Autodesk to Acquire Construction Tech Startup PlanGrid for $875M
Autodesk on Tuesday announced plans to acquire the construction software firm PlanGrid for $875 million net of cash. The deal is Autodesk’s largest acquisition to date.
PlanGrid software lets general contractors, subcontractors and owners in commercial, heavy civil and other industries work together throughout the construction project lifecycle. PlanGrid software offers real-time collaboration, keeping the field and the office on the same page. It gives builders real-time access to project plans, punch lists, project tasks, progress photos, daily field reports, submittals and more.
The acquisition should help Autodesk expand its presence in the construction industry, which represents a $12 trillion market opportunity, according to McKinsey. Autodesk plans to integrate workflows between PlanGrid’s software and both Autodesk Revit software and the Autodesk BIM 360 construction management platform. Additionally, PlanGrid has a third-party ecosystem that’s complementary to Autodesk’s.
Here is a summary from the press release:
“As designing and making converge, Autodesk is connecting project data from design through construction and putting predictive insights into the hands of contractors,” said Andrew Anagnost, Autodesk CEO. “There is a huge opportunity to streamline all aspects of construction through digitization and automation. The acquisition of PlanGrid will accelerate our efforts to improve construction workflows for every stakeholder in the construction process.”
“At PlanGrid, we have a relentless focus on empowering construction workers to build as productively as possible,” said Tracy Young, PlanGrid CEO. “One of the first steps to improving construction productivity is the adoption of digital workflows with centralized data. PlanGrid has excelled at building beautiful, simple field collaboration software, while Autodesk has focused on connecting design to construction. Together, we can drive greater productivity and predictability on the jobsite.”
About PlanGrid
PlanGrid builds simple, powerful software construction teams love to use. The company’s mobile-first technology gives general contractors, subcontractors, owners and architects access to information in real-time, enables field collaboration and provides actionable insights. With PlanGrid, any construction team member can manage and update blueprints, specs, photos, RFIs, field reports, punch lists and other information from any device. PlanGrid is used on more than one million projects across commercial, heavy civil and other industries in 90 countries. Headquartered in San Francisco and founded in 2011, PlanGrid has $69 million in funding from YCombinator, Sequoia Capital, Tenaya Capital and other top venture capital firms.
Join our Newsletter
Get our best content on Architecture, Creative Strategies and Business. Delivered each week for free.
JOIN THE
ARCHIPRENEUR ACADEMY
- 9 Stage Studio Growth Roadmap
- Library of In-Depth Courses
- Checklists and Workbooks
- Quick Tips and Tutorials
- A Supportive Online Community