The construction industry still lags behind when it comes to adopting digital technologies, resulting in opportunities to build new solutions. One company we believe is ready to make an impact is SiteTrace, which has created a material procurement platform enabling trade contractors to order products without the errors and omissions that cause jobsite delays.

The Nuts & Bolts

Problem: Construction contractors today are tackling digital transformation, but gaps still exist. One area change has been slow is among trade contractors, which specialize in specific fields such as HVAC, plumbing, electrical and so on. Many of these contractors still rely on legacy software and handshakes in order to ensure the correct material reaches the jobsite. These largely manual processes contribute to material procurement issues which are responsible for 75% of costly jobsite delays. 

At a time when the construction industry is still recovering from pandemic challenges, pressure is mounting to decrease costs and increase predictability when it comes to complex construction projects. That’s especially true for projects where material acquisition, subassembly and logistics account for a large portion of the cost and risk, which is the case for mechanical trades (i.e. HVAC, piping, plumbing, refrigeration, etc.). Although companies such as PlanGrid have digitized many aspects of construction, management of materials among subcontractors and different trades has remained largely static, especially when it comes to procurement. Like everyone else today, trade contractors should expect an “Amazon-esque” experience when it comes to accessing products and materials.  

Solution: At its core, SiteTrace’s material procurement platform is designed to speed up the process of getting quotes and ordering materials, such as sheet metal products. SiteTrace’s solution allows contractors to procure material with greater speed and accuracy than traditional methods. In particular, guardrails ensure there is no missing and unclear information in orders, while a focus on job site accessibility means users can submit orders even with poor data coverage.

More broadly, SiteTrace’s platform aims to help contractors keep their jobs on track and make the right decisions for procurement and labor by eliminating order errors, material re-ordering, and admin overhead. It does this by helping to ensure the right material arrives at the site at the right time.

Initially, SiteTrace is targeting mid-sized players in the mechanical trades that work on non-residential projects, such as hospitals, schools, data centers and commercial buildings. This largely covers projects with relatively high expenses and non-commodity subassemblies which can complicate project progress and are a particularly painful problem for general contractors who have subcontracted out trade work. 

Getting to know SiteTrace

A team of Stanford grads launched SiteTrace in 2020. Founders include CEO Mehul Kulkarni and Head of Customer Success Lin Htet Kyaw, who both have Master’s degrees in civil engineering, Head of Product Sara Pearce-Probst, who has a Master’s in structural engineering, and CTO Catherine Jiang, who has a degree in symbolic systems.

Why now? 

COVID-19 had a major impact on construction projects globally, and digital technology is expected to be a key part of the new normal for the industry going forward. Many construction companies were already investing heavily in technology prior to the pandemic, which saw the entire industry quickly shift to working and collaborating digitally (including filling digital orders). We believe subcontracting trades should be no exception: the global specialty trade contractors market is expected to grow from $5.15 trillion in 2021 to $8.4 trillion in 2026. 

The future of SiteTrace

SiteTrace is currently serving customers by focusing initially on facilitating orders for sheet metal products. Looking ahead, there is significant room for expansion beyond mechanical trades into other subcontracting areas, which would allow SiteTrace to ultimately serve as a marketplace between material distributors and a variety of trades, facilitating everything from procurement to delivery. At 500 Global we look forward to supporting SiteTrace as it builds digital tools to help further modernize the contracting sector. 

You can learn more about SiteTrace at: https://www.sitetrace.io/ 

Legal Disclaimers: 500 Startups programs (including accelerator programs), investor education services, strategic partnership consulting services and events are operated by 500 Startups Incubator, L.L.C. (together with its affiliates, “500 Startups”) and the funds advised by 500 Startups Management Company, L.L.C. do not participate in any revenue generated by these activities. Such programs and services are provided for educational and informational purposes only and under no circumstances should any content provided as part of any such programs, services or events be construed as investment, legal, tax or accounting advice by 500 startups or any of its affiliates.

The views expressed here are those of the individual 500 Startups personnel, or other individuals quoted and are not the views of 500 Startups or its affiliates. Certain information contained herein may have been obtained from third-party sources, including from portfolio companies of funds managed by 500 Startups. While taken from sources believed to be reliable, 500 Startups has not independently verified such information and makes no representations or warranties as to the accuracy of the information in this post or its appropriateness for a given situation. In addition, this content may include third-party advertisements or links; 500 Startups has not reviewed such advertisements and does not endorse any advertising content contained therein.

This content is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be relied upon as legal, business, investment, tax or accounting advice. You should consult your own advisers as to those matters. References to any securities or digital assets are for illustrative purposes only, and do not constitute an investment recommendation, offer to sell or solicitation to purchase any investment securities, or offer to provide investment advisory services. Furthermore, this content is not directed at nor intended for use by any investors or prospective investors, and may not under any circumstances be relied upon when making a decision to invest in any fund managed by 500 Startups. (An offering to invest in an 500 Startups fund will be made only by the private placement memorandum, subscription agreement, and other relevant documentation of any such fund and should be read in their entirety.) Any investments or portfolio companies mentioned, referred to, or described are not representative of all investments in vehicles managed by 500 Startups, and there can be no assurance that the investments will be profitable or that other investments made in the future will have similar characteristics or results.

Charts and graphs provided herein are for informational purposes solely and should not be relied upon when making any investment decision. Past performance is not indicative of future results. The content speaks only as of the date indicated. Unless otherwise expressly stated, figures are based on internal estimates and have not been independently verified. Any projections, estimates, forecasts, targets, prospects, and/or opinions expressed in these materials are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to opinions expressed by others. All logos and trademarks of third parties referenced herein are the logos and trademarks of their respective owners and any inclusion of such trademarks or logos does not imply or constitute any approval, endorsement or sponsorship of 500 Startups by such owners.

Please see Section 2 of our Terms of Use for additional important information.