#on everyone’s lips
namR, the French specialist in environmental data, goes public
Launched in 2017, namR is striving to become the European leader in environmental data, thanks to its platform which aggregates and analyses qualitative and quantitative data of all building types in France. Its main clients are in the construction and housing industries (real estate managers, authorities, engineering companies, construction workers), who use the information to assess a building’s solar potential, energy consumption, and even greening potential – amongst many other use cases. Insurers are rather partial to this type of data.
Lead by Chloé Clair, former member of the VINCI Construction management team, this GreenTech company now intends to accelerate its commercial development in France and abroad. To secure funding, namR is betting on the stock market, listing on Euronext Growth Paris. This decision comes very early in the company’s lifespan: with only 45 employees, the company is aiming for €9 million in turnover in 2023.
With the acquisition of Holobuider, FARO strengthens its position in the digital twin sector
Five years after launching, HoloBuilder, the SaaS platform editor for construction site monitoring, has just been acquired by FARO, the global leader in 3D measurement, imaging and realization solutions. This merger enables FARO to strengthen its position on the digital twin market.
The startup has developed a 3D platform based on photogrammetry: this means images can be captured, recorded and viewed irrespective of the tools used. Initially focused on construction management, the platform provides general contractors with a solution to capture and manage construction progress virtually using 360° cameras.
With $ 4million in annual recurring revenue, Holobuilder was acquired for $34 million. Since 2019, the company has experienced an annual growth rate of nearly 75%. It counts clients in more than 35 countries and has helped document more than 28,000 projects.
# Contech platforms
The platform ecosystem for construction professionals continues to grow worldwide. In Poland, Propergate has raised €1 million, while over in Israel, Genda has raised €2 million: both promise supply chain and site management optimization. In the United States, with its SaaS solution for residential building management, Matera raised $43 million, while Assignar raised $20 million in Series B. Meanwhile, new kid on the block and fellow compatriot Targetdocs raised $850,000 in seed money.
#In Memoriam
Katerra: what to take away from the “big fail” of the leader in “end-to-end” construction platforms
Despite support from its shareholder, SoftBank, which invested a further $200 million in the company in early 2021, Katerra is shutting down. In 2015, the company promised to revolutionize the construction industry with a fully integrated model with a tech-heavy focus, ranging from material production to construction.
This extreme vertical model ultimately proved no good, as investor Patric Hellermann explains. By seeking to control everything, Katerra created new complexities in the value chain and encountered supply chain and production issues. But above all, the entrepreneurs in charge of the company thought they could revolutionize the construction sector from scratch when they should have relied on partners with extensive industry knowledge. Fortunately, other models have since emerged and newcomers appear to have learned from this lesson.
#There’s more…
> In Seattle, Electric Era, created by former SpaceX employees, has raised $3 million to develop their battery systems for fast-charging EV stations – Tech Crunch, Geek Wire
> Aldar Properties (United Arab Emirates) has selected three PropTech startups (Envio, GBuilder and Metrikus) for its Scale Up accelerator program – Construction Week
> The new Rise PropTech Fund aims to support the digital transformation of the construction and property sector in Wallonia and Brussels – L’Echo
> Shayp, the Brussels-based specialist in connected sensors that detect water leaks, receives support from the Solar Impulse Foundation – RTBF
