Ascential Technologies is a company that designs, develops, and automates complex diagnostics, inspection, and test processes across medical & life sciences, transportation, and specialty industrial end markets. Pulse 2.0 interviewed Ascential Technologies CEO Jeff Moss to learn more about the company.
Jeff Moss’ Background
With over 30 years in the industry, Moss has been fortunate to have worked in various strategic and leadership positions that have shaped his career. As Moss explained:
“Over the years, I have helped build robust global infrastructures and successful teams in advanced manufacturing technologies like robotics, automation, laser processing, material handling, and more. I developed my entrepreneurial spirit early in my career, working in industries ranging from automotive and aerospace to telecommunications. These experiences prepared me for my current role to lead Ascential Technologies into a future defined by innovation, customer dedication, and market success.”
“As Ascential Technology’s Chief Executive Officer, I partner with a very experienced and talented team of leaders across our three divisions with a mission to deliver results for our customers, our employees, our shareholders and our communities. Among other things, that includes setting and managing strategy, monitoring customer feedback and industry trends, assessing our progress, developing our people, supporting our culture, and engaging with our constituents.”
Favorite Memory
What has been Moss’ favorite memory working for the company so far? Moss reflected:
“That would definitely be related to our employees. The success of any business starts with its people. We recently had the opportunity to launch our new brand, Ascential Technologies, and I wanted to find a way to involve all of our employees from around the world.”
“We decided to broadcast a live event from our headquarters in Grand Rapids, Michigan while incorporating live feeds from several of our largest operations in Belgium, Poland, China, San Diego, and Minneapolis. This was my favorite memory so far, and based upon the positive feedback from our employees, I’m confident we delivered a memory maker for them as well.”
Core Products
What are the company’s core products and features? Moss explained:
“Ascential Technologies designs, develops, and automates complex diagnostics, inspection, and test processes across the medical & life science, transportation, and industrial markets. Our solutions tackle the toughest, most daunting challenges – where failure is simply not an option – unlocking performance and new opportunities for companies across the globe.”
“Backed by the collective experience of our over 2,500 employees across 45 locations around the world, we partner with customers at every step of their journey, helping them fuel innovation, drive scale, accelerate time-to-market, extend their competitive advantage, and mitigate the risk of failure.”
The company is organized into three divisions:
1.) Burke Porter Division serves the Transportation Industry, expanding on our 70 years of innovation. This division stands as an industry pioneer and leader in end-of-line testing and laboratory dynamometers and boasts thousands of installations worldwide. The division’s expertise now extends to encompass a broader spectrum of mobility solutions. This includes onboard diagnostic (OBD) consultation and verification, precision machining for production processes, lifecycle testing services, propulsion module assembly balance, and test automation, as well as a range of aftermarket products such as ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) calibration services, the foundation of which lies in data and analytics.
2.) Ascential Medical & Life Sciences focuses on enabling product innovations for its customers. This division offers a comprehensive suite of products and services that span the entire spectrum of life-saving innovation. Our portfolio includes innovative instruments and consumables, factory automation solutions, and medical devices. We play a vital role in accelerating the journey from concept to reality for critical advancements in fields like genomics, personalized medicine, and the development of new tools and instruments tailored for high-volume consumable testing and diagnostics.
3.) Ascential Technologies Industrial Brands caters to industries such as HVAC, white goods, heavy equipment, and energy. This division serves as an essential partner to businesses in these sectors.
Rebranding
Burke Porter Group recently rebranded to Ascential Technologies. What were the driving factors behind this rebranding, and what does it symbolize for the company’s future trajectory? Moss pointed out:
“Our motivation was simple: in looking at the next chapter for our company – as we transform – we saw a unique opportunity to lean into technology and create a fresh identity that embodies the passion and aspiration of our employees and the core direction of our business.”
“Additionally, we wanted to simplify our message to the market and our customers. Our 18 brands are now replaced with three divisions. Our new brand, Ascential Technologies, reflects the essential role we play in helping customers excel across their entire product lifecycle in situations where quality and safety matter most. Our new brand simplifies our message to the market and reflects our continued commitment to innovation, technology, and excellence.”
Challenges Faced
Have you faced any specific bottlenecks in your sector of work recently? Moss acknowledged:
“The macroeconomic conditions defined by higher interest rates and inflation, geopolitical uncertainties in Ukraine and now Israel, and the recent UAW strike in the US certainly keeps us on our toes. Fortunately, our businesses are supported by strong secular trends, including a shortage of labor driving a need for automation, a transportation industry that is transforming to electric vehicles and autonomous driving, and an ever-increasing ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) awareness that underpins Ascential’s solutions. While we may see some short-term bottlenecks, we are confident the markets we serve will need our services for decades to come.”
