SoftBank Robotics Group Corp., a robotics solutions provider under Softbank, announced Monday that it has partnered with UnaBiz, a massive internet of things (IoT) provider based in Singapore, to initiate a seamless integration of IoT sensors and robotics in building management and maintenance that will streamline work processes, allowing efficient mobilization of on-site manpower resources.

The partnership will also improve customer service experiences with more targeted and enhanced cleaning services, both parties said in a statement.

According to them, the new partnership deal will first roll out in Singapore and subsequently in other SoftBank Robotics’ regional and global offices.

“SoftBank Robotics has always been committed to providing solutions such as Whiz, an artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled vacuum cleaning robot to facility operators. With the use of disruptive technologies such as predictive data on maintenance monitoring, it will provide building owners with building intelligence that is needed to digitally transform this industry operating landscape,

“Teaming up with UnaBiz, a leading market player in Singapore, we are confident that this partnership will not just add value to our customers but eventually make a difference in the entire sector,” said Kenichi Yoshida, Chief Business Officer for SoftBank Robotics.

According to the statement, SoftBank Robotics understands that facilities management operators are faced with handling many different building management tools and different brands of robots. On the backend, there are several dashboards – most of which don’t have a central control system for easy management.

This alliance is part of SoftBank’s overall roadmap to implement an IoT system onto a unified smart facility management platform – where IoT devices trigger alerts and automate AI-enabled autonomous vacuum cleaning robots like Whiz to tasks in addition to providing AI predictive data analytics, said the statement.

“Facility managers are embracing technology to increase the productivity of the workforce, improve customer satisfaction, and reduce carbon emissions. Both IoT and robotics have a lot of complementary purposes and the synergy of both can unlock new value for future disruptions and growth. We are confident that the right mix of SoftBank Robotics robotics and our IoT devices could greatly benefit the whole industry,” said Henri Bong, Co-Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of UnaBiz.

UnaBiz is a IoT technology partner for smart facilities management in Singapore with its ability to design, manufacture and scale hybrid IoT solutions for companies working towards digital transformation.

In 2021, the company deployed one of the largest integrated facilities management projects in Singapore, with over 3,000 sensors at Temasek Polytechnic. On top of smart facilities management, it also focuses on smart cities applications like smart metering, asset management, and asset tracking. The scaleup has deployed more than 1.3 million sensors globally, of which, over 1 million were smart gas meter sensors for Nicigas, Japan’s major LPG company.

SoftBank Robotics has promoted the development of technology as the leading robotics solution since launching the artificial intelligence and emotion recognition designed for the world’s first personal robot, “Pepper” in 2014. It launched the AI commercial vacuum cleaner “Whiz” in 2018, then launched the foodservice delivery robot “Servi” in 2019, and is constantly offering new solutions to a wide range of industries.

It has established global partnership with Gaussian Robotics, Keenon Robotics, and AutoStore AS, and has announced an extension to its product lineup of the fully automatic floor-cleaning robot “Scrubber 50”, serving robot “Keenbot”, automated warehouse picking system “AutoStore”.

Its robots are used in more than 70 countries and have offices in 12 locations; Tokyo, San Francisco, Boston, London, Paris, Hamburg, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Singapore, Sydney, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.

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