Continuous Composites secures $17M in financing
Coeur d’Alene-based-additive manufacturer, Continuous Composites Inc., has secured $17 million in funding that CEO Tyler Alvarado said will help the company double its workforce and bring its product to market within the next year.
The financing round was led by Los Angeles-based B. Riley Venture Capital, a subsidiary of B. Riley Financial Inc., which offers financial and investment services.
The funding commitment comes on the heels of a development agreement with France-based Saint-Gobain to manufacture aerospace components in Saint-Gobain’s facilities in the U.S. and Europe.
Continuous Composites designs and manufactures 3D printing robotic arms to build composite parts for a number of applications, using materials such as carbon fiber, fiberglass, and Kevlar.
The technology layers the fibers using robotic technology while simultaneously curing the materials with ultraviolet light.
It can also print using optical fiber, copper wire and nichrome wire, which can accommodate sensors, circuits, and heating elements embedded in composites.
The capital infusion from B. Riley took a little over a month to finalize.
“It’s an exciting time, and we feel so blessed to have the opportunity to be building a company like this with such a disruptive technology and talented team right here in North Idaho,” Alvarado said.
The company currently has 30 employees and plans to add another 30 within the next year, he said.
“It’s a big economic infusion for sure,” he said, adding that the funds also will be used to bring the company’s technology to market within the next six to 12 months.
“We’ve got an exciting development process, we have a very strong technology, team, and intellectual property,” he said, “but the biggest challenge we’ve had is being resource constrained, without the resource finances, it limits our human capital.”
Todd Sims, president of B. Riley Venture Capital, said his company was drawn to Alvarado’s vision and leadership.
“And their blue-chip customers, both industrial and governmental, which we see as clear validation of the CF3D technology.”