SacAngels members invested in Aperia Technologies as part of a deal led by the Sierra Angels with significant participation from the Band of Angels. According to the SEC Form D, the total raise was almost $700K.
Aperia have kept a pretty low profile since their funding while the product was developed and market development was initiated. Recently, more information about the company has emerged as the company CEO, Josh Carter, was invited to speak at the Wall Street Journal ECO:nomics conference in Santa Barbara (take a look at the program; it has some pretty impressive speakers).
Aperia (ATI) provide automatic tire inflation technology. The Halo Tire Inflator is a ring shaped device that utilizes a wheels rotational motion alone, to pump air and maintain optimal tire pressure. The product’s design enables the self-powered device to automatically re-inflate both tires of a dually set to maintain optimal inflation pressure. The core Halo pumping technology enables the ATI system to offset naturally occurring real-world leakage, including pressure losses from leaky valve stems, corroded bead seats, and normal air permeation through the tire wall. A single inflator serves both tires of a dual wheel set, mounting cleanly to the hub. The result is an off-the-shelf device capable of serving a variety of truck classes, as a dealer spec. or retrofit.
The company is focusing on the truck fleet market and offers fleets a great value proposition. Also, and this was really impressive, the company had spent a lot of time understanding its customers and the brutal trucking environment (heat, cold, salt, vibration, g-forces, etc). As a result not only were the test programs comprehensive, but the device could be easy installed in a matter of minutes with no special tools required – it’s just bolted on the hub and connected to the tire valves thereby reducing barriers to adoption.
