The Westport Companies Expand Partnership with Pype to Include New Platform: SmartPlans
WASHINGTON, Feb. 20, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- California-based general contractor Westport Companies ("Westport") expand their pre-existing partnership with Pype to include SmartPlans, Pype's latest breakthrough platform for construction artificial intelligence (AI), less than a month after it was publicly released. Pype, a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) provider for the construction industry, first partnered with the rapidly-rising contractor in mid 2019 to provide Westport with unlimited enterprise access to Pype's two flagship software platforms; AutoSpecs and Closeout.
"Our adoption of Pype's technology stems from our drive to be at the forefront of construction tech," explained Vince Wile, Finance Manager at Westport. "We presented AutoSpecs to our teams, and they were thrilled by the value the platform offered in terms of time savings and risk management. Once we also saw Pype's solution for document closeout,, it was a no-brainer to enter into a long-term partnership with them."
Internal user feedback on AutoSpecs and Closeout was overwhelmingly positive, Wile shared, pointing out that some of the most ardent proponents within Westport for Pype's software were their most experienced project managers (PMs). "These are the people who know the industry inside and out, and have been doing this work for decades. When they tell us 'this tool works,' we listen," said Wile.
After seeing the announcement for SmartPlans, Westport immediately contacted Pype to set up a live demonstration. "We ran a set of plans from one of our pre-construction projects through SmartPlans, and the data it captured gave us a much clearer picture of the project scope," Wile said. "Within the hour-long demonstration, we identified areas where we could see exposures of $100,000 on that project alone, and we knew that SmartPlans would be a perfect fit."
Westport is not only excited for the platform as it stands currently, but sees even greater potential for it as Pype works with their partners to add features. "We've already signed up to beta-test the AI they've developed to detect clashes between a project's plans and its set of specs," Wile said. "That's going to be tremendously valuable to our pre-construction teams who can raise RFIs early. Even our clients have shown interest in Pype's solutions by inviting us to present our tech stack and show them how we can use this technology to generate more reliable proposals and reduce risk on their projects."
"Project risk management is what makes or breaks profits on projects for general contractors," said Pype CEO and co-founder Sunil Dorairajan, previously a general contractor himself before starting Pype. "One missed requirement can sink a project's fee. How these teams handle that risk is a key indicator of success. Companies that embrace new strategies and technologies like Pype to greatly reduce that risk are already showing incredible ROI and are fast-tracked for growth, and Westport is one of those companies."
"We are thrilled to offer this additional solution to Westport," said Karuna Ammireddy, Pype's CTO and co-founder. "SmartPlans is the result of years of software development using computer vision to analyze hundreds of thousands of drawing sets to determine not only what requirements are present in a project's plans, but also what requirements should be present. By recommending requirements with our powerful AI engine we are upgrading the way GCs review project requirements." Ammireddy also shared Westport's excitement over their beta-test partnership. "Forward-thinking partners like Westport are as good as gold for rapidly innovating companies like us."
Westport is hopeful for their future as they continue to expand, already adding satellite offices in Sacramento and Los Angeles. "We are at an inflection point as a company right now," Wile shared, "a tipping point where we can take-off and grow exponentially." This, he says, is one of the core reasons behind Westport's focus on technology. "Construction tech has lagged behind, and not only do we think that fully embracing new technology could push us over the edge into that rocket-ship growth, but we also want to be known for helping to lead that charge in the construction industry."
About Pype
Pype is the construction industry's first SaaS provider for submittal log management and project closeout. By using patented AI and machine-learning algorithms, our platforms liberate project teams from error-prone spreadsheet workflows and ensure contract compliance from precon through closeout. These cutting-edge solutions present unprecedented insights on spec and closeout data to help teams extract actionable information from specifications and plans to close communication gaps between design, construction, and operations teams. Over 40% of the ENR top 400 use AutoSpecs and Closeout on projects coast-to-coast to provide a higher level of quality assurance, efficiency, and risk management using Pype's exceptionally accurate and richly integrated software technology.
About Westport Companies
The Westport Companies ("Westport") are a collaboration between Westport Construction, WPIC Construction and West + Creek Builders, who specialize in construction of both affordable and market rate multi-family, student, and senior housing, and commercial construction. For over 30 years, Westport has successfully constructed projects that span the state of California and much of the West Coast. Years of continuous growth has created a need for technological advancement within the organization and has fueled that passion with CEO, Andrew Apodaca, who has also invested in a number of emerging green construction technology companies in Southern Europe. Partnering with tech-forward providers such as Pype has added a new level of agility to the organization that gives a competitive advantage in the market. With 2020 projected construction volume in excess of $300 million, Westport will need to leverage solutions such as Pype more than ever and will continue to strive to be an industry leader in both construction and technology advancement.
SOURCE Pype
