The ConTechCrew

What does it take to transform MEP engineering with generative AI? In this episode, host Jeff Sample sits down with Niklas Lindgren to explore how Endra is building a new AI-powered workplace for mechanical, electrical, and plumbing engineers. The conversation covers Niklas’s path from law school to founding and exiting a global design-build security company, assembling a world-class technical team, and creating technology that connects engineering calculations, 3D modeling, documentation, and manufacturer data. Niklas also explains how faster, more detailed engineering could improve decision-making for consultants, contractors, general contractors, owners, and manufacturers across the construction ecosystem.

Niklas Lindgren is the Co-founder and CEO of Endra, an AI platform designed to help MEP engineers automate repetitive workflows, generate documentation, and capture institutional knowledge. Before launching Endra, Niklas co-founded and scaled a global design-build security systems company serving hyperscalers, government organizations, logistics providers, and enterprise clients. After selling the company to private equity, he partnered with experienced AI and autonomous systems engineers to build Endra and pursue a broader vision to transform how engineering work is delivered.

Key Takeaways
Why generative AI can dramatically accelerate MEP design without removing engineers from the process.
How Endra connects 3D modeling, engineering calculations, documentation, and manufacturer-level data.
Why capturing and productizing institutional knowledge is becoming a strategic priority for large engineering firms.
How faster, data-rich design can improve cost analysis, procurement, collaboration, and downstream construction workflows.
What Endra’s $50 million Series A signals about investor interest in AI-driven engineering technology.

Timestamps
[00:00] - Episode teaser
[01:42] - Introduction to Niklas Lindgren and Endra
[03:48] - From law school to building a global design-build security company
[05:51] - Founding Endra and recruiting an elite technical team
[11:42] - The core problem Endra is solving for MEP engineers
[13:01] - Automating repetitive design work while keeping engineers in control
[17:48] - Capturing institutional knowledge and productizing engineering expertise
[19:39] - Enterprise adoption, global demand, and Endra’s go-to-market strategy
[25:57] - Raising a $50 million Series A and building for long-term transformation
[33:12] - How AI-powered engineering can improve construction downstream
[39:31] - Final thoughts and where to connect

Follow Niklas Lindgren:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/niklaslindgren-endra/ 
Website (Company): https://www.endra.ai   
LinkedIn (Company): https://www.linkedin.com/company/endraai/?originalSubdomain=se 

Follow the Host:
Jeff Sample: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ironmanofit/

Follow The ConTech Crew:
Website: https://thecontechcrew.com/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBDRThvRmSpyTZmMWY4EAjg 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-contechcrew/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheConTechCrew/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecontechcrew/?hl=en 
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The construction industry is facing an unprecedented wave of complexity. Mega-projects, data center expansions, labor shortages, and increasingly interconnected project teams are creating more risk and information overload than ever before. In this episode, host Jeff Sample sits down with the team behind Primepoint AI to discuss how artificial intelligence, knowledge graphs, and connected project data can help construction teams navigate complexity, reduce risk, and make better decisions faster. 
Lubomir Bourdev is the Co-Founder and CEO of Primepoint. A computer vision pioneer, he previously worked at Adobe, where he helped develop some of the earliest commercial computer vision applications. Kamran Azarbal serves as VP of Strategy at Primepoint. With a background in Civil Engineering from UC Berkeley and years of experience working for leading general contractors including Turner Construction and Webcor, Kamran brings deep operational knowledge of large-scale commercial construction projects.
Key Takeaways
Why construction may be one of the most challenging industries for AI to solve.
How knowledge graphs connect drawings, RFIs, submittals, schedules, and specifications into a unified project intelligence platform.
Ways AI can reduce project risk while increasing productivity across operations and field teams.
How construction organizations can preserve decades of institutional knowledge before experienced leaders retire.
Why the future of AI in construction is about augmenting human expertise rather than replacing it.

