What Can’t Bulogics Make?
Source: Philly.com
An engineering firm, for the ‘Internet of Things’
FELICITE MOORMAN, 41, of East Falls, is CEO of BuLogics, which calls itself an “Internet of Things” engineering firm. Founded in 2003, the East Falls company certifies, designs and builds wireless systems connecting everyday objects for Fortune 500 clients and individuals.
Q: What’s BuLogics do?
A: If you have a light switch or door lock or safe or smoke alarm, and you want to make it connect to the Internet in a way it never has before, we make the stuff that does that. You want a door lock to talk to your smartphone? We put software inside the lock’s hardware that allows you to do that. We’ll help you as a project manager determine the answers to those questions.
Q: The biz model?
A: You bring a project idea to us, you have part of it done or you want to do it from scratch, and we write a complete design plan from A to Z. Does this product need to be Wi-Fi or does it need to be Bluetooth? If it needs to talk to a phone, does it need to be in a big commercial building? Projects like that, depending on technology and scope, could cost between $100,000 and $250,000.
Q: Your customers?
A: Most clients are big companies that do electronics and make innovative products. We had 32 customers in 2014.
Q: How big a biz is this?
A: We were just under $5 million in revenue in 2014. I’d like to double it this year. We have 12 employees, and we’re hiring four more.
Q: Biggest challenge?
A: Hiring the right people, given the skill sets we need, but then to actually compete with what’s happening in China and India is doubly challenging. A lot of what we do will be commoditized overseas. It takes a differentiator to compete in our space. So we need unique innovations that can’t be duplicated overseas. Our product is a secure smart-home system that allows you to easily control lights, locks, electronics, appliances and other connected devices.
Q: What is Hive?
A: Hive is the world’s first smart-speaker system for the home. It gives your home a voice, but most of the time you’ll use it to jam to music, which you can control via an app.
Q: You’ve raised almost $90,000 of your $100,000 goal for Hive on Kickstarter and still have 25 days left. What’s up?
A: Music is a huge piece, but that piece gets overlooked because we’re preoccupied with security and energy. When you add music to a system, it speaks to a part of us that’s more carefree. When the campaign is over, we’ll do preorders on Hive’s website for people who backed the Kickstarter.
Q: What will Hive cost?
A: Initially, I think $149 for the brain and $99 for a speaker. I’d like to keep the speakers under $100.
