In loving memory of our CEO, Simon Aspinall, we pause to reflect on the most recent moments we shared with him, like this last unforgettable afternoon together in Lucerne. As a team, we embarked on a journey of exploration, visiting The Swiss Museum of Transport where we were proud to see our first prototype machine prominently standing on display in the “Future Farm” exposition. The day concluded with a lovely dinner along the lake, as we joyously spent time together: discussing, making plans, joking and laughing.
Simon brought a lot of positivity and joy to the workplace. With his energy and optimism, he motivated all of us and he played an invaluable role in our business's success over the past year. His contributions will forever be marked in our hearts and his legacy will endure as a lantern, guiding us forward in the future.
It is with heavy hearts and profound sadness that we announce the death of our beloved CEO, Simon Aspinall, who passed away on Thursday, June 22, 2023, following a road accident.
Simon was an exceptional leader, mentor, and friend who will be missed deeply. His infectious positivity and joyful demeanor were appreciated by all who knew him.
His legacy as CEO will remain etched in the foundations of our company. Simon left an indelible mark by fostering a strong team culture, inspiring creativity and encouraging each and every one of us to push the boundaries. His willingness to take on impossible challenges and overcome obstacles has been an inspiration to all who have had the chance to work with him. Always wearing a smile, he brought a unique energy and optimism to the workplace, inspiring and motivating all of us to achieve our best.
Beyond his professional role, Simon was also an exceptionally generous and loving human being. He always took the time to listen, advise and support our team members, and his caring presence will be missed by all of us.
As we mourn the loss of Simon, we are equally determined to carry on his legacy. We will continue to work with determination to realize the vision he had for Ecorobotix. We extend our heartfelt condolences to Simon’s family, friends, and all our employees during this difficult time. His loss is deeply felt by the entire Ecorobotix community, and we will forever cherish his memory and the invaluable contributions he made to our organization's growth and success over this past year.
We send our thoughts and prayers to his family, friends, and loved ones during this difficult time.
Andrea, Aurélien, Claude, Cyril, Steve (Ecorobotix Management Team)
Hans-Peter (Chairman) and all the Board MembersAnd all of the Ecorobotix Team
In June 2019, we proudly announced that we got certified as a B Corp. This certification is delivered to businesses that meet high standards of social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency.
In March 2023, we achieved the re-evaluation of our certification, which is carried out every three years. Because obtaining this certification is above all demonstrating a continuous improvement journey.
In fact, we have improved our score from 80.3 in 2019 to 112. in 2023, which positions Ecorobotix in the "outstanding" category!
We think it's fantastic to remain part of a community of companies that use business as a force for good, and we are keen to continue to contribute to this cause.
A thorough assessment
B Corp certification is delivered by B Lab, a global non-profit organisation. B Corp Certification means that we have been verified as meeting B Lab’s high standards.
The process is based on the B Impact Assessment (BIA), an international standard developed by B Lab. An online tool allows companies to assess their impacts and good practices through over 200 checkpoints in 5 impact areas:
- environment
- employees
- clients
- community
- governance
Our team is proud to meet these criteria and to join more than 6,000 other companies that have been certified B Corp in nearly 90 countries, such as Patagonia, Too Good To Go and Rituals Cosmetics. This certification is a recognition of our commitment to sustainability and our social and environmental responsibility. It encourages us to continue improving our practices to contribute to a more sustainable future.
Sustainability is at the heart of our story. Ecorobotix was founded to revolutionize agriculture for the benefit of the environment, producers, and consumers. The B Corp certification is a recognition of our commitment, but also a motivation to go further and further in our efforts.
Simon Aspinall, CEO Ecorobotix
We believe that a commitment to sustainability is essential for today's businesses, and being part of the B Corp community that shares this belief means a lot to us. We will continue to work hard to earn this certification in the future and, most importantly, to ensure that we make a positive impact on the environment and society.
Our CEO Simon Aspinall has been selected to join Venturelab's Venture Leaders Technology 2023 programme, along with 9 other Swiss entrepreneurs.
The Venture Leaders Technology 2023 programme is supported by the cantons of Vaud and Zurich, the EPFL and ETHZ, the law firm Kellerhals Carrard and the bank Rothschild & Co.
→ Read the presentation of Ecorobotix by Venturelab
Ecorobotix will also take part in the Tech Tour Growth50, an exclusive roadshow where the 50 European startups with the greatest potential will meet investors from Silicon Valley. It's a great opportunity to create awareness around our technology, with other companies, US investors, or the media.
The roadshow is organised by Tech Tour, a community connecting entrepreneurs, investors, and business partners from around the world.
Being part of these exclusive programmes is not only a recognition of our work but also of the huge potential of our technology to change the world of agriculture.
Gold for Ecorobotix! ???? The jury ofthe SIVAL Innovation competition has awarded ARA in the Machinery and Automation category! The whole team is very proud of this new reward coming a few weeks after our first prize at the SIMA Innovation Awards.
The news came in mid-December. It was a nice early Christmas present! A reward for our efforts towards more efficient and environmentally friendly agriculture ???? ???? This SIVAL "GOLD" is a strong sign of recognition from the professionals of agriculture.
Ministerial visit
On of the highlights of Sival Angers 2023 for us: our stand received a distinguished guest! Marc Fesneau, Minister for Agriculture and Food Sovereignty, visited us on Wednesday, during the second day of the show.
