Young companies in the construction industry receive innovation awards
Zürich/Zug - Irmos Technologies, Rematter und Oxara haben bei der zweiten Swissbau Startup Challenge Preise bekommen. Die drei Jungfirmen überzeugten mit Ideen für nachhaltiges Bauen. Oxara erhält zusätzlich den Green Award.
At the Swissbau trade fair in Basel, three young companies from the construction and property industry have been awarded prizes in the second Swissbau Startup Challenge. According to a press release, the business model, business plan and financial plan were taken into account in the assessment. The jury selected three companies that are working on innovative solutions in the field of sustainable construction from the 17 candidates taking part in the innovation competition.
Irmos Technologies from Zurich, which emerged in 2023 as a spin-off from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich(ETH), impressed the jury with the development of an intelligent platform for building monitoring, predictive construction analysis and the safety of buildings, according to the press release. “Vibrations from daily information sources such as traffic, wind and construction work” serve as the data basis.
Rematter, based in Zug, has been launching ceiling elements made of clay and wood on the market since 2022. The system, developed on behalf of the architectural firms Senn and Herzog & de Meuron, creates an alternative to concrete using locally available, low-carbon materials. It fulfils the highest requirements in terms of load-bearing capacity, fire resistance and sound insulation. The production process combines natural materials and robot-assisted high-tech.
Oxara from Zurich produces cement-free aggregates. The ETH spin-off has been working on the development of an additive technology for the production of cement-free concrete from excavated material containing clay since 2019. Oxara also received the special Green Award, presented for the first time, which was created for special commitment in the area of sustainability.
The award ceremony marked the end of the Swissbau construction trade fair. This was preceded by nine months of preparation. During this phase, the young entrepreneurs were able to learn from 13 specialist judges, experts and coaches from the Startup Academy, as well as work on and present their business ideas. The innovation competition is a joint project between Swissbau, Startup Academy, University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland and Standortförderung Baselland.