Practical automation for an underserved market
Many growing manufacturers and distributors have valuable opportunities to automate, but their projects do not always fit the traditional integration model. They may need something more capable than standalone equipment—and more focused and flexible than a large, complex automation project.
nextova was built to help close that gap.
Why nextova exists
nextova evolved from JSR Reps, an industrial manufacturers’ representative agency founded by Joe Ratterman. While representing automation equipment at WestPack 2024, Joe met the owner of a Southern California honey distributor who was looking for a practical way to reduce costly overfills during long production runs.
That conversation developed into an automated weighing and batch-control project—and reinforced a larger opportunity. Growing businesses needed an automation partner willing to understand smaller, highly specific operational problems and build the right solution around them.
In 2025, JSR Reps became nextova. The company moved away from product lines that did not support that vision and focused on practical industrial automation, controls, and integration solutions.
How nextova works
We begin with the operation—not a predetermined piece of equipment. The first step is understanding the process, the constraint, and the measurable outcome that would make automation worthwhile.
Depending on the project, nextova can help coordinate:
- Process discovery, site assessment, and scope development
- Equipment selection and technology-partner coordination
- Controls, HMI, and SCADA requirements
- ERP, production-data, and equipment interfaces
- Installation planning, testing, commissioning, and operator handoff
Qualified manufacturers, programmers, riggers, electricians, and field specialists are engaged as required. This gives customers access to the right capabilities while keeping the project focused on the actual operational need.
Meet the founder
Joe Ratterman
Founder & Principal
Joe has worked in industrial sales since 2012, with experience spanning electrical products, industrial and manufacturing accounts, capital equipment, automation discovery, and field implementation.
He founded nextova to help manufacturers and distributors approach automation in a practical way: start with a clearly defined operational problem, assemble the appropriate equipment and technical resources, and remain accountable through implementation.
Built to grow with the work
Today, customers work directly with Joe and nextova’s network of technology and field partners. As nextova expands its in-house service, engineering, and project capabilities, this page will introduce the people responsible for delivering that work.
The company’s direction will remain the same: right-sized automation, clear expectations, and solutions tied to measurable operational value.