I was somewhat bemused when AIM-listed, Cambridge-based ‘real-time location intelligence’ products and services company Ubisense appeared to become less ‘transparent’ when it reported half-time results a couple of weeks ago (see Ubisense closes the kimono). This prompted me to meet up again with Ubisense founder and CEO Richard Green – it had been nearly a couple of years since last (and indeed first) we met, a few months after the company’s June 2011 IPO (see Ubisense gets off to fine start on AIM).
While it is still the case that Ubisense is the proverbial ‘company of two halves’, the rearrangement of its P&L rather belied the significant step forwards the company had taken in developing its proposition for the manufacturing sector. I do not want to steal Green’s thunder (or indeed do his marketing for him!) but I think he is taking Ubisense into a very exciting space with messaging that will resonate strongly in local and overseas markets.
Meanwhile I note that the ‘other half’ of Ubisense’s business has just secured a $1m+ contract with US-based ISR Transit, to develop location positioning systems for one of Florida’s county bus networks. Good stuff!
Green’s challenges are many, not the least of which is to reposition the manufacturing sector-pointing half of Ubisense as an end-to-end solution provider (I hate using that term but in this case it is appropriate) rather than a technology supplier. They have the necessary bits in place – it’s mainly a packaging and messaging job now.