Materials, Construction
PRnewswire | June 07, 2023
Kojo, the construction industry's leading materials and inventory management platform, today announced it has expanded to serve mechanical contractors.
"At Kojo, our mission has always been to simplify processes for our customers so that they can have more time back to do what's really important – build," said Maria Davidson, Kojo's founder and CEO. "Our mechanical Beta launch has been our most successful to date. We're thrilled that our mechanical customers are already seeing so much value with Kojo and we're excited to continue to onboard many more all over the country."
Since the offering launched in Beta, mechanical contractors have sent over 6,000 field requests to the office and created 17,000 purchase orders worth $50 million in Kojo. "By our calculation that's almost 6,000 times the field and office didn't have to call and email back and forth to figure out what was being ordered," Davidson added.
Alex Eldridge at Tharco, a leading mechanical contractor in Maryland, said, "Kojo has been really smart in the way they've customized this build for mechanical contractors. For example, there are many nicknames for parts out there and this can create confusion for communication between the field and office. Kojo has a preset catalog field users can order from that even supports slang terms for easy field-to-office part name translation. It's details like this that convinced us Kojo was for us."
The mechanical contracting market in the U.S. is huge and rapidly growing. More than $123 billion of mechanical work is done in the U.S. annually. The sector employs nearly 400,000 workers and that number is expected to grow by 5% through 2031.
Kojo's expansion into mechanical follows the launch of its Automated Invoice Matching product, which streamlines the accounting process for commercial trade contractors. This builds on Kojo's purchase order and delivery functionality, making Kojo a true all-in-one platform that allows customers to manage the full end-to-end materials procurement process. Automated Invoice Matching launched in Q2 of 2023 and to date has processed $9.2 million in invoices, catching mistakes on 27% of invoices processed.
Kojo announced their Series C in September of 2022. Kojo has now powered more than 10,000 construction projects across 47 states, saving customers 75% of the manual entry they previously had to do and reducing materials waste on jobsites by up to 90%.
About Kojo
Kojo is the construction industry's leading materials and inventory management platform. Kojo enables trade and self-perform general contractors to streamline every step in the procurement and inventory management process from takeoff to closeout. By connecting field, office, warehouse, accounting, and vendors teams on one software platform, Kojo gives contractors visibility into real-time materials spending and usage, helps them source the best prices and availability across vendors, reduces material waste, and increases labor productivity. To learn more, visit www.usekojo.com.
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Safety and Regulation, Engineering Tech
Businesswire | May 16, 2023
Bowman Consulting Group Ltd. (the “Company” or “Bowman”) (NASDAQ: BWMN), today announced the purchase of Fisher Engineering, Inc. (“Fisher”), a professional services firm specializing in customized fire protection and life safety engineering for public and private customers. Founded in 2007, Fisher serves customers across the United States and internationally from offices in Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Detroit, Portland (ME), Phoenix and Virginia Beach. The firm provides an extensive array of technical services involving code consulting, commissioning, life safety survey and analysis, systems design, fire, smoke and egress modeling, performance-based design, litigation and forensic engineering, and third-party reviews. Fisher works with clients in a broad range of sectors including aviation, data centers, education, fueling, government, healthcare, hospitality, commercial and industrial real estate, oil and gas, student housing and technology hubs. Fisher’s workforce of twenty-four professionals, including Doug Fisher, the firm’s Principal Fire Protection Engineer and Co-Founder, will join Bowman in connection with the acquisition.
“We’ve been pursuing the acquisition of Fisher for quite some time,” said Gary Bowman, CEO of Bowman. “Fisher has built a great platform from which we can expand a national and international fire protection and life safety practice. Doug and the Fisher team possess a depth of expertise that complements the services we offer and aligns perfectly with our extensive customer base. Fisher’s experience as a prime contractor to the United States federal government will provide us a pathway to expand our reach to the single largest infrastructure consumer in our market. We’re all looking forward to realizing the inherent revenue synergies that will come from this acquisition.”
“Bowman has a reach that will enable our business to grow at a rate we could not otherwise achieve,” said Doug Fisher, Principal Fire Protection Engineer and Co-Founder of Fisher. “There’s a tremendous opportunity to leverage our collective experiences, customers, and cultures to create something far bigger and more valuable than what we have today. Fisher brings experience in federal contracting and prime government contracts that enhance Bowman’s ability to expand its public and federal penetration. Our staff is excited to become part of the Bowman team and to access the many professional development programs and career growth tracks Bowman offers their employees.”
