Living Map, the digital map and data platform which is backed by Mercia’s EIS funds, has completed an £850,000 funding round led by Mercia and existing investor Committed Capital.
The funding will allow the Bath-based company to further enhance its technology and support the continued roll-out of its new service to guide passengers transferring between flights at airports.
Living Map’s software allows companies to locate and track assets or people in real time and, unlike other mapping products, can operate seamlessly across both outdoor and indoor spaces. In particular Living Map is a leader in indoor location services, and its technology offers greater accuracy without the need for expensive additional hardware.
Living Map’s technology can be integrated with sensors or other monitoring systems – for example to track high-value medical equipment within a hospital, track components in large manufacturing plants or map air quality in different parts of a city.
Founded in 2010 by urban design consultant Tim Fendley, Living Map now employs over 25 staff. The company has produced digital mapping systems for venues such as Canary Wharf, Heathrow Airport and the MET Museum in New York and, more recently, systems to help key workers navigate their way around Bath and the city’s RUH Bath Hospital.
Living Map has also developed a ‘digital connection service’ to guide transit passengers through airports to make time-critical flight connections without the need for a staff member to assist them. The digital app is already in use by Singapore Airlines and further roll-outs are planned for 2021 and beyond, with implementation having been delayed due to the pandemic.
The latest funding follows two earlier rounds in 2018 and 2019 and brings the total raised by the company so far to over £4.5m. This funding round will help Living Map continue to invest in the growth and development of the business including the launch of the digital connection service.
Dominic Hazlehurst, Living Map’s CEO, said: “We are delighted with the considerable support we have received from our investors. With the opportunities that are available to us across our key industry verticals and armed with the technology to realise them, we anticipate an incredibly exciting period in the business’s development next year and beyond.”
Else Thomson, Committed Capital’s Investor Director for Living Map, commented: “While the effect of Covid-19 has had significant short-term consequences for Living Map, we believe the underlying technology and strategy longer term is well worth supporting. Along with our financial investing partner Mercia, we are happy to have supported the company in its recent funding round.”
Julian Dennard of Mercia said: “Living Map’s technology takes digital mapping to the next level. The company has made great progress in expanding its client base, with notable success in the airport sector. This funding will support its ongoing business development activity in healthcare and ‘smart cities’, allowing it to build momentum in the post-pandemic era.”