SMARTEC: Bringing Fiber-Optic Sensors into Concrete Applications

Inaudi, Daniele; Casanova, Nicoletta

doi:10.1117/3.786604.ch17

Book: Engineering a High-Tech Business: Entrepreneurial Experiences and Insights

Editor(s): José Miguel López-Higuera; Brian Culshaw

Author(s): Daniele Inaudi, Nicoletta Casanova

Published: 2008

https://doi.org/10.1117/3.786604.ch17

Abstract

Ten years after its launch, it is interesting to look back at the history of SMARTEC and see how a research project at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne was turned into a successful company considered a leader in the domain of structural health monitoring, now part of a multinational group. We believe that the lessons learned in this process could be of interest for other researchers who have developed a new technology and feel the same entrepreneurial enthusiasm. We will show how the success of SMARTEC resulted from the combination of technology, partners, service, and sales strategy.