Construction Technology in a Post-Covid Environment

Moderne Ventures is an early stage venture capital fund. We invest in technologies applicable to real estate, insurance, home services, finance, and hospitality. Our research is informed by our strategic investors. We have over ten years of experience investing in construction, air, and light technologies. As a result, we had a head start understanding these markets when the pandemic spread globally earlier this year.

Looking back, the pandemic has significantly impacted our nation in ways that will be permanent. Throughout the past six months we learned the nation’s healthcare infrastructure needs major improvements. We learned that people are not yet comfortable going to the office. Studies show most workers prefer working from home and that many companies are going to allow workers to work from home two days a week. Lastly, there is a fear of what is next. Health experts know that this will not be the last of these health-related “Black Swan” events so changes will need to be made that will have long term effects on our businesses. All these changes will create opportunity for the construction technology industry.

Construction: As construction technology investors, we believe it is inevitable that the future of Construction Tech will be focused on improving efficiencies across the entire construction and development value chain and improving the safety of the built environment. The construction industry has a responsibility to make changes to improve the wellness and sustainable profile of what is being built. As a result, we have been focused on prefabrication and 3-D printing. We believe that as these technologies improve, they will become a larger part of the construction industry going forward. Much of the stress on the nation’s healthcare infrastructure can be addressed by prefabrication and 3-D printed structures such as: temporary hospitals, assisted living, rural hospitals and medical facilities, and high-quality, affordable housing (possibly the biggest health issue globally). We identified an Austin, TX-based startup called ICON that prints 3-D structures from light weight extruded concrete. 3-D printing is fast, flexible, and cost effective. The technology is currently being deployed to build stylish, low-cost housing in Austin, TX and Nacajuca, Mexico. The moon is the limit for the types of applications that ICON’s 3-D technology can address and ICON is making progress to achieve this dream Check them out by viewing ICON’s website or their most recent feature in Forbes.

Air: We initially began studying ways to improve air quality to support our strategic investors’ interests in improving the wellness and sustainability at their properties. This search took on a new importance after the pandemic. As a result, we have looked at Building Automation Systems (BAS), Bipolar Ionization Systems, and ultraviolet light installations. 

There remain some efficacy concerns regarding some of these solutions as well as cost, design, and installation obstacles. However, our research shows upgrading or adding a BAS can have a major impact on improving air quality and, on a case by case basis, it can improve building comfort and operations with a payback period that can be less than two years.

Based on our research, we determined that the most broadly effective way to improve air quality for the majority of properties is by increasing the amount of outside air, using enhanced filters (MERV-13 or above), and having a diligent filter replacement program installed. We identified Raleigh, NC startup, Second Nature a filter manufacturer and distributer of up to 400,000 filter SKUs. Second Nature’s technology is their “just in time” delivery of filters to coincide with scheduled preventive maintenance of the HVAC system. Homeowners and property managers can rely on a delivery of their specified filter “just in time” for recurring replacements.

Light: Lastly, we studied light to address our strategic investors’ interest in improving the wellness and sustainability of their properties. We researched daylight harvesting systems - circadian lighting systems to imitate the rhythm of daylight to improve wellbeing for office environments.

The pandemic changed our focus to find lighting solutions that would improve the environmental hygiene of properties. We looked at ultraviolet solutions (UV Light) including UV cleaning robots, UV lighting installations for afterhours cleaning systems, and UV duct lighting installations. All UV lighting technology are point in time solutions versus continuous cleaning capability because UV exposure is not safe for human contact. The UV duct technologies were cost prohibitive and had varying levels of effectiveness due to different duct pressures. As a result, we identified Vital Vio, based in Troy, NY. Vital Vio is a white LED antimicrobial lighting system that continuously kills bacteria, mold, mildew and yeast. The light constantly disinfects the area on which it is illuminating. It is ideal for use in offices, classrooms, laboratories, medical properties, health clubs, food processing facilities, kitchens, and bathrooms. Vital Vio is partnering with Delta Airlines to improve customer experience. They were just featured on CNBC due to the spark of demand for clean home technology innovations. Here is the video if you are interested in watching and learning more about Vital Vio.

We continue to study the construction technology industry and are always interested in learning about new ideas. Please keep us in mind if you see new construction technologies.