Assignar, an innovative construction operations management platform provider, have raised US$6.2 million ($8.7 million) in Series A funding to accelerate growth of the business in Australia and New Zealand, as well as to expand its presence in the US market.
Assignar is a cloud-based SaaS (software as a service) platform, which is built for construction subcontractors and self-perform general contractors, in order to:
- Improve visibility into field operations;
- Manage project scheduling, including the workforce, assets and materials for projects; and
- Ensure safety, quality and compliance processes.
While many subcontractors rely on paper, Excel spreadsheets and single-point solutions to track people, assets, materials, certifications, orientations and forms, Assignar provides them with digital and mobile tools to enable project scheduling, job tracking, checklists, compliance and communication – all in real-time.
The platform provides for the subcontractors the capability to grow revenue, gain visibility into their operations, eliminate paperwork, digitise workflows and improve overall efficiency.
“Subcontractors within infrastructure-related or in the heavy civil space – those construction highways, railway lines, bridges, water treatment facilities airports, etc. – are really the people that would benefit from this platform,” said Sean McCreanor, CEO of Assignar.
“They’re the ones working on big projects tied to state or federal funding. These projects need to meet several safety requirements, meet quality and environmental requirements, the right licencing and experience-levels of its operators, and that the machines used have the right servicing, etc.
“There are a lot of complexities working on projects like this, such as scheduling and logistics, as well as the large number of people – often in the hundreds – working on the project. Often it can get quite hard to manage all of that, which is where Assignar comes in.
“We try to provide subcontractors with a solution that is a platform for their business, which encompasses everything from details on the project, the schedule, workers on the job, the equipment and the materials implemented, all of the logistical information, amongst all the other things needed.”
For McCreanor, it really is about connecting the field with the office, “because the office runs a lot of those operations, but the field is where the rubber hits the road; that is really where the building and the heavy lifting happens”.
“Subcontractors build around 95 per cent of all the projects out there, and to date, a lot of the other tech companies haven’t really built solutions with the subcontracts specifically in mind, which we saw as a huge gap in the market,” McCreanor continued.
“We can see our platform as a way to get full visibility into what’s going on, which we see as a way to improve efficiency and communication between the site and the office and everything in between. This ultimately eliminates risk and improves on the overall quality of these projects.”
Assignar serves the needs of heavy civil, road, rail, traffic, utility and other types of construction contractors, and the company’s customers include those working on major civil projects across the Asia-Pacific region and across North America. The company currently supports hundreds of customers across Australia, New Zealand, the US and Canada.
In late 2017, Assignar opened headquarters in Denver, Colorado to expand its team and presence in the US market. The company will also be investing in its engineering and go-to-market teams in Sydney, Australia.
“One of the things that we really pride ourselves on is that we come from industry and we have a lot of experience in this space, both in Australia and in North America,” McCreanor said.
“We see Australia as a really innovative market for technology. Contractors in the country are quick in their adoption of new technology and we just feel like it’s a really good grounding for us as we understand the market. We hope to create that same environment into the US market and beyond.
“We are totally focused on solving the problems that subcontractors, and the construction industry as a whole, face today. We always have one eye on what we are doing today, but we are constantly always looking at ways that we can improve our offerings to our customers, and ultimately, become the industry standard in this space.”