FLX Solutions hitting highs, lows and other hard to reach spaces

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When Matt Bilsky wanted to launch his start-up company, FLX Solutions at Ben Franklin Tech Ventures in the fall of 2019, he didn’t have far to go. 

Bilsky was already working on developing the handheld collaborative robot that FLX Solutions would create as a grad student and then professor at Lehigh University. 

Located on the university’s Goodman campus, Ben Franklin had already been active in helping Bilsky, so it was the obvious choice when he wanted to turn the concept into a full-fledged business. 

Now FLX Solutions has grown from a start-up to an early-stage company, and Bilsky is getting customers from the federal government to utility companies. 

The way the FLX BOT works is by getting into hard-to-access spaces including heights and tight spaces. 

That can help accelerate things such as ship building and maintenance because using it side steps days of erecting scaffolding to reach a high point or days of removing panels to get to lower levels. 

“You can work on the bottom of a ship without having to lift up every large plate,” Bilsky said. 

He described the FLX BOT as a data collection device. It can be used with camera or microphone technology and other sensors to detect any problems that might be hard to find without such technology. 

That’s why one of his earliest customers was the U.S. Navy‘s largest ship builder. 

But now he has clients including the U.S. Airforce and the New York City MTA, which use the FLX BOT for inspections on bridges and in subway stations. 

Utility companies are also using the technology to find ways to make buildings more efficient. 

Bilsky said working in property maintenance he had experienced the frustration of getting into “that last meter” and began investigating solutions, which led to the FLX BOT. 

He said he’s grateful for the opportunities he was able to find because of his being a tenant at Tech Ventures. 

“The federal government doesn’t want to write checks to people working out of their basement,” Bilsky said. “Ben Franklin was supportive of our ever changing and growing needs.” 

But he also credits the entire tech and economic development community with helping him start his successful endeavor. 

“In general, the State of Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley have been so supportive,” he said. “It gives us a solid base in the Lehigh Valley to take advantage of the many opportunities at the state, local and national levels.”