Iris Technologies raises $3 million VC round to simplify commercial construction

Silicon Slopes—Iris Technologies announced that it has raised an oversubscribed $3.2 million seed round and is launching the world’s first communication hub built for construction project managers and project engineers to simplify the complex communications that drive construction projects forward. The seed round is led by Resolute Ventures, with Animo Ventures, Long Journey Ventures, and Grix Venture Capital participating. 

Even in today’s digital world, the construction process is still people-driven. To get things built, there are over a million construction managers in the US, all constantly communicating to make decisions and solve problems on projects. Poor communication between contractors, subcontractors, architects, engineers, and other stakeholders plague modern projects, and problems that arise from communication breakdowns cost projects $500B/year in labor costs, material waste, and unexpected schedule delays worldwide.

Under the status quo, project managers spend 10 hours/week organizing and tracking the torrent of communication flowing across their projects; but Iris has developed an elegant software solution designed to streamline communication for construction managers, freeing them to focus their time managing the multifaceted details of the project. With its communication platform, Iris advances the process of construction by saving managers time, helping them keep things from falling through the cracks, and ultimately giving them peace of mind. 

“Construction managers are under tremendous pressure to keep the 50+ stakeholders on a project on the same page. It’s an incredibly hard job. Iris makes keeping everyone aligned simple and easy, enabling project managers and engineers to work smarter and deliver critical tasks with less stress,” says Patrick Brown, co-founder and head of engineering, Iris Technologies.

“Our product really is something unique,” says Elijah Zenger, co-founder, and head of product. “By connecting to Outlook and providing communication & productivity tools directly aligned with how projects are actually built, we’re keeping things from falling through the cracks and are really helping the people that move the construction industry forward. It’s hard to overstate the amount of value we’re positioned to deliver.”

“I lived the problem when I was managing a project – the people in this industry absolutely deserve a new generation of software tools to help them get work done. By giving some of the most influential people on a project peace-of-mind, we’re on track to becoming a must-have for any commercial general contractor,” says Josh Whisenant, co-founder and CEO of Iris Technologies. “I’m grateful to our partners – Resolute, Animo, Long Journey, Grix, and dozens of angels, advisors, and friends – for giving us an opportunity to bring a true game-changer to the construction industry.”

For more information on how Iris Technologies is transforming project management in commercial construction, visit www.iris.construction.