Timestamps
[00:00] - Episode Teaser
[02:05] - From Adobe and Facebook to Primepoint
[05:31] - Kamran Azarbal's Construction Background
[06:59] - Why Primepoint Built a Construction Knowledge Graph
[09:49] - Eliminating Information Overload on Construction Projects
[13:51] - How Connected Project Data Changes Everything
[18:39] - Practical Field Applications for AI-Powered Project Intelligence
[23:01] - Scaling Expertise Without Replacing People
[27:42] - Lubomir's Vision for the Future of Construction Intelligence
[33:16] - Building Trust While Moving Fast with AI
[37:04] - How to Connect

Follow the Guests:
LinkedIn (Lubomir): https://www.linkedin.com/in/lubomir-bourdev-51a8652/
LinkedIn (Kamran): https://www.linkedin.com/in/kamran-azarbal/
Website (Company): https://www.primepoint.ai/
LinkedIn (Company): https://www.linkedin.com/company/primepoint-labs/

Follow the Host:
Jeff Sample: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ironmanofit/

Follow The ConTech Crew:
Website: https://thecontechcrew.com/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBDRThvRmSpyTZmMWY4EAjg 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-contechcrew/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheConTechCrew/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecontechcrew/?hl=en 
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thecontechcrew 
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In this episode, hosts Jeff Sample and Nathan Wood sit down with Cameron Page, Founder and CEO of Clearstory, to discuss one of construction's most misunderstood and critical processes: change orders. The conversation explores how change orders impact every stakeholder on a project, why transparency matters more than ever, and how AI is beginning to transform construction workflows. The episode also dives into technology adoption, process standardization, innovation teams, and the future of connected construction data. 

Cameron Page is the Founder and CEO of Clearstory, a construction technology company focused on streamlining change order communication, visibility, and workflow management across owners, general contractors, and specialty contractors. Before launching Clearstory in 2018, Cameron spent nine years at Devcon Construction, one of Silicon Valley's largest builders, where he worked on projects ranging from tenant improvements to large-scale corporate campuses. 

Key Takeaways
Why field experience is invaluable for anyone entering the construction industry.
How change orders have become the central workflow connecting design, schedule, budget, and project execution.
The hidden costs of poor visibility into change management.
How Clearstory is helping contractors, owners, and trade partners improve transparency and reduce risk.
The role AI agents may play in accelerating change order review, pricing, and approval workflows.

Timestamps
[00:00] - Episode Teaser
[00:43] - Meet Cameron Page & Clearstory
[02:15] - From Construction Management Student to Founder
[08:19] - The Change Order Problem
[11:33] - Creating Value for Contractors, GCs, and Owners
[16:53] - Design Evolution, Risk, and Cost Exposure
[19:24] - AI, Data Intelligence, and Predictive Insights
[23:47] - The Future of Change Order Management
[26:50] - AI Agents for Construction Workflows
[30:05] - Industry Standards, Adoption, and Innovation
[36:51] - Why Construction Tech Needs Construction Experts
[42:15] - Full-Circle Industry Connections
[44:41] - Final Thoughts & Where to Connect

Follow Cameron Page:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cameron-page-740aa722/
Website (Company): https://www.clearstory.build/
LinkedIn (Company): https://www.linkedin.com/company/clearstory-build/
Facebook (Company): https://www.facebook.com/Clearstory.build/
Instagram (Company): https://www.instagram.com/clearstory.build/
X (Company): https://x.com/ClearstoryBuild
YouTube (Company): https://www.youtube.com/@Clearstorybuild

Follow the Hosts:
Jeff Sample: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ironmanofit/
Nathan Wood: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanaec/ 

Follow The ConTech Crew:
Website: https://thecontechcrew.com/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBDRThvRmSpyTZmMWY4EAjg 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-contechcrew/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheConTechCrew/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecontechcrew/?hl=en 
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thecontechcrew 
X: https://x.com/TheConTechCrew

In this episode, hosts Jeff Sample and Nathan Wood sit down with Bryan Guess to explore one of the most overlooked challenges in construction, technology, and business operations: mistaking symptoms for root causes. Drawing from his experience, Bryan explains why organizations often jump straight to solutions without first understanding the real problem they're trying to solve. The conversation explores systems thinking, organizational accountability, communication breakdowns, technology adoption, and why most operational problems are ultimately people and process problems. 

Bryan Guess is the founder of Bartizan Strategic Group, a consulting firm focused on helping organizations diagnose operational challenges, improve business systems, and solve complex organizational problems. Prior to launching Partizan, Bryan spent over a decade working with commercial building owners and AEC stakeholders, where he discovered that many challenges attributed to construction, engineering, or technology are actually universal business problems involving people, processes, incentives, and communication. 

