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Real-time platform links buyers and sellers of used plant

03 February, 2020

A Californian start-up that matches buyers and sellers of used manufacturing equipment around the world, has attracted $2.4m of seed funding as part of an expansion drive, especially into Asia. San Francisco-headquartered Moov has developed a real-time technology that, it claims, reduces transaction times from weeks to days, and eliminates inaccurate and outdated listings that plague the sector.

Moov’s self-serve marketplace matches buyers and sellers, eliminating waste by recycling industrial equipment. Its software automates documentation and information sharing, as well as the transaction process including contracts, payments, logistics and add-on services. It says that manufacturers can recoup depreciation expenses by selling their used equipment, saving both time and money, and reducing waste.

At present, Moov is focusing on semiconductor manufacturing equipment, but is looking to expand into other areas. The company is profitable and is growing by about 300% year-over-year. This growth has been fuelled in part by the US-China trade war as Chinese manufacturers scramble to buy equipment before the trade tensions get worse.

Moov says that its prices for used equipment are typically 25–33% those of new machinery, and that transactions on its platform have already repurposed almost 500 tonnes of equipment, that might otherwise be destined for landfills.

New manufacturing equipment can cost millions of dollars and is usable for 10–25 years. But the rapid pace of innovation requires constant upgrades and leaves manufacturers with expensive pieces of equipment that they no longer use. However, many companies can still benefit from plant that often sits idle on production floors or forgotten in warehouses.

Moov claims that its real-time sales platform for used manufacturing equipment reduces transaction times from weeks to days

“Manufacturing contributes about 20% of global carbon emissions, and despite being nearly 100% recyclable, only a small portion of tech waste is recycled,” says Moov’s co-founder and CEO, Steven Zhou. “There are trillions of dollars of idle and surplus equipment in the world needing to be brought online through a channel like Moov.”

“The current broker model for used equipment is heavily manual and filled with errors,” adds Jason Zeng, founder and chairman of Decent Capital, which has invested in Moov. He describes the automated platform as “a huge leap forward in speed and accuracy.”




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