The communication between the treadmill and the dedicated IT system, along with the self-learning algorithms that support the horse’s training, is a unique solution on a global scale.
The IT system we designed is a multi-layered product aimed at all owners, breeders and lovers of horses regardless of how they use them, whether for typical breeding, recreational riding or professional training for competitions. Regardless, also, of how many horses and how many facilities we have at our disposal. The web portal, mobile device app and treadmill control interface provide a new level of solution not only for trainers, but also for every rider, horse groom, vet, farrier, nutritionist, groom, stable… The system offers multiple functionalities. Among other things, it allows the user to enter information about the horse, such as training history, diseases, pedigree, etc. It also makes it possible to share the information – e.g. with the owner for inspection, migrate horse data between users – e.g. selling the horse, transferring the horse to another trainer. It gives us the ability to manage the data obtained from treadmill training, collate and analyse it, and much more.
In addition, the ability to run the treadmill in “uphill” and “downhill” mode in a single cycle, the cushioning of the running board (patent pending), the extremely smooth shifting of the running belt and many other technical solutions make the treadmill and the system a means of increasing animal welfare and entering the world of Stables 2.0.
Is the treadmill fully refined and ready to use, or is it just at the prototype stage?
The first thoughts about creating a treadmill came to us in 2015. We then proceeded with the design work. However, I quickly realized that greater design and financial facilities were needed. The first criterion was fulfilled by our company (Master-Sport), we solved the financial issue by means of a
EU subsidies. I wrote a research and development project, we received funding in the so-called ‘Small Fast Track’. 10 months of sprint in all design, manufacturing, research. The result is 3 fully functioning treadmills that passed tests with horses during the study. The treadmill is, therefore, ready for sale.
I have already answered this question a in a way. As we were testing the treadmill during research for an EU project we had the opportunity to look closely at the specifics of how a horse works on a treadmill and how it reacts to certain situations.
As research has shown, treadmills are safe for horses. Of course, the safety of using the treadmill is largely due to the awareness of the operator and the use of horse safety systems – our treadmill places great emphasis on:
The use of mechanical treadmills in horse training also has its opponents due to the occurrence of behavioural problems. These can be caused by inadequate preparation of horses prior to the treadmill work. For this reason, in the course of researching our treadmill, scientists created a manual for preparing horses for treadmill work (probably the first publication of its kind in the world)
Since, for certain reasons, I do not want to give specific amounts, I will only reveal that the cost of the project is between one and two million zlotys, of which one third was covered directly by our company. The total was spent on the construction of 3 treadmills, on research and on work on the IT system and algorithms.
As a company, we have very extensive experience in the design of machines and equipment for strength exercises, as well as treadmills for people. This experience allowed us to avoid many design errors, but the most difficult part was the confrontation between engineering calculations and reality especially in the area of the selection of drive components and the gear belt-slip surface pair itself. These components required a certain reality check. Ultimately, we are also successful in this area.
The answer is trivial – capital / investor. We are having a lot of non-committal – but promising – conversations from which the conclusion is emerging that we should be a premium brand. Even creating such a brand is a serious, hard and expensive process requiring the involvement of specialists.
We love horses. Our aim and mission is to improve animal welfare by introducing advanced technologies, including IT, into the daily cycle of horse maintenance and training. From a business perspective, it was about getting to the next level. This was also helped by the fact that there are few manufacturers of such devices in the world. When creating such products, you have to think globally, and once you start to think that way, you see the fact that it can be a good and rewarding business – especially if you have a vision of growth for the long term.
Pricing depends on the equipment. I don’t want to reveal our prices just yet, but if anyone is interested they can always ask us directly Q Every customer is important to us, because our treadmill is only the beginning…
In fact, we kept this project a secret, in a way, until we made sure that everything was working properly so we could go to market. We have recently posted a small teaser on one of the social networks, the response surprised us. We hope that this publication will also help us to reach even more interested parties… There is quite a big response from abroad, where finances are not as big a barrier as in Poland. Selling the sports equipment we produce in various EU and non-EU countries, we asked our partners to help us identify the foreign market for the horse industry. The incoming feedback gives us great hope for future sales.
I came across comments in which users reminded me that similar products for horses already exist. Is this true? How does your project differ from the competition?
Of course, the competition is out there. And that’s a good thing, since it gives us motivation for action. Our project is different on two levels: the device itself and the IT system. The device – a treadmill – has a number of innovative features such as an uphill and downhill mode in one cycle, control of belt running by reading the horse’s heart rate through the treadmill interface. IT system – which allows you to arrange workouts for treadmills and more. It allows you to review the collected data during treadmill training by comparing it differently, e.g. as a function of time, and then analyse it. To use an algorithm that suggests how much we can load the horse in a given training session, collects data about the horse and ‘learns’ it.
We are planning a wide expansion and rapid development, but it all depends on the source of financing that we will be able to obtain.
Sport horses have the opportunity to show their capabilities at various competitions and races. There are around 150 events of national rank, 650 regional competitions and around 500 amateur events held annually in Poland. Approximately 3,700 participants take part. As equestrianism is very popular in Western Europe, an important sector of the economy includes betting revenue. These amounted to an estimated €27.3 billion across the European Union in 2013 – with the countries with the highest revenues being the UK, France, Ireland and Sweden. A total of 3,000 to 3,500 competitions are held annually in the countries of the European Union, involving 58,000 horses and 32,000 riders. Most competitions take place in
France (approx. 500), followed by: Germany, Italy, Austria, Spain, Belgium, the UK and the Netherlands. In addition to the high-performance competitions mentioned above, there are also, difficult to count, competitions held outside the associations (non-affiliated). These include the traditional Q’ak disciplines of dressage, jumping, Eventing), but also non-standard disciplines (pursuit, polo, competitions based on the historical use of horses, skirmishes). The Hurlingham Polo Association, for example, brings together as many as 132 clubs from the UK, Ireland and the continent. As we have already noted, Europe is the undisputed world leader in equestrianism. In the case of the World Equestrian Games, for example – 10 of the top 15 countries in the medal table were European Union countries, and the entire event was worth €320 million. EU countries also play a key role globally when it comes to show jumping – in 2013, for example. 93% of such global competitions took place in the EU. In the same year, 21,000 flat races and 43,000 trot races took place in EU countries. Statistics also show that 62% of dressage competitions and 100% of carriage driving competitions take place in EU countries. This means that competition among breeders in Western Europe is high. Not only do they all dream of breeding a champion, but they also want horses of even mediocre ability to bring them regular profits. Investing in the best staff and equipment is natural in such a situation.
Our treadmill responds directly to these needs – in addition to high quality workmanship and a range of new innovative features, such as hill training and heart rate control, it offers tremendous opportunities to manage your horse’s training and husbandry via an IT system integrated into the treadmill. It is the first of its kind in the world.
Continuous development and marketing work. Perhaps another research and development project. Time will tell, but for the moment the focus is on establishing the Technohorse brand in the minds of customers and attracting a possible investor.