TechCrunch | San Diego’s eSub raises $12 million for its construction management software

The San Diego-based software developer eSub Construction Software has raised $12 million in a new round of financing for its project management platform for contractors.

The company’s funding was led by Catalyst Investors  with participation from previous investor Revolution Ventures.

Software for the construction industry is becoming a big business and attracting more capital from investors. Construction management software vendor Procore  is now worth $3 billion, thanks to a $75 million investment late last year from Tiger Global.

Indeed, unicorns are galloping across the construction industry these days. SoftBank kicked off 2018 by investing $865 million in Katerra — one of many early mega-deals from the firm’s giant Vision Fund — which touts itself as a one-stop shop for everything from planning to permitting to filling new building construction. In November, another software developer that was contending for the construction market, PlanGrid, was acquired by Autodesk in an $875 million transaction.

Slotting in the space where project developers outsource to contractors and crews, eSub provides oversight on operations in the field for developers. The company’s software is integrated with its strategic backer, Autodesk,  as well as construction estimation and accounting software to provide an overview and budget for the entire construction process from design through the build on-site.

“eSub takes a differentiated approach to solving the needs of the construction industry. By creating an easy-to-use, purpose-built platform, the company empowers trade contractors to have their own system of record and productivity optimization solutions,” said Catalyst partner Susan Bihler. “We’re excited to be part of this next stage of growth.”

Last year, eSub estimates that investors put roughly $3.1 billion in financing into construction technology companies, but the startup maintains that the bulk of those investments overlooked trade contractors, which represent some $1.1 trillion of construction spending.

“Trade contractors are the lifeblood of the construction industry,” said Wendy Rogers, founder and CEO of eSub. “They are the true builders who construct commercial construction projects. However, they are underserved by the majority of disjointed point solutions in the marketplace and are forced to utilize systems that are developed for general contractors.”