Physical infrastructure is becoming a key factor of growth for economies in several developing countries. It plays a crucial role in improving living standards and promoting regional cooperation and trade.
These projects are complex and consume a huge amount of construction capital, and require efficient coordination. Keeping track of all the moving pieces can get complicated in no time. Hence, the planning and managing aspects of these projects must be handled with great care. If not, these projects could lead to cost overruns and benefit shortfalls.
According to Oxford University, only 8 per cent of infrastructure projects get delivered on time and on budget. On the other hand, McKinsey estimates that $4.5T (approx €3.8T) will need to be invested into infrastructure every year through 2030 to keep up with GDP growth and meet the UN sustainable development goals.
As a result, there is a crucial need for a tool/platform that helps deliver projects on time and on the budget to ensure the sustainable infrastructure is delivered in time.
And here’s where Nodes & Links, a London-based startup comes into play.
Nodes & Links offers AI and cloud tools that allow engineering projects to be delivered on time, on budget, and with less waste.
Raised €9.2M
Recently, the company has raised an $11M (approx €9.3M) Series A funding round led by urban sustainability-focused fund 2150 alongside Zigg Capital and Westerly Winds. Other existing investors including, Entrepreneur First, ADV and Seedcamp, also participated. The company has so far raised $13M (approx €11M) in funding.
2150: All you need to know
2150 is a VC firm investing in technology companies that seeks to sustainably shape the urban environment. The company focuses on major unsolved problems across what it calls the ‘Urban Stack’, which comprises every element of the built environment, from the way our cities are designed, constructed and powered, to the way people live, work, and are cared for.
Fund utilisation
According to the company, the European recovery deal and the Biden infrastructure plan respectively will invest $3T (approx €2.5T) over the next few years, much of which, it is predicted, will be spent on sustainable infrastructure.
Nodes & Links will use the funding to accelerate the global rollout of projects from $3.5T (approx €2.9T) infrastructure spending. Further, it is planning to enhance its scenario testing AI engine and introduce new reporting and integration capabilities.
Nodes & Links: Aims to tame project complexity
Founded by Christos Ellinas and Greg Lawton in 2018, Nodes & Links empowers organisations across all domains to tame project complexity. The company is on a mission to solve the persistent issues around the mismanagement of major projects.
“It also forms part of a wider industry push to recognise the impact of major projects and the difficulty in ensuring longer-term environmental, social and financial sustainability in an increasingly complex world,” says the company in a release.
Hybrid-collective intelligence platform
The UK company’s flagship platform Aegis uses complexity science and structured project data to help project managers simulate scenarios, identify complex risks and mitigate them in real-time.
Nodes & Links works with universities and global companies in project delivery space, from energy and construction to aerospace and defense.
Since its inception, the company has delivered hundreds of millions of dollars in cost savings on infrastructure projects for major customers, including Balfour Beatty, Costain, and BAM Nuttal.
Nodes and Links CEO Greg Lawton comments: “Complex projects account for over 4 per cent of the world’s GDP, yet only 8 per cent of them complete on budget and on time. This is large because humans are responsible for all tasks within projects, even the repetitive and complex ones they’re unsuited to, instead of the high-value, creative activities people are uniquely qualified for. By expanding our workforce to include machines, better decisions will be made and better projects delivered. We firmly believe that the work we’re doing is going to have the same impact as automation did in manufacturing, and this new investment will help us accelerate its adoption for the common good.”