Trusting A Third Party with Your Electronic project
Today, NOFLO is an innovative company working to prevent leaks and water damage through an intelligent water control system. But not so long ago, NOFLO was just a good idea…
The Importance of Choosing the Right Partner
Having vast experience in insurance, management and finance, Mr. Luc Fortin and Mr. Jean-François Bessette were already aware of the need in the market. They had a clear vision of the future NOFLO product. Having never developed an electronic product themselves, they set out to search for a partner. Let’s be honest; it’s not easy to share your vision with strangers…
They met with Motsai, as well as other companies offering similar services. The choice of an electronics partner was formal and unanimous: Motsai will handle the development.
“During our first meetings, the experience and expertise of Motsai’s team was essential: added to the immediate confidence we had in them, their advice and support, we knew we wanted to work with Motsai.” – Luc Fortin, President of NOFLO.
It was the beginning of an enriching collaboration.
From Idea to Reality
NOFLO’s team knew that the residential and commercial industries already needed water leak detection technology to prevent costly property damages.
From the very first meetings, NOFLO’s team wanted to develop a product comprising three key features:
- Leak detection and temperature measurement technology allow the detection of the appearance of water. The system can report an increasing risk during an abnormal temperature drop.
- A self-contained, wireless leak sensor capable of operating over long periods. It can identify and shut off a water leak in a few seconds.
- A presence sensor capable of identifying the use of high risk areas and maintaining pressure only when necessary. When the premises are vacated the water is turned off. This minimizes the risk of slow leaks and costly water damage.
Thanks to a network of wireless sensors, NOFLO products can be easily deployed. A cloud-based software application integrates all data and provides the customers with advanced capabilities for continuous monitoring and risk assessment.
During the development of the product and the technology, NOFLO testifies to the enriching and rewarding exchanges. In other words, Motsai’s team was there to validate ideas and push them to the maximum of their potential. They also had to take into account factors such as the costs of components, the ease of manufacture and the modeling of the selling price. Mandatory certifications, as well as approaches for connecting the product to a cloud platform were also addressed.
Local production was important for NOFLO. The successful integration of Quebec partners into their supply chain was done efficiently. Both in the manufacture of electronic cards and in the assembly and packaging of their product is now locally handled.
When you think you are done, you are only halfway there…
When a company wants to turn an idea into a product for the market, there is more to consider than just the product development. NOFLO was able to benefit from the support and development strategy offered by Motsai during the numerous stages of this process. Mr. Fortin also said that it was reassuring for them to be accompanied in the more complex periods such as regulatory approval and certifications. Motsai’s team helped to realize the idea of NOFLO and adapt the technologies as needed. Always with the aim of always satisfying the objectives of NOFLO’s creators from the idea to its final stages.
NOFLO Today
After several years of refinements and evolution, NOFLO now owns an innovative product, fully certified and available for sale! The pandemic has slowed their sales journey as a majority of condominium associations’ meetings – their primary clientele – have been postponed and, at the same time, the general vote for the integration of their product, but with the recovery, projects are restarting.
There is no doubt for the founders that the NOFLO solution will be adopted given the numerous benefits it brings in terms of risk reduction of water damage which will translate into significant savings in property insurance. NOFLO is one of the few companies in Canada to have received the PREVCAN Level 2 ratings which certifies the performance of such a system for its reduction in the risk of water damage to property.
Motsai and NOFLO continue to work together to expand the range of products available to consumers and to always offer the most appropriate technologies and work around supply chain issues.
For more information about the NOFLO solution, visit them at www.noflo.ca