founder of start-up company HausBots. “I realise this is not how you are supposed to do it.” 

Six years ago, Jack met up with old school friend Harry Smith who told him of his university project to build a climbing and crawling robot. Jack was working with software giant IBM and was aware of interest in technology that automates processes, particularly for people carrying out dangerous tasks.  

“It was one of those moments where everything came together, and it became clear this was a good idea for us to explore,” he adds. “We agreed that he would make the robots, and I would try to sell them and raise finance.” 

Jack and his business partner met up during evenings and weekends in a garden shed to sketch out robot designs and create prototypes on a 3D printer. In order to climb a wall, the robot was fitted with a fan that moves a large volume of air across its surface, generating over 45kg of adhesion force.  

Deposits were secured from potential customers and Jack raised an investment round to begin manufacturing. But still the pair were in search of an end use for their device. “We introduced our climbing robot to local painters and decorators,” says Jack. “Our approach was to build it, get feedback and tweak the design as we go.

Jack was keen to find a niche sector large enough to launch a product into without spreading their limited resources too thinly, so settled upon the inspection of critical infrastructure. “It’s impossible to be everything to everyone, so my goal was to find a big enough problem that needed solving: something giving enough people a headache, and where there was enough money to spend on it.”

Pivoting away from decorating to highways

Jack remembers being forwarded an email newsletter three years ago from Connected Places Catapult, promoting a National Highways competition to tackle graffiti on motorway structures. HausBots applied and secured £30,000 to test out its robot to apply graffiti resistant paint.

“We were out of the painting market at that point, but decided to apply because we wanted to show our robot could climb a bridge and be useful,” he says of the project carried out on behalf of tier 1 supplier Kier in Staffordshire. “By proving the robot in this environment, it opened doors to other opportunities.”

Two years later, HausBots secured a second grant through the Catapult as part of an Accelerating Low Carbon Innovation programme on behalf of National Highways to deliver a series of structural inspections using sensors fitted to the robot.

The company’s raised profile also led to an enquiry from an innovation manager at Amey, who asked if the robot could be used to carry out inspections on the Avonmouth Bridge in Somerset which carries the M5. Attachments were added to the unit including a camera and sensors to inspect the condition and thickness of materials on the bridge.

“Results-wise, the robot is as good if not better than traditional inspection methods,” says Jack. “Because no people have to leave the ground, there’s no need for rope access, scaffolding or cherry pickers. This means we can improve safety on site and decrease the time it takes to undertake an inspection by a factor of three. We can turn up, and within 15 minutes the robot is gathering data.”

Following in his parents’ footsteps

Jack Cornes grew up near Leicester, and was exposed to the excitement and challenges of running a business from an early age. His father had set up a food manufacturing company aged 16, and Jack remembers doing shifts packing boxes of pork products shortly after starting secondary school. His mother runs a hair salon. “Seeing both of them operate as small business owners made its mark, and made me want to follow them.

“As a kid I sold sweets at school and vegetables grown by my grandma outside her house,” he adds. His introduction to technology came from his stepfather who manufactured racing car engines and “taught me how to make things, drill things and screw them together”.

Jack’s first business endeavour aged 16 was to create a T-shirt company, and he taught himself how to build a website to sell his stock. He didn’t do particularly well selling clothes, but ended up offering his services as a website creator and built over 50 sites for other people.

Aged 18 he joined IBM on a school leavers’ programme where he sharpened his technology and commercial skills by finding potential clients and pitching new ideas. One system he helped sell was a parcel delivery tracking system to a courier company. “I worked out quickly that if I wanted to start my own business in the future, I had to nail the sales side of things to bring money in.”

Jack had started on the robot business while still at IBM, but realised there wasn’t enough quite yet to stake his career on, so he left the software company to join a small consumer goods firm in a sales role. “I would go door-to-door trying to sell products to convenience stores, and kept that job right up until HausBots raised its first investment. I was working all hours.” When an investor put forward £200,000 for the robot device, Jack left his job and started working for HausBots full time, setting up a base on an industrial park in Birmingham. The company now employs six staff.

Selling robots around the world

Alongside highways, the company has identified opportunities for its robots to inspect industrial assets, and has demonstrated the device to a couple of American chemical and paper production firms.

Jack plans to sell five robots this year (including to the UK, US and Australia), and offer clients training. “We want to continually increase its capabilities, such as fitting it with attachments to clean the inside of chemical storage tanks.”

What about the fear in some quarters that robots could take people’s jobs? “That scary spin is usually made by people who aren’t involved in these tasks day-to-day. In the eyes of bridge or plant inspectors, this isn’t a robot; but a tool. All of the data is fed back to them and they are the ones who make decisions. It will be many years before a robot has artificial general intelligence to interpret data and give an opinion.”

Opening doors to new connections

Jack is grateful to Connected Places Catapult for the access to funding, but says the biggest gains have been creating the conditions for its first trial to take place in a real-life situation, and introducing them to new people.

To others following in his footsteps, Jack advises caution as to whose advice they listen to.

Jack adds he will politely pass on further financial opportunities from the Catapult. “I think we have been catapulted past that stage now; it’s best to leave that opportunity to others who really need it. But at the time, the first grant represented a life-saving amount of money for the business.”

Since then, HausBots received £1.5 million in venture capital funding and £800,000 in grants from Innovate UK. “We are close to breaking even and hopefully can achieve profitable growth in the next few years. We have some lofty revenue targets, hoping to sell 15 robots next year and 30 the following year. If we can achieve that while making sure the business survives, I’ll be very happy.”

Join Connected Places Catapult’s SME network for details of opportunities to receive funding and support for new ideas.