"We had a very interesting conversation and I was impressed by the Minister's interest in new technologies," said Claude Juriens, our Chief Business Officer. Mr. Fesneau and our team talked about the drastic reduction of IFT in the field thanks to our ultra-precise spraying.
Hello partners ????
Trade fairs are the best time to meet people we regularly work with. Several partners came to say hello on our stand: thanks to BCO, Promodis, Groupe David, MAC Gabillet, Groupe Méthivier, Jarny and Eureden for your visits!
Good media exposure
Our gold medal at the SIVAL Innovation 2023 competition has earned us a lot of media interest. Ecorobotix has been quoted in an impressive number of articles, which means substantial visibility for our technology and our products.
SIMA 2022 started quite well for Ecorobotix: on the very first night, we were awarded a gold medal at the famous SIMA Innovation Awards in the category "Robotics and on-board electronics"! ???? What an honour to be crowned among very big names in our industry like John Deere, Amazone, Krone or Rolland.
A warm thank you to the jury: they gave our technology, which has taken many years of work, passion and challenge, a great recognition. This pushes us to continue trying to improve farmers' working conditions while promoting sustainable agriculture for all.
Ecorobotix stand: a crowded place
In this five-day trade show, we met a couple hundred people on our stand and built valuable contacts with potential distributors or customers from all over the world. And we did all this over a good cup of coffee with some of those amazing French butter croissants ????
High media exposure
A nice side effect to our first prize at the SIMA Innovation Awards: it generated a lot of media interest. Ecorobotix was featured in many stories, offering our technology and products major visibility! ????
The Ecorobotix Ara sprayer has a nozzle every 4 cm for precise targeting of weeds.
Entraid, Sima Innovation Awards: et les gagnants 2022 sont (in French)
Ecorobotix gets gold for its ultra-precise ARA smart sprayer that uses plant-by-plant targeting technology based on artificial intelligence.
Mediafel, Ecorobotix et ITK primés lors des Sima Innovation Awards 2022 (in French)
The ARA mounted sprayer from Switzerland's Ecorobotix performs targeted treatments with unprecedented precision.
Reussir Machinisme, Sima - Les 25 nouveautés que nous avons retenues de l'édition 2022 (in French)
This unmatched Swiss precision allows a wide range of applications, such as spraying selective and non-selective herbicides, fungicides, insecticides or fertilizers.
AgroMedia.fr, SIMA 2022 : Découvrez les lauréats des SIMA Innovation Awards (in French)
For example, [ARA] recognises thistle and dock as undesirable species in the midst of many other species of the same colour that make up the grasslands.
Ja Mag, Les meilleures innovations récompensées au SIMA (in French)
Already proven in the field, the Ecorobotix Ara mounted sprayer uses plant-by-plant targeting technology with a 6x6 cm area spray accuracy of up to 7 km/h.
Réussir Machinisme, Ecorobotix - Un pulvérisateur à la précision chirurgicale (in French)
New trials have just tested the third generation of Ecorobotix' robotic weeder: the ARA. Their mission was to improve the performance of this new robotic system as part of the work carried out on beet cultivation by the Tereos agronomy department. For the cooperative, the final objective is to enable its cooperators to benefit from the latest technologies contributing to the improvement of sustainable cultivation practices and the reduction of production costs.
Developed thanks to exchanges between experts from Tereos and Ecorobotix, a Swiss manufacturer, the ARA is a completely autonomous machine equipped with a 6-metre wide, folding boom that is attached to a tractor. Its three very high definition cameras detect weeds thanks to a recognition algorithm that is perfected with each use.
The nozzles, positioned every 4 cm, ensure high precision spraying and a reduction in the use of weedkillers of up to 95%.
With the new traction system, the SCBA moves at a speed of about 5 km/h. It can weed up to 30 ha/day. Its use has become very intuitive thanks to the development of a touch-sensitive tablet that can be used from the tractor cab, which will facilitate the future marketing of this system.
During the ARA trials, Jérôme Hary, member of the Supervisory Board and Chairman of the Tereos Sugar beet Commission, said:
« More than ever, productivity issues are essential to maintain the place of sugar beet in our farms. This requires innovation throughout the value chain to achieve optimum agricultural competitiveness. The work carried out by Tereos' agronomy department will enable us to support our cooperators in meeting these challenges. »
Jérôme Hary, member of the Supervisory Board and Chairman of the Tereos Sugar Beet Commission
« The role of the agronomy department is to identify and rapidly implement areas of progress and agronomic innovation for Tereos cooperators. Our mission is to ensure that knowledge is shared with our cooperators, to support them in their crop management and to anticipate with them the challenges facing their agricultural production. »
says David Sergent, Director of the Tereos Cooperative Division.
About Tereos
With a long-term vision of adding value to agricultural raw materials and developing quality products for the food, health and renewable energy sectors, Tereos is a leader in the sugar, alcohol and starch markets. The Group's social and environmental commitments contribute to the company's long-term performance while strengthening its contribution as a responsible player. Tereos is a cooperative group with 12,000 members and recognised expertise in the processing of sugar beet, cane, alfalfa, cereals and potatoes. Thanks to its 48 industrial sites, a presence in 18 countries and the commitment of its 22,300 employees, Tereos supports its customers as closely as possible to their markets with a wide and complementary range of products. In 2019-20, the Group generated sales of €4.5 billion.