Better together. Part of the Middleby family of companies.
Since 2011, L2F has helped companies innovate and bring new ideas from the lab to full-scale fabrication (Lab2Fab™). Our clients have been acquired by major multi-nationals, received tens of millions in VC financing, and launched disruptive technologies in their markets.
We now bring our skillset, with laser focus, to the number one food equipment manufacturer in the world, The Middleby Corporation (NASDAQ: MIDD).
Middleby’s large network of foodservice equipment companies, and their track record for constant innovation makes them a perfect match for our vision and values.
Respect, grace, and grit enabled us to put rockets in the sky, robots in kitchens, and electric vehicles on the road. We’re thrilled to help position the world’s leader in industrial kitchen appliances at the cutting edge of food service automation.
L2F’s History
2012
In their infancy, LuxVue contacted L2F for help developing an automated work-cell for their proprietary micro-LED screen technology.
Two years later, Apple bought LuxVue and has been on a patent rush for micro-LED technology ever since.
2013
Cogenra Solar was a stealth solar start-up struggling to reduce production costs for their proprietary solar cell design. After extensive analysis, L2F helped them create the world’s fastest and most accurate pick-and-place robotic system.
Within two years of L2F finalizing their automated production line, Cogenra Solar was acquired by SunPower, a global leader in the photovoltaic industry.
2014
Zee.Aero had just finished building their first prototypes. Assembly was by hand, laborious, and prone to issues.L2F developed a custom robotic system for rapid prototyping and a path forward to automated manufacturing.
Zee.Aero is now Kittyhawk, backed by Google co-founder Larry Page, and released the world’s first vertical take-off and landing electric taxis in New Zealand.
2015
Elon Musk believes fences in factories are ugly and impede progress. L2F designed Tesla’s first collaborative robot system – a work cell where humans and machines interact without slowing down production.
Using laser scanners and machine intelligence, L2F produced a fence-less work cell enabling humans to continue working inside vehicles without robot interference.
2016
SpaceX approached L2F to increase throughput. L2F decided to tackle an industry issue identified by NASA in a 1993 white paper, but left unsolved for more than two decades.
In 2018, L2F was the first to deliver a robotic system smart and accurate enough to handle the task. L2F halved the time it took a certified aircraft technician more than 24 hours of painful labor to complete.
2017
Zume Pizza approached L2F to apply their knowledge of robotic manufacturing to pizza. Three months later, after beating ABB’s fastest-ever sprint from concept to production by eight months, Zume was selling pizza made by robots.
Emboldened with a robotic production line with yields and throughput much higher than restaurant industry standards, Zume was able to raise $48M in a late 2017 financing round.
2017
Middleby Corp acquires L2F
2018
Less than a year after being acquired by Middleby, the world’s largest kitchen appliance manufacturer, L2F took over the Skyflo product and began reinvigorating it with IoT connectivity advanced analytics backed by artificial intelligence.
Powered by the intelligence of servR, Skyflo has increased speed-of-service by 30% at major stadiums & entertainment centers, while decreasing COGS by 10% and post-event reporting time by 80%.
2019
L2F released an innovation to the food industry with the introduction of CORI, a conveyor oven robotic interface.
Debuted at the National Restaurant Association, CORI is able to move food from speed racks to ovens and other cooking equipment and locations inside the kitchen. This collaborative robot forms the hub for future automated kitchens.
2020
L2F launches PizzaBot automation in the Middleby Innovation Kitchen
2021
L2F launches FryBot automation at the Middleby Innovation Kitchen