Question 1

What equipment do I need to get started?

Accepted Answer

Nothing. We ship everything pre-configured — vibration sensors, edge compute hardware, a cellular gateway, and all the cabling. You provide a power outlet and a flat surface near your machines. We handle the rest during a scheduled weekend installation.

Question 2

How long does installation take?

Accepted Answer

Most shops are fully installed in a single weekend — no production interruption. We schedule installation during off-hours, and your data is flowing within 7 days of hardware arrival. If we miss that 7-day target, we refund your entire setup fee.

Question 3

Do I need an IT department?

Accepted Answer

No. Our system uses cellular backhaul — it does not touch your company network. No firewall rules, no VPN configuration, no IT tickets. Your IT department does not need to know it exists. We bring our own connectivity.

Question 4

What machines do you support?

Accepted Answer

Any CNC machine — mills, lathes, grinders, EDM. We also monitor robots, conveyors, pumps, motors, and compressors. If it vibrates, generates heat, or runs a cycle, we can monitor it. Our initial focus is CNC shops, but the architecture works for any manufacturing equipment.

Question 5

How much does it cost?

Accepted Answer

Pricing depends on your fleet size and configuration. Everything is included — hardware, sensors, installation, the dashboard, alerts, AI recommendations, and ongoing support. Contact us for a custom quote tailored to your shop.

Question 6

Is there a setup fee?

Accepted Answer

Yes, a one-time setup fee covers hardware procurement, pre-configuration, shipping, and on-site installation. If we do not have your data flowing within 7 days of installation, we refund the entire setup fee — no questions asked. Contact us for current pricing.

Question 7

What is included in the monthly price?

Accepted Answer

Everything. Hardware lease, sensor maintenance, cellular connectivity, cloud data storage, real-time dashboards, automated alerts via SMS and email, AI-powered anomaly detection, weekly intelligence reports, and ongoing support. There are no hidden fees for integrators, consultants, or add-on modules.

Question 8

Can I cancel anytime?

Accepted Answer

We operate on a 12-month agreement, billed monthly. At month 6, you have a Fair Exit option — return the hardware and your subscription stops, no penalty. After month 12, the hardware transfers to you and the subscription goes month-to-month. If you do not see measurable value within 90 days, we refund up to 3 months of subscription fees.

Question 9

What is a Unified Namespace (UNS)?

Accepted Answer

A Unified Namespace is a single, organized source of truth for all your operational data. Instead of machines, databases, and applications each holding their own siloed data, everything publishes to one central hub. Think of it as a shared whiteboard that every system in your plant can read and write to. It is built on MQTT — the same protocol used by the largest manufacturers in the world.

Question 10

What is Sparkplug B?

Accepted Answer

Sparkplug B is an open specification that standardizes how industrial devices report data over MQTT. It includes birth and death certificates (so you know when a device comes online or goes offline), report-by-exception (data only sends when it changes, saving bandwidth), and a structured payload format. It means your data is organized and consistent from day one, not a mess of custom formats.

Question 11

How does the data get from my machines to the dashboard?

Accepted Answer

Vibration sensors on your machines transmit wirelessly to a small edge compute device near the shop floor. That device processes and structures the data using Sparkplug B, then sends it over a cellular connection (TLS 1.3 encrypted) to our cloud infrastructure. From there, it is stored in a time-series database and displayed on your real-time dashboard. The entire pipeline runs without touching your company network.

Question 12

Is my data secure?

Accepted Answer

Yes. All data in transit is encrypted with TLS 1.3. Our MQTT broker runs in a managed cloud environment with authentication on every connection. Your data is isolated by organization — no other customer can see it. We do not sell, share, or use your data for anything other than running your dashboards and alerts. You own it. You can export it anytime.

Question 13

Do you support OPC-UA or MTConnect?

Accepted Answer

Not yet, but it is on our roadmap. Our current architecture uses Sparkplug B over MQTT, which handles the vast majority of monitoring use cases. For shops that need OPC-UA or MTConnect integration for existing equipment, we can discuss custom bridging during your assessment.

Question 14

What kind of ROI can I expect?

Accepted Answer

Our ROI model projects savings of $3,300 per machine per year through reduced unplanned downtime and improved efficiency. A single prevented spindle failure can save $15,000 or more. Our target is 15-25% OEE improvement within the first 6 months. We are confident enough in these numbers to offer a 90-day ROI guarantee — if you do not see measurable value, we refund up to 3 months of subscription fees.

Question 15

How quickly will I see results?

Accepted Answer

Your dashboard is live within 7 days of installation. Within the first week you will see real-time machine status, utilization rates, and vibration baselines. By week 2-3, the system has enough data to start detecting anomalies and sending meaningful alerts. Within 90 days, you will have a clear picture of which machines are costing you the most and why.

Flowstate

Frequently Asked Questions

Results

Getting Started

Pricing & Contracts

Technical

Still have questions?