Evolution Of The Company’s Technology
How has the company’s technology evolved since launching? Moss noted:
“You will find Ascential Technologies leaning into data, software, and intelligent solutions. One great example has to do with the expansion of our ADAS calibration services where we are bringing years of factory level technology closer to consumers. Our calibration centers offer the fastest turnaround in the market for ADAS calibration following collision repair.”
Significant Milestones
What have been some of the company’s most significant milestones? Moss cited:
“Ascential has achieved several remarkable milestones that have shaped its legacy:
1.) Pioneering Auto Safety: Ascential’s Burke Porter Group made a significant impact by introducing the world’s first roll-brake machines for vehicle testing. These innovations are now responsible for conducting more than 400 tests, ensuring the safety of over 40 million vehicles annually, encompassing areas like wheel alignment, emissions, and advanced automated driver assistance systems.
2.) Enabling Precision Medicine: In Singapore, Ascential’s engineers designed and implemented automated production lines for consumable cartridges used in genome sequencing instruments and technologies. This breakthrough facilitated the emergence of precision medicine, ultimately extending and saving lives.
3.) Overcoming Antibiotic Resistance: Ascential partnered with a diagnostics startup to expedite phenotypic antimicrobial susceptibility testing, enhancing speed and throughput without compromising accuracy. This advancement ensures patients receive timely and effective antibiotic treatments while mitigating the risk of antibiotic-resistant superbugs.
4.) Innovating Localized Cancer Therapies: Ascential utilizes automation in its own clean room facilities in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to contract manufacture drug-coated medical devices. These devices deliver time-released cancer-fighting therapies to specific organs, minimizing harm to surrounding tissues.
5.) Ushering in the Electric Vehicle Era: Ascential is at the forefront of the electric vehicle revolution, leading in advanced safety and testing solutions with innovative technology. This commitment ensures that electric vehicles meet the highest standards for safety and environmental sustainability, driving the transition to a cleaner and safer automotive future.”
Customer Success Stories
After asking Moss about customer success stories, he highlighted:
“A renowned Fortune 100 company specializing in adhesives, healthcare solutions, and electronics came to us to modernize its clinical product manufacturing process for commercial use. Facing time constraints, our challenge was to swiftly automate their intricate, custom-built products. We orchestrated a new manufacturing strategy, harnessing cutting-edge technologies like lasers, robots, and servos to streamline the eight-step production process. This precision reduced errors, enhancing production speed.”
“In addition, we guided them in embracing Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) for consistent quality, safety, and compliance. Beyond manufacturing, our services extended to HIPAA compliance, ensuring secure product handling and transportation.”
“The result? High-quality medical devices were produced swiftly and cost-effectively, securing our partner’s leadership in the medical manufacturing sector.”
Total Addressable Market
What total addressable market (TAM) size is the company pursuing? Moss assessed:
“Ascential Technologies services multiple industry sectors representing a multibillion-dollar TAM.”
Differentiation From The Competition
What differentiates the company from its competition? Moss affirmed:
1.) Ascential Technologies has a global footprint. We are committed to supporting our customers locally in the markets they serve with engineering and manufacturing capacity that enables scale. As such, Ascential can support its customers across the markets they serve.
2.) A proven track record of solving our customer’s most difficult, safety-critical challenges where the risk of failure is high. Ascential’s team of industry experts have decades of domain experience in solving the most challenging automation problems.
3.) By simplifying into three divisions, Ascential Technologies can now uniquely manage projects and products through its customers’ full end-to-end lifecycles, eliminating the hand-offs that traditionally occur from vendor to vendor between development stages. Ascential Technologies is one of only a few that supports customers from R&D through commercialization and scaled manufacturing, bringing their products and solutions to market quickly to their exact specifications.
4.) Regulatory Expertise: Ascential has the global and regional regulatory expertise to bring products to market in full compliance with relevant requirements, reducing risk and getting to market faster.
Future Company Goals
What are some of the company’s future company goals? Moss pointed out:
“Ascential Technologies has a simple goal: to consistently delight our customers and help them achieve competitive advantage. We like to say we win when only our customers win. Everything builds off of that.”
Additional Thoughts
Any other topics to discuss? Moss concluded:
“I sometimes get asked, ‘What is the common thread that runs through your business given that you serve such different industries?’ My answer is defined by our purpose, which is ‘we harness science to improve lives.’ Automating manual workflows underlies most of the engineering and manufacturing work we do, and all of it contributes to a safer society😊. That’s the reason I am here.”
