Unorthodox Ventures, the investment firm by contrarian entrepreneur and Big Ass Fans Founder Carey Smith, announced an investment in Munich-based construction robotics company KEWAZO. The company’s $10 million financing round saw Unorthodox Ventures invest $1.34 million. The round will fund KEWAZO’s continued work alleviating the ongoing construction labor shortage by improving efficiency at project sites.
KEWAZO is transforming the construction industry with its flagship LIFTBOT robotic lift, which creates safer environments for workers, reduces costs for companies and speeds up project completion times. LIFTBOT automates what has long been a manual, dangerous job — moving around materials and equipment at projects using scaffolding. Before LIFTBOT’s introduction, crews would move up to 5 tons of materials daily by hand in all weather conditions — passing items from level to level. Now the battery-powered LIFTBOT, which is entirely wireless, moves materials twice as fast as people and dramatically reduces the risk of accidents.
LIFTBOT, which works autonomously, frees staffers up for higher-value work. The technology: – Reduces labor costs between 40 percent and 70 percent
– Can be assembled in just 20 minutes
– Requires little space
– Can also support tasks such as insulation and painting
– Includes data analytics that offer unprecedented transparency into real-time performance
“Across my many years in manufacturing, I’ve worked to improve conditions for employees by creating safer workplaces,” Unorthodox Ventures Founding Contrarian Carey Smith said. “KEWAZO’s technology brings that same degree of care to an industry that has long been one of the most dangerous. What we’re seeing is a wholesale change in how scaffolding work is completed with construction companies ready and eager to use LIFTBOT because of how it frees up their staff for more valuable work. After all, who the hell wants to spend their days moving around equipment and materials by hand?”
KEWAZO Co-founder and CEO Artem Kuchukov added, “We’re thrilled to have found a partner in Unorthodox Ventures that truly understands manufacturing. We’ve already benefited from their decades of experience and appreciate the unique perspective they bring as an investor focused on working with us shoulder to shoulder.”
Since its founding in 2018, KEWAZO has grown to become one of the world’s leading construction robotics startups. With a founding team of experts in construction robotics, civil engineering and computer programming, KEWAZO is bringing automation to construction sites and improving safety for millions of workers across the globe.
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