Finnish startup helps farmers to prevent fires

An application for IoT technology comes from one of the most traditional sectors in the world – farming. Most people outside of the farming world have no idea that hay is a major fire hazard. When hay is baled, it is at a risk of spontaneously combusting, leading to tremendous damage and costs for farmers.

The sensors made by Haytech would measure the temperature and other qualities of each barn in order to predict if a barn is likely to start burning. This way, farmers will have continuous tracking of their entire inventory and be able to prevent fires before they start.

From farming to engineering

The solution was brought about by Nadine Pesonen – the founder of the company and a scientist at VTT  [Technical Research Centre of Finland] in Finland. She grew up in her family farm in France, and she experienced herself the process of taking care of the hay, the devastating effect a fire can have on a farm, and the huge loss and effort required by a farmer to take care of it.

Years later Pesonen started studying and working in engineering and became an expert in technology that, as she figured out, can solve a lot of problems that farmers face. Switching her mindset from engineer to an entrepreneur was one of the big challenges in the beginning.

Haytech’s technology has passed through a testing period and the team has already managed to prevent a farm fire. At the moment Haytech is looking for funding – the most important element in order to be able to start the production. The company already has a production partner so all that’s needed is to convince funds, private investors and angel investors to support the company.

Pesonen’s ambition is to expand first in Europe and then to go globally. One of the interesting opportunities for the business is to bring in partnership with insurance companies.

This article was originally posted on Nordic Startup Bits.