By Business & Finance Ergo has accelerated export plans for its FlowForma product with sales in the UK expected to be worth €1.1m by 2016. FlowForma, the enterprise forms management tool, is already used by nearly 30,000 hospital administrators in the UK and is on course for €300,000 in revenue by the end of the year.
Ergo has been supported by Enterprise Ireland under its Market Access Grant Scheme, a new funding initiative from the state agency to help companies build their business in international markets.
Neil Young, head of Product Development, Ergo, said: “With Enterprise Ireland’s support we are a building an export business in the UK that we expect to be worth €700,000 by 2015 and €1.1m by 2016. FlowForma stands out in a crowded market because it is competitively priced, easy to implement, and intuitive to use.”
Kevin Sherry, head of International Sales and Partnering at Enterprise Ireland, said: “Enterprise Ireland’s new Market Access Grant is aimed at supporting Irish companies to internationalise and grow their business quickly and effectively in world markets. Under the scheme, companies can receive grant support of up to €150,000 to research export opportunities for new or existing products/services. We were delighted to award Ergo funding under the scheme, a company that highlights how Irish firms can innovate and succeed in overseas markets, creating and sustaining jobs at home in the process.”
FlowForma allows users to preconfigure form-based processes to meet specific department needs. Lean principles and automated processes remove system bottlenecks, improving workflow across multiple divisions, from finance and procurement to human resources and production.
Demand for the product has seen Ergo’s FlowForma team grow from three to ten full-time employees in the last year, including a channel manager in the UK. The plan is to expand its route to market, growing the UK channel partners that resell the product to seven within the next year. Think Associates has been the most successful channel partner so far, selling FlowForma into two London hospitals, St Bartholomew’s and Kings College.
John Purdy, CEO, Ergo, commented: “This is another landmark in Ergo’s 20-year history, a significant step into the UK where we see a huge opportunity for growth. Coupled with the international success of our sister company, Fenergo, it highlights how far an indigenous company can go if it has the right people and the ability to spot a gap in overseas markets.”
