Koch Industries is the first investor for the new Wichita startup in construction technology

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Koch Industries, based in Wichita, has joined as a pre-investor in a new local building communications startup called PLOT.

Koch, in fact, was an early proponent of the yet-to-be-released concept.

In an effort to better streamline communication channels along the construction value chain, Koch partnered with Indianapolis-based venture capital firm High Alpha Innovation to build PLOT and, more recently, lead the startup’s pre-seed round, according to a PLOT press release Wednesday.

As a business partner, PLOT says Koch and High Alpha Innovation will advance the vision of creating a comprehensive platform that, according to the company, could transform communications across the construction industry.

“PLOT is uniquely structured to address today’s communications challenges, and Chris’ leadership adds a level of experience never seen anywhere else in the industry,” said Jim DiAndreth, chief executive officer of Koch’s Georgia-Pacific Ventures, in Press release. “This is a big advance for construction technology and I can’t wait to see what PLOT will accomplish.”

Following nationwide research, PLOT is now led by co-founder and CEO Chris Callen, a local entrepreneur who is no stranger to construction technology.

The initial PLOT concept was the result of a collaborative effort between Koch and High Alpha Innovation focused on supply chain challenges, according to the press release. The company’s initial concept was aided by feedback from construction suppliers, owners and commercial contractors.

“Using this venture study approach, both Koch and our High Alpha Innovation team were able to quickly bring PLOT to market,” said Elliott Parker, CEO of High Alpha Innovation. “We are excited about the collaboration and look forward to supporting the PLOT team together as they grow.”

As PLOT builds its initial product, the company says it is hiring engineering talent and engaging a customer base to provide feedback on the platform. Interested owners, contractors and suppliers can request information online at getplot.com to test the functionality of PLOT.

“Construction technologies, built from internal or external perspectives, have often focused too much on documents and processes rather than the teams and people within them,” Callen said in the release. “In building PLOT, we have expanded our focus on the lifeblood of a construction site, the workers and their teams who have never had software built to fully meet their communication needs.”

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