As construction companies employ advanced technologies using the cloud and internet, connecting offices and jobsites becomes more important. Communications, in other words. To better streamline communication channels across the construction value chain, Koch Industries partnered with High Alpha Innovation to create PLOT, a startup construction-focused communications platform, and most recently led the startup’s pre-seed round.
PLOT is led by Cofounder and CEO Chris Callen, an experienced construction-tech founder who has spent decades observing the processes — and shortfalls — of how construction teams interact. “Construction technologies, whether built from internal or external perspectives, have often focused too much on documents and processes rather than teams and the people within them,” notes Callen. “In building PLOT, we’ve expanded our focus to the lifeblood of a construction site — the workers and their teams — who have never had a software built to fully address their communication needs.”
Central to PLOT’s approach is applying proven communication techniques from white-collar industries while embracing the unique challenges of construction sites: namely that these sites are often fragmented both contractually and geographically. When in-person conversations don’t provide the proper information and meetings bring logistical challenges and duplicative information, PLOT’s optimized jobsite communication technology can help streamline and provide efficiency.
The initial concept for PLOT was one result of a wide-ranging collaborative effort between Koch and High Alpha Innovation focused on supply-chain challenges. After agreeing to launch PLOT through High Alpha Innovation’s Sprint process forcing function, both teams furthered the company’s early concept with feedback from construction suppliers, owners, and trade contractors while finding Callen in a nationwide CEO search.
As PLOT builds its initial product in this post-launch phase, the company is actively hiring for engineering talent and engaging a foundational client base to provide platform feedback. Interested owners, contractors, and suppliers can apply for early access on PLOT’s website.
Original Article: https://constructech.com/pursuing-better-communications/
