A local startup working to boost the efficiency on construction sites has gone live with its technology platform.
Construction industry veteran Chris Callen started PLOT late last year with backing from Wichita-based Koch Industries Inc.
Now, after months of developing the platform, the company is ready to take its product to the broader market.
“I don’t think there is a contractor in town that wouldn’t benefit from using it,” Callen says.
PLOT, which can now be accessed by contractors online, streamlines communication on a job site with features including job site logistics plans and messaging collaboration complete with language translation.
While especially beneficial for general contractors managing all the companies on a project, Callen says PLOT can also boost the workflow efficiency for subcontractors.
“We’re aiming to be the most accessible software in the construction industry,” he says. “Our competition is text and email. We want to provide a better experience.”
Callen says PLOT can take the daily or weekly briefings inside a job site trailer and keep the communication going throughout the day — and through the duration of a project.
He now has a team of three full-time, local software engineers that will continue to refine the platform as more contractors come on board.
The company will be presenting at 1 Million Cups in Wichita in early May.
Callen says PLOT was in many ways born from a decision to look at the opposite end of the spectrum from his previous Grit Virtual venture.
That construction scheduling software, he says, had more a niche market. With PLOT, he believes he is bringing to the market a product applicable for anyone on a job site.
“We see our target as the personnel in the field,” he says.
The initial concept for PLOT was the result of a collaborative effort between Koch and Indianapolis-based High Alpha Innovation focused on supply chain challenges. The company's early concept was furthered by feedback from construction suppliers, owners and trade contractors.
As it gets off the ground, Callen says PLOT remains firmly focused on the construction industry.
But as the technology proves out, he says, there could be any number of industries that might eventually make use of PLOT’s technology.
“Any team of teams (could benefit),” he says.
