PaintJet brings in $10M to hone in on robotic ship painting

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A PaintJet robot applying the company's paint to a building.

A PaintJet robot applying the company’s proprietary paint to a building. | Source: PaintJet

PaintJet, a company using robots for industrial painting, has brought in $10 million in Series A funding. The Nashville, Tenn.-based company says its industrial painting robots can help protect infrastructure from premature aging. 

Instead of selling or leasing its painting robots, PaintJet provides a comprehensive service inclusive of its robots and proprietary paint. The company maintains oversight of the painting process from start to finish. PaintJet says this enables it to tap into a $200 billion market without being reliant on a shrinking workforce. 

“Our latest round of funding has officially signaled that help is on the horizon for the industrial painting industry,” Nick Hegeman, CEO and co-founder of PaintJet, said in a release. “It’s not just about automation; it’s about redefining industry standards, addressing labor shortages, and introducing cost-effective solutions that break the mold of traditional painting. I’m thankful to our investors for backing our mission and enabling us to expand both geographically and across new sectors.”

PaintJet starts by inspecting the entire outside of the facility with drones before painting. This process of inspection gives information about the facility’s surface health and upkeep schedules. It can also be used to figure out the project’s scope, cost, and starting point for the painting project.

The company’s robots then prepare the surface for application. The robots wash down dirt, mildew, and rust, and then remove visible and non-visible surface contaminants to ensure the paint adheres to the surface. PaintJet’s robots then apply the company’s specially formulated paint. 

Tapping into a $200 billion market

Every commercial building needs to be painted for protection from the environment, and that paint needs to be periodically re-applied. 

Currently, the American painting sector lacks 100,000 laborers needed to meet project demands, according to PaintJet. This will only increase in the future, as buildings will need to be repainted more frequently to keep up with erosion from severe weather events. 

“The demand for skilled labor in construction is rapidly outpacing the available workforce. PaintJet’s innovative solutions address this acute labor shortage while making significant strides in transforming the industry,” George Easley, Principal at Outsiders who participated in the funding round, said in a release. “There are a number of features that make the business uniquely exciting. PaintJet’s market exhibits acyclical demand while suffering from structural inefficiency, and the business itself has both a differentiated technical approach and a force-of-nature team with rare expertise in commercial painting. We’re energized to partner with them to grow their team, offerings, and reach.”

Details on the funding round

Outsiders Fund led the round, which also included participation from 53 Stations, Dynamo, Pathbreaker Ventures, MetaProp, and VSC Ventures. This round brings PaintJet’s total funding to date to $14.75 million. 

PaintJet plans to use the funding to relocate its headquarters from Nashville to Virginia in early 2024. In Virginia, the company says it will make strategic engineering, financial, and operational hires. 

The company hopes that its move to Virginia will allow it to more easily expand into marine-based projects. When used on ships, PaintJet says that its specially developed paint can prevent rust and corrosion and prohibit mollusks, algae, and fungus from attaching to the bottom of a boat.

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