Key Takeaways
Why organizations often prescribe solutions before fully understanding the problem.
How authority, accountability, and communication create recurring project failures.
Why technology and software are rarely the root solution to operational challenges.
How systems thinking can uncover hidden organizational inefficiencies.
Practical ways to diagnose recurring business and project problems before investing in new tools or processes.

Timestamps
[00:00] - Episode Teaser
[03:56] - Bryan's Journey from Building Consulting to Business Consulting
[05:21] - Universal Business Problems Across Industries
[07:11] - Systems Thinking, Shared Language, and Organizational Diagnostics
[10:34] - Authority, Accountability, and Why Projects Break Down
[15:07] - Technology Isn't a Magic Bullet
[19:15] - Diagnosing Before Prescribing Solutions
[30:53] - Lessons Learned, Repeatability, and Improving Project Systems
[37:15] - Communication Systems, Software Creep, and Operational Complexity
[46:11] - Final Advice: Stay Curious and Challenge Assumptions

Follow Bryan Guess:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bryan-guess/
Website (Company): https://bartizan.group/
LinkedIn (Company): https://www.linkedin.com/company/bartizan-strategic-group/

Follow the Hosts:
Jeff Sample: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ironmanofit/
Nathan Wood: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanaec/ 

Follow The ConTech Crew:
Website: https://thecontechcrew.com/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBDRThvRmSpyTZmMWY4EAjg 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-contechcrew/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheConTechCrew/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecontechcrew/?hl=en 
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thecontechcrew 
X: https://x.com/TheConTechCrew

In this episode, hosts Jeff Sample and Nathan Wood look into the evolving role of AI in construction technology with Colin Whitlatch, CTO of Kahua. Colin discusses how Kahua's platform leverages AI to enhance construction project management, the importance of security and compliance (especially in the context of FedRAMP), and how the human element remains vital even as AI becomes more prevalent in the industry.   

Colin Whitlatch is the Chief Technology Officer at Kahua, a leading software company in the construction tech space. With over 15 years of experience, Colin has played a pivotal role in shaping Kahua's AI-driven platform, which focuses on flexibility, data integrity, and helping construction businesses innovate while ensuring top-notch security. 

Key Takeaways
AI in construction tech must be paired with human oversight to ensure effective decision-making and avoid errors.
Security and compliance, such as FedRAMP, are critical in building trust and safeguarding sensitive data.
The balance of innovation and ethical responsibility is essential for leveraging AI at scale.
Despite AI’s power, context is key as AI can’t replace human judgment in complex scenarios.
The importance of transparency and traceability in AI-driven actions to avoid mistakes or legal risks.

Timestamps
[00:00] – Episode Teaser
[02:29] – Colin’s Background
[04:17] – Kahua’s Journey and Evolution
[09:13] – Connecting Business Logic to Project Contracts
[13:22] – AI’s Benefits and Challenges
[19:03] – Human in the Loop Concept
[20:25] – The Role of Security & FedRAMP
[25:45] – FedRAMP vs. CMK Compliance
[30:58] – Ethical Use of AI in Construction
[39:06] – AI and Human Oversight: A Necessary Balance
[47:31] – Final Thoughts

Follow Colin Whitlatch:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colin-whitlatch/
Website (Company): https://www.kahua.com/
LinkedIn (Company): https://www.linkedin.com/company/kahua/
Facebook (Company): https://www.facebook.com/people/Kahua/100063610417010/#
Instagram (Company): https://www.instagram.com/kahuainc/
X (Company): https://x.com/KahuaInc
YouTube (Company): https://www.youtube.com/@kahuainc
TikTok (Company): https://www.tiktok.com/@kahuainc

Follow the Hosts:
Jeff Sample: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ironmanofit/
Nathan Wood: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanaec/ 

Follow The ConTech Crew:
Website: https://thecontechcrew.com/ 
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBDRThvRmSpyTZmMWY4EAjg 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-contechcrew/ 
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheConTechCrew/ 
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecontechcrew/?hl=en 
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thecontechcrew 
X: https://x.com/TheConTechCrew