Bedford-based Green Power Labs Inc. said this week it has attracted external investment for the first time and will use the funding to accelerate sales of its new Predictive Building Control product.

The company, which uses data to improve the energy efficiency of buildings, issued a press release saying it has received funding from Ron Omessi, though it did not reveal the amount of the investment. Omessi, who has held business development positions with a number of engineering and technological companies, has now joined Green Power Labs as Vice-President of Strategy and Business Development.

“We are delighted to welcome Ron Omessi as our first external investor,” said Green Power Labs President and CEO Alexandre Pavlovski in the statement. “His extensive global background in the energy space will be a valuable asset in defining and implementing our go-to-market strategy.  . . . His 20 years of hands-on experience with leading international companies in the renewable energy management and engineering sectors specifically in complex international operations and business development perfectly fills a gap in our team.” 

Founded in 2004, Green Power Labs has developed an international clientele for its predictive analytics product SolarSatData for Utilities, which helps power suppliers determine future patterns of energy supply based on expected changes in heat from the sun. In 2013, the company received a $2.4 million loan from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency’s Atlantic Innovation Fund to develop technology that can optimize energy consumption in commercial buildings.

Last year, the company launched its artificial intelligence platform Predictive Building Control, or PBC. Green Power Labs says this technology is capable of saving up to 40 percent on heating, ventilation, and air conditioning costs in large commercial buildings and that it targets a market consuming 36 percent of the world's energy.

The company also said it has hired Brent Strader, a former GE Energy Services leader responsible for its global substation automation product line, as Chief Operating Officer. He will also support the planned aggressive strategy to market and deliver the PBC product, said the company.

“Brent’s contribution is to develop and implement processes to deliver PBC to a market with 130 trillion square feet of commercial office space,” said Pavlovski. “His world-class experience in project execution and product line management at GE gives us real bench strength in achieving our objectives.”

Pavlovski also said the company will follow up on the initial investment with a subsequent round of funding. He said: “A second round of investment now in progress will accelerate our penetration in this market and allow us to become a leader in predictive energy management.”