The Company expects the Fisher acquisition to contribute approximately $5 million of annualized net service billing before revenue synergies and be immediately accretive. Financed with a combination of cash, seller notes, and equity, the acquisition falls within previously discussed target multiple and operating metric ranges. More detailed information on M&A activities, pipeline, and guidance updates will be provided in connection with scheduled quarterly and annual communications.
About Bowman Consulting Group Ltd.
Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, Bowman is an engineering services firm delivering infrastructure solutions to customers who own, develop, and maintain the built environment. With over 1,650 employees and more than 70 offices throughout the United States, Bowman provides a variety of planning, engineering, geospatial, construction management, commissioning, environmental consulting, land procurement and other technical services to customers operating in a diverse set of regulated end markets. Bowman trades on the Nasdaq under the symbol BWMN.
About Fisher Engineering, Inc.
Fisher Engineering, Inc. was established in 2007 with the aim of offering clients a responsive, personal solution to fire protection engineering services. Fisher strives to provide customized, high-quality fire protection engineering services to clients across the country and abroad. Fisher employs an accredited team of registered fire protection engineers with advanced degrees in fire protection engineering. With offices and personnel in Atlanta, Baltimore, Charlotte, Detroit, Portland (ME), Phoenix, Southern California and Virginia Beach, Fisher is well positioned to access project sites throughout North America and internationally. For more information on Fisher Engineering, Inc., their projects, and services, visit www.feifire.com.
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Construction
Globenewswire | March 31, 2023
Green construction company, Nexii Building Solutions Inc. (Nexii) has achieved the TRUE (Total Resource Use and Efficiency) Gold Certification for Zero Waste for its Squamish Manufacturing Plant. This achievement makes Nexii the first construction manufacturing company in North America to receive this prestigious recognition.
Nexii's Squamish Plant has demonstrated its commitment to waste reduction by implementing best practices for waste management at every stage of its manufacturing process. The company's efforts have significantly reduced the amount of waste produced by the plant, with over 90 percent of waste diverted from landfills.
Speaking to the achievement, Zosia Brown, VP of Sustainability of Nexii, said, "We're extremely proud to have achieved the Zero Waste certification for our Squamish Manufacturing Plant. This recognition reflects our unwavering commitment to sustainability and reducing our environmental impact. We're honoured to be leading the way in the construction industry for zero waste and circular practices.”
The TRUE Certification for Zero Waste, administered by Green Business Certification Inc. (GBCI), is a rigorous evaluation of a company's waste reduction efforts, including the implementation of robust recycling and composting programs, reduction of materials used, and diversion of waste from landfills. Nexii retained the services of Vancouver-based sustainability consultant, Light House, to facilitate TRUE credit documentation and submission. Achieving the certification is a significant milestone for Nexii in its journey towards eliminating waste at every point of the construction value chain.
“Businesses must go beyond our current wasteful practices and think critically about how to redesign processes so that less waste is produced in the first place,” notes Peter Templeton, President and CEO of U.S. Green Building Council and GBCI. “Implementing zero waste business practices requires rethinking, retraining, new tools and strong leadership to change current waste systems. With Nexii’s leadership in this endeavour, they are making great strides for their employees, community and consumers at large.”
With increased pressure on companies to reduce their carbon footprint and meet sustainability targets, the TRUE Certification for Zero Waste is a leading example of rigorous measurement and verification standards being applied towards demonstrating year-on-year performance. Nexii's achievement showcases that sustainable construction is possible, and the company is leading the industry in delivering innovative circular products at scale.
Nexii plans to share its knowledge and experiences, encouraging other construction companies to adopt sustainable practices, and achieve TRUE Certification for Zero Waste to help build a more vibrant future for people and the planet.
About Nexii
Nexii Building Solutions Inc. (Nexii) designs and manufactures low carbon buildings and products to address the climate impact of our built environment. With buildings and construction responsible for 36% of global energy consumption and 37% of greenhouse gas emissions annually, sustainable and scalable solutions are urgently needed for net zero buildings. With Nexii’s breakthrough material Nexiite, Nexii enables the rapid assembly of high-quality buildings and infrastructure with reduced end-to-end carbon emissions, near zero waste and less disruption to the community. Sustainability is core to Nexii’s mission to build a vibrant future for people and the planet.
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