Slate Technologies, an AI software platform for the construction industry, says that it has acquired Splash Modular, a Charlotte-based software designer for the Industrialized Construction and Design for Manufacturing and Assembly (DFMA) market.
Splash was built on the belief that connecting and enabling the construction industry is the key to unlocking the true potential of industrialized construction (IC), Slate Technologies says in an April 26 statement.
“Its software connects design teams in the construction process with the manufacturing, assembly and supply chain stakeholders, bringing all data into a parametric design file. This helps general contractors identify, integrate, and manage IC solutions and suppliers – all while reducing the cost and risk of projects, decreasing building time, and improving quality.”
Slate’s recently launched digital assistant for the construction industry uses AI and machine learning to improve the productivity of professionals by enabling better, earlier decision making to help them manage construction site initiatives while maximizing revenue.
Through its acquisition of Splash Modular, the Splash blueprint and toolset will enable Slate’s new Scripting as a Service (SCaaS) offering to general contractors involved in the building process to access data sets that are fully and seamlessly integrated with their projects. This lets them leverage the invaluable benefits of industrialized construction (IC), reducing project time, cost, and risk.
“Joining Slate has given us the opportunity to take our vision to the next level and provide the IC sector with a tool that will absolutely change the game,“ said Joel Hutchines, former CEO of Splash Modular and current vice-president and head Industrialized Construction, Slate Technologies.
“What we are building has the potential to have a tremendous impact on the entire construction industry, but through the efforts and inputs of Splash and Joel, we are providing an immediate value to the ever-increasing Industrialized Construction sector,” said Jeff Bettencourt, CEO of Slate Technologies.
Unlike other construction software platforms, the Slate Digital Assistant executes multi-dimensional analysis across internal and external data sources, learning as it goes to offer full transparency into the building process, the statement says. “These data sources include ERP systems, emails, RFIDs, 3D models and other construction-related information; along with public data such as weather, labor, and traffic; dark data locked in silos, and non-integrated systems within general contractor and subcontractor organizations.”
Globally, construction sector labor-productivity growth averaged 1 percent a year over the past two decades, compared with 2.8 percent for the total world economy and 3.6 percent for manufacturing, according to McKinsey.
“By integrating and analyzing data from almost any location, Slate’s proprietary dynamic scheduling capabilities ensure change decisions can immediately update an overall schedule, and the order of individuals’ tasks. This dramatically boosts efficiency, improving every step of the building process. Through its integrations with subcontractors and material suppliers’ software and systems, Slate’s data insights are valuable to the executive suite, as well as any individual executing tasks on a project.”