London-based sustainability startup Signol, has landed £2.5 million in funding. The round was led by New York-based venture capital firm TMV. It also saw participation from industry stakeholders – Ultranav, a global diversified ship operator, and MOL PLUS, the venture arm of Japanese shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd. (MOL).
East Innovate, a London VC, which led Signol’s previous funding round, has reinvested.
Funds utilisation
Following this investment, Signol will focus on enhancing its solution and increasing commercial traction in the aviation and shipping industries. It will also implement a proof-of-concept (POC) in the corporate travel sector, using behaviour change to reduce avoidable emissions from business travel.
TMV’s co-founder and general partner Marina Hadjipateras said: “It’s crucial that we invest in solutions which can have an immediate impact to improve the sustainability and efficiency of legacy industries like shipping. There’s always a human factor when it comes to transforming industries – especially in maritime, whose overall market size is valued at over $152bn and which is responsible for 90% of the way in which goods are transported. Signol harnesses the real power of people to shift operational behaviour and culture towards more sustainable practices.”
Commenting on the investment, Takuya Sakamoto, CEO of MOL PLUS, said: “We have engaged in ongoing productive discussions with Signol regarding issues in the ocean shipping industry. We love their unique approach to assisting seafarers in better managing increasing workloads on board.
“MOL PLUS is proud to participate in Signol’s fundraising round to ensure the human opportunity is not overlooked. We are happy to join other partners and shareholders on this exciting journey with Signol. We commit to strong support from our maritime corporate standpoint.”
What does the company do?
Signol is a sustainability-focused behaviour change service, with a current focus on the maritime and aviation sectors. It uses data and behavioural science to motivate and engage employees towards more sustainable decisions.
The company achieves this through a scalable communications platform which delivers behaviour change techniques designed to reduce the barriers which make it harder for crew members to act on their opportunities to save fuel.
It achieves this through a scalable communications platform which delivers behaviour change techniques designed to reduce the barriers which make it harder for crew members to act on their opportunities to save fuel.
To date, Signol has saved shipping and aviation companies more than 100,000 metric tonnes of CO2 by optimising human decision-making, without any technological or physical changes to ships or aircraft. The CO2 savings stem from reductions in fuel consumption up to 1% in aviation and 12% in shipping.
“Ultranav is delighted to support Signol’s efforts to ensure the shipping industry doesn’t overlook the power of its human workforce as we tackle the urgent need to decarbonise,” said Ultranav’s Per Lange. “During my 40+ year maritime career, I’ve seen first-hand that it’s not always straightforward to appropriately engage crew members in efficiency initiatives without adding to their workload and mental stress.”
What do we think about Signol?
Signol is poised to make a great impact in the sustainability sector by leveraging behavioural science to reduce CO2 emissions in shipping and aviation. Its unique approach focuses on optimising human decision-making, offering a cost-effective and scalable solution to fuel reduction. As industries increasingly prioritise sustainability, Signol’s innovative strategy could become essential in driving environmentally conscious practices.
