CRE Tech Firm’s New Investment to Fuel National, International Growth

BOSTON—Building Engines, a national commercial real estate operations platform company, has received a second-round investment of $12.7 million and plans to use the funding to help facilitate growth nationwide as well as seed the launch of international operations in the years to come.

The Boston-based firm received the latest round of funding from existing investors Wavecrest Growth Partners, River Cities Capital Funds, MassMutual Ventures and Camber Creek Ventures. The same investment group, led by Wavecrest Growth Partners, provided Building Engines $26.5 million in 2016.

The company states that the additional growth capital will expedite Building Engines’ strategy to build, buy and partner to deliver “the most modern platform addressing long-standing problems in commercial real estate operations.”

Notably, the company’s vision includes ambitious plans to add functionality to its new and modular platform on an ongoing basis. Building Engines recently acquired two companies, Aware Manager in 2018 and Real Data Management in May of this year and has since established offices in New York City.

“Our mission is to dramatically improve the tenant experience and to drive operational efficiencies for our CRE customers,” says Tim Curran, Building Engines’ CEO. “This new investment will allow us to keep our foot on the gas for increased innovation and continued growth, helping us deliver even more value to our customers.”

Curran, in an exclusive interview with Globest.com, says that the company plans to grow both organically as well as by acquisitions. He says that the firm is currently in negotiations to acquire a West Coast based commercial real estate technology firm and says that the deal could close before the end of this year.

He says that in addition to adding new products and services organically, the firm will also look to add new services via acquisition. Looking to the future, Curran believes the company could engage in new acquisitions every six months and will likely open an office in London within the next two years. Curran adds that the company will also seek to partner with other technology firms to add new products and services.

He says that with the new funding, as well as $20 million in debt financing provided by Wells Fargo last year, will allow the firm to add more clients and more building square footage it represents, but also to step up its strategic acquisitions in order to add more functionality and more products to its platform.

“The commercial real estate market is investing in technology and data solutions at a rapid rate, and Building Engines is bringing a new, innovative approach to solving the most pressing operational problems of building owners, property managers and third-party operators,” says Deepak Sindwani, Wavecrest co-founder and managing partner. “Building Engines has significantly enhanced its management team, its product and its market opportunity since 2016; we’ve been very pleased with the company’s organic and inorganic growth and are eager to see the impact that their next wave of innovation will have on both the business and the industry.”

“I would expect another round of funding from them (Wavecrest Growth Partners, River Cities Capital Funds, MassMutual Ventures and Camber Creek Ventures) and then longer-term we will probably getting bigger and bigger investors over the next decade,” Curran, who joined Building Engines in November 2017, tells Globest.com.

Building Engines currently serves more than 750 customers and helps manage more than 2.4 billion square feet across more than 25,000 properties. The company’s platform enables asset owners, owner/managers and third-party operators to operate their buildings and portfolios more efficiently.

Building Engines delivers intelligent building operations through the SaaS web and mobile portfolio management platform, providing building teams with the data and insights they need to improve operational efficiency, mitigate risk, measure and improve tenant satisfaction and to make better, data-driven decisions.

The Building Engines integrated suite of solutions supports the full range of critical building operations, including tenant engagement and service, maintenance management, communications, task and operational risk management.

Clients of Building Engines include many public REITs, private owner/managers and third-party management firms in the United States and Canada operating multi-tenant commercial office, medical office, retail and industrial properties. Among its clients include Beacon Capital Partners, Cushman & Wakefield, and Highwoods Properties.

In the last two years, Building Engines has doubled its revenue to approximately $30 million and significantly increased its client roster. The company currently employs a workforce of approximately 150 employees at its offices in Boston and New York City.