Nodes & Links is a planning platform for large infrastructure projects that defines when and in what order the bolts and nuts for the bridge (for example) should be delivered. Unsurprisingly, this is often wrong with complex infrastructure projects. The company has now raised a $ 11 million Series A financing round led by urban sustainability fund 2150, along with Zigg Capital and Westerly Winds, with existing investors Entrepreneur First, ADV and Seedcamp.
The company’s Aegis platform, launched in 2018, is used by Balfour Beatty, Costain and BAM Nuttal and is believed to have saved millions in infrastructure projects by organizing building materials and assembly in the right order. Because most large projects are significantly over budget and on time, proper planning can make a big difference in costs and environmental impact.
The company cites a survey by Oxford University which found that only 8% of infrastructure projects are delivered on time and on budget.
Greg Lawton, CEO of Nodes and Links, said, “Complex projects account for over 4% of global GDP, but only 8% are completed on budget and on time. This is largely because people are responsible for all tasks within projects, including the repetitive and complex ones for which they are unsuitable, rather than the high-quality, creative activities for which people are uniquely qualified. By adding machines to our workforce, better decisions are made and better projects are delivered. We firmly believe that our work will have the same impact as automation in manufacturing, and this new investment will help us accelerate its adoption for the common good. “
Nodes & Links competes with big infrastructure software like Oracle Primavera as well as plain old Excel spreadsheets for obvious reasons.
Christian Hernandez, Partner at 2150, said, “The world is accelerating its investments in linear infrastructure, with much of it focused on sustainability and resilience. Time is the greatest leverage available to ensure that trillion dollar projects are beneficial to our planet, and Nodes & Links has proven that they can help large and complex engineering projects achieve this. We cannot wait years for these projects to be delivered, we cannot waste billions of dollars on delays, we cannot accept the waste of resources that infrastructure projects suffer: this is why we are leading this investment round for Nodes & Links. “