NEW YORK — WSP USA, a leading engineering and professional services consultancy, announced the selection of four technology firms – Bayotech, Bundle, DisasterTech and Sphera – to join Cohort 1 of the firm’s new Emerging Growth Partnership Program (EGPP).
The focus of this first cohort is Climate, Resilience and Sustainability (CRS), with the intent to focus future cohorts on other WSP target markets. WSP’s Energy (Bayotech), Property and Buildings (Bundle) and Federal Programs (DisasterTech) business lines are co-participants in this pilot cohort being led by the CRS business line (Sphera).
EGPP serves as a vehicle for WSP to forge strategic alliances with pioneering technology and product start-ups. The program aims to help these emerging companies refine, optimize and scale their offerings, while integrating value added innovation into the broad-based consulting services WSP provides to clients and communities.
“Our in-house subject matter experts and business champions engage with early- and growth-stage company leadership and product teams to pilot their technologies and help them grow in WSP’s market segments through a methodical induction process,” said Pooja Jain, vice president of strategic innovation for CRS who is leading the new program. “In turn, WSP provides those clients with transformational innovation and efficiency, designed for maximum mutual benefit.”
The first cohort of four start-ups — selected from an initial pool of 39 applicants — will soon be signing strategic alliance agreements and roll into the CRS-focused pilot phase of the program. They include:
DisasterTech developed the Decision Science Integrated Collaboration Environment (DICE) Platform to help disaster planning and response professionals make informed decisions based on situational understanding. The technology converges cross-sector real-time data and accelerates analytics using geospatial, charting, graphing and text analysis. The tool will enable WSP’s Emergency Management teams within Federal Programs that work strategically with CRS to help clients more efficiently simulate, exercise, plan for and communicate future risks to users and collaborators.
UK-based Sphera is pioneering sustainable, science-led materials development to move the construction industry toward net zero. The company makes a carbon negative aggregate for use in lightweight concrete for use in a variety of concrete products. Sphera has used the aggregate to create the world’s first potentially carbon negative and carbon zero concrete. Sphera’s products offer an alternative for WSP’s design solutions that has the potential to create a substantial net reduction in the carbon footprint of infrastructure and buildings.
Bayotech is an alternate fuel company focused on decentralizing supply and distribution of hydrogen gas to increase affordability, sustainability and accessibility of this low-carbon energy source for scale deployment of hydrogen fuel cell and other clean tech vehicles and equipment. The company’s model promotes efficiency and substantial net carbon reductions through the establishment of localized hydrogen hubs to reduce reliance on cross-country transportation and to reliably supply and distribute hydrogen on the spot to markets and clients looking to enhance the use of greener fuels, vehicles and equipment. Bayotech’s offering aligns with WSP’s hydrogen services initiative within the energy business line.
Bundle is a one-stop shop for building materials procurement. Bundle connects builders and suppliers on one platform, streamlining procurement with technology and saving stakeholders both time and money. The platform also aims to include and track sustainability metrics for the building materials to help stakeholders assess and reduce the carbon footprint of the construction from the start. Bundle’s offering aligns with the needs of the WSP’s built ecology practice and its client’s need to monitor and impact carbon footprint of new developments at all stages.
Soon after signing the strategic alliance agreements, WSP and the partners will kick-off the three-month pilot phase. The pilot phase is critical for refinement of the partner offerings for alignment with potential target client needs and to ensure mutual benefit – the key to any successful partnership. Successful completion of the pilot phase is the pathway to a long-term relationship.
“We are very excited that the CRS is leading the way to demonstrate the tremendous possibilities that the EGPP can open to WSP and our partners,” said Tom Lewis, business line executive for CRS. “The robust market appetite for sustainable and resilient technological innovation combined with the breadth of WSP’s expertise offers significant growth potential to emerging companies and to WSP as well.”
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About WSP USA
WSP USA is the U.S. operating company of WSP, one of the world's leading engineering and professional services firms. Dedicated to serving local communities, we are engineers, planners, technical experts, strategic advisors and construction management professionals. WSP USA designs sustainable solutions in the buildings, transportation, energy, water and environment markets. With more than 12,000 employees in 200 offices across the U.S., we partner with our clients to help communities prosper. wsp.com
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