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US firm brings bots to clean and mop

Last Updated 08 October 2015, 17:32 IST

IRobot Corporation, a $556-million, Nasdaq-listed advanced technology company which designs robots, launched its robotic floor cleaner products in India by opening two standalone stores.

In an interaction with Deccan Herald, iRobot Vice President and Marketing (Europe, Middle East, and Africa) Jean Jacques Blanc said the company has opened two stores in Bengaluru. “The two stores will become experience centres for consumers to have first-hand experience of the products in India. We are also planning to take them to six other leading cities in the country,” he said.

The company, founded by MIT graduates, unveiled autonomous home vacuum cleaner robot Roomba and the floor mopping robot Braava. IRobot Corporation has entered into partnership with Bengaluru-based Puresight Systems as its exclusive distributor in the country.

The iRobot Roomba, the vacuum cleaning robot, is available in five models, ranging from Rs 32,900 for the iRobot Roomba 620, to Rs 69,900 for the iRobot Roomba 880.
Blanc said the Roomba 880 is the ultimate high performance robot vacuum cleaner which is five times more powerful than previous Roomba models. “It features the revolutionary new aero-force performance cleaning system and aero-force extractors. It can remove up to 50 per cent dirt, dust, hair and debris from all floor types with less maintenance hassle,” he said.

The 600 series Roomba incorporates sensors to avoid stairs and other drop-offs. It detects dirt using acoustic sensors, and employs anti-tangle technology to deal with tassels and cords.

Braava, the floor-mopping robot, can be used in dry and wet modes, and is priced at Rs 27,900. Backed by its improved cleaning efficiency, reliability, and quality of robots, Blanc said the company would like to build the robotic ecosystem in India which is evolving globally.

“Puresight will help us in setting up the operations and will operate the service centre and call centre. IRobot will have a website in India with eCommerce capabilities and will also partner eCommerce platforms to sell the product soon,” he said.

IRobot has sold over 14 million robots in more than 60 countries. “We started our enterprise as a defence and security system supplier and B2B (business to business) supplier. Now we are taking the company to the next level with the launch of B2C (business to consumer) products. More products with additional features are in the pipeline,” he said.

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(Published 08 October 2015, 17:32 IST)

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