Investing in Virtual Reality startup
AF Gruppen and OBOS continue investing in startups. Now Construct Venture and Skagerak Maturo are investing in VR company Vixel. The solution has been trialled in AF since the spring of 2019.
Vixel was established in 2014 with the aim of improving interaction in the building, construction and real estate industries using VR technology. The solution provides project participants and stakeholders the opportunity to enter the 3D model (BIM) and experience the project at full scale. By holding virtual meetings in 3D models of the projects to be built, one may discuss complex matters and report issues and delegate tasks directly in Virtual Reality. This allows more errors to be found and resolved earlier than previously, while also reducing travel activity and thus saving time, money and the environment. The solution, that was launched in February 2019, is called VREX and is cloud-based. Vrex’s system architecture is developed to process enormous files and models quickly, and thus makes it fast and simple to meet virtually regardless of where in the world the project participants are. This makes it possible to link those at the building site and the various consulting offices for effective interaction.
The company is currently raising capital to grow from AF- and OBOS-owned Construct Venture and early stage investor Skagerak Maturo. Construct Venture is investing in growth companies that play a part in changing how the industry works, while Skagerak Maturo is one of Norway’s largest institutional early stage investors.
From Disney and 007 to the construction industry
Rune Vandli is the founder of the company. Vandli has extensive experience of combining VR and 3D in big international projects, such as James Bond and several Disney productions. He is passionate about creating solutions that improve everyday life for others, and Vrex does this by revealing faults and deficiencies at an early stage of the project, while reducing time spent and emissions from travel activity.
“Our vision is to facilitate a virtual meeting ground for complex projects, where clarifications can be made quickly and efficiently as soon as issues, problems or questions arise. This is done by automating the collection of data from relevant sources in building and construction projects and making this accessible to the project participants in VR, regardless of where they are. This is becoming more and more important in a global society where project participants are spread around different cities and countries,” Vandli says.
“We have put in a lot of effort to speed up processing. Interacting in VR with project participants should not take longer than phoning them. And so far, we are the only ones to have done this.”
Construct Venture Director Jan Fossgård has great faith in the solution:
“There are several major players from both the contracting and consulting industries who over time have tested different VR software suppliers to evaluate the utility of VR. We are increasingly starting to see the benefit of the technology as an interaction tool, and Vixel is particularly interesting to us due to the software’s architecture and how future-oriented this is,” he says.
Partner with Skagerak Maturo, Terje Berg-Utby, believes the use of VR will contribute to change the way the construction industry works:
“We’re investing in technology that contributes to financial savings for various vertical industries by rationalising processes and contributing to reduced emissions. We have great faith in VR/XR as the next step for more efficient interaction. Now the technology is finally available for the mass market – and Vixel is at the forefront of industrialising the technology.
Tested in AF Anlegg
Games and hardware have dominated developments in VR (and the related AR: Augmented Reality) in recent years, and the industry predicts a spillover effect from the entertainment industry to other segments in order to employ the technology to a greater degree as an interaction tool. In AF Anlegg we have traditionally been quick to test new solutions to increase digitalisation in the projects.
AF’s construction business has tested Vixel internally since March, and they particularly emphasise how quickly the application manages to process the large model files required as a clear strength.
“VR technology opens up a new dimension in that we much more easily can see what and where we will be building. VR gives a much better impression of what we will be building, although we also currently use 3D models on regular displays. We already use solutions from other suppliers, but this application has a very promising architecture that with a few tweaks can compete with current solutions. Vixel looks very promising,” says Rune Huse Karlstad, BIM Coordinator with AF Anlegg.
About Construct Venture:
With its focus on growth companies through Construct Venture, AF Gruppen and OBOS want to contribute to establish a smarter and more future-oriented supplier industry in building and construction that also gives the industry competitiveness. The partnership is industrially supported based on smart capital, where AF and OBOS contribute with industry expertise, processes and well-functioning systems, in addition to financial strength. The companies are making their projects available for testing and developing technology concepts on a large scale.
About Skagerak Maturo:
Skagerak Maturo is an early stage investor that invests in groundbreaking technologies with a strong positive impact on the surroundings. Climate change, scarcity of resources and demographic changes are some of the challenges where technological innovations can make a significant contribution. For more than 15 years the team has built successful businesses in partnership with amazing entrepreneurs. The team has acquired much experience from developing early stage companies into international successes.