For Myotest, it all began int 1996, when Manu Praz approached the Infotronics unit of the HES-SO Valais, asking it to develop a simple, accurate, portable system for measuring muscular strength. A device that used accelerometer sensors to measure basic movements was developed and tested by professional sports trainers.

Patrick Flaction, who at the time was trainer to the Swiss ski team, was so convinced of the device’s usefulness and potential that he gave up his position as trainer in order to focus on optimising it. His aim was to be able to take the same measurements as those taken by laboratory systems, but to do so in the field, in real-life training conditions.

In 2004, Patrick Flaction founded the company Acceltec SA – which became Myotest SA – to meet a growing need in the sport and healthcare sectors to be able to assess all types of movement, whether from a preventive, healthcare or sporting performance standpoint.

Activity and development

With share capital of three million Swiss francs and the backing of a group of professional investors, Myotest has its registered office in Sion, a subsidiary company in the United States and another in France to deal with its exports throughout Europe. Myotest has been scientifically validated and has become the international standard in the sport and healthcare sectors: it is distributed in 35 countries, with eight patents in five continents and over 10,000 users. The company, which currently employs 8 full-time staff in Switzerland and over a dozen part-time staff, is actively involved in the region’s economic fabric.

The possibilities for growth are enormous. With the development of two new brands, Myotest TECH (integration of technology) and Myotest CARE (measuring the physical health of employees), Myotest is set to increase its workforce to around forty people over the next three years. The company has just signed a very big contract in the United States with a sports equipment manufacturer who will incorporate Valaisan know-how and technology into its products. In the healthcare field, a completely new programme for the prevention of back pain has been launched, in conjunction with the Swiss co-operative enterprise Migros. Other major businesses, and some insurance companies and municipal authorities, are already showing considerable interest in this revolutionary programme.

Support from The Ark Foundation

Myotest joined The Ark’s Incubator in 2004, at the TechnoArk site at Sierre, where it developed its first product. The period spent at The Ark helped it to lay the foundations for its commercial development and, in particular, to establish a business structure that enabled it to attract private investors, who continue to support Myotest in its international development.