Deeptech startup based in Chennai Fabheads, which makes carbon fiber parts, said on Wednesday it had raised Rs 8 crore in a pre-series A round from Inflection Point Ventures. Existing investors Keiretsu (Chennai chapter) and Vijay Kedia, MD, Kedia Securities also participated in the round.

According to a press release, the funds raised will be used to strengthen the R&D team, develop global sales and distribution and put in place an infrastructure to support growth.

Founded in 2015 by experienced ISRO engineers – Dhinesh Kanagaraj and Abhijeet Rathore, Fabheads moved towards the commercial model of 3D printing of composite materials in 2017. They were joined by Akshay Ballal from BIT-Mesra, who started out as an intern at Fabheads straight out of college, but then continued in the organization full-time, and is now the Product Manager.

The startup has since managed to raise two rounds of funding and is best known for being the first and still the only company in India to develop its patented continuous fiber 3D printing process, a feat that only a handful of companies across the world have been successful.

Speaking of the new development, Dhinesh Kanagaraj, Founder and CEO, Fabheads declared,

“IPV is one of the few investors to see the value of deep tech hardware startups. The IPV team went to great lengths to understand our offerings and also went above and beyond by already adding value to Fabheads by making extremely relevant connections through their large sales network across India and the Middle East.

Started in 2018, IPV plans to invest Rs 155 crore in 2021 through 60 startups.

Ankur Mittal, Co-Founder, Inflection Point Venture added,

“Fabheads is a high-tech startup that has built proprietary technology capable of competing with the best in the world in a space dominated by only a few large, well-funded startups / listed companies and where use cases have the potential. to grow exponentially. close future.

“With the experience of the founders of ISRO, we believe that their expertise in robotics and 3D technology will help the company to grow faster. Our network and the funds raised will help them achieve their ambition to expand to around the world, ”he added.

Currently, the startup offers design and manufacturing services to drones, robotics, and transport companies across India. Some of its portfolio companies are E-plane Company, Synergy Marine, Planys and ADA (Aeronautical Development Agency). He also onboarded a few Singaporean clients and recently launched pilot operations across Asia.