Even as the general venture capital market wanes and larger contech firms run into struggles, these four startups focused on serving AEC firms have recently secured millions in fresh funding. Offerings range from a collaborative project management platform to an online marketplace for heavy equipment and an estimating solution that claims to have procurement baked in.
INGENIOUS.BUILD
$37 million
Real estate software development firm Ingenious.Build raised $37 million in a Series A funding round, the company announced on Nov. 16. The round was co-led by Morpheus Ventures and Navitas Capital, alongside Koch Real Estate Investments.
Ingenious mines data and applies automation to administrative and manual tasks to provide real-time visibility for contractors into project status. The firm says the project management platform promotes collaboration between all project-team workspaces. Specific functions include automated budgeting, recording of meeting minutes and RFI tracking.
With the funding, the company plans to elevate its project management solutions, per the release.
Machinery Partner
$11 million
Machinery Partner, which runs an online marketplace for contractors to buy heavy equipment from manufacturers and dealers around the world, raised $11 million in a Series A funding round, the company announced on Dec. 5. The raise was led by venture capital firms ASV, Pritzker Group and Pacific Western Bank.
Machinery Partner provides a point-of-sale platform for the heavy machinery that builders need. Contractors can peruse their website for products from a variety of manufacturers — not just the dealerships they can drive to — and the startup offers financing on the purchases.
With the money, the company plans to further its expansion across the country.
Ediphi
$6.5 million
Construction estimating software provider Ediphi emerged from stealth mode with a $6.5 million seed funding round, the company announced on Nov. 16. The raise was financed by Suffolk Technologies, the venture capital arm of Boston-based builder Suffolk Construction, which has been an outspoken advocate for construction technology adoption.
Ediphi claims it’s the only true cloud-based estimating platform that provides detailed takeoffs with centralized procurement in a single location. With preconstruction evolving and stakeholders asking for detailed estimates before plans are complete, Ediphi says contractors can use its platform to start with what it calls a “napkin sketch.”
It then bases potential costs around past projects, per its website, a process it says provides more accurate estimates than just square foot pricing. It can also level bids against budgets, award subcontractors and execute contracts, all within the platform.
With the funding, Ediphi plans to further develop the platform, scale the business and recruit additional staff, per the release.
Strong By Form
$5.2 million
Strong By Form, a Madrid-based startup that makes sustainable, bio-composite materials used in additive manufacturing — similar to 3D printing — raised 4.8 million euros, or $5.2 million, in a seed funding round, EU Startups reported on Dec. 5. The round was oversubscribed by 25%, and was led by CMPC Ventures, the venture capital arm of Santiago, Chile-based CMPC, one of the world’s largest pulp and paper producers.
Strong By Form uses what it calls woodflow technology to produce wood-based composites that can be used in the place of traditional structural materials, such as concrete or steel. The firm says its proprietary software allows it to dial in the strength of structural components based on density, fiber orientation and thickness.
The material is used in lightweight construction, vehicle body parts and in freeform concrete formwork. It can also mimic wood, and has the same visual appearance.
With the funding, the company will double in size and build a manufacturing facility, per EU Startups.
