Podium Automation will use new funding to scale software-driven manufacturing of quick-turn control panels.
NEW YORK—Industrial control panels are the central nervous system of automated production and infrastructure, governing how equipment starts, stops, communicates, and operates safely. Historically, control panel design and fabrication has been a bottleneck for manufacturers: Lead times often exceed 12 weeks, and quality depends heavily on the tacit knowledge of veteran technicians.
Podium Automation Co-founder and CEO Jamie Niu Serota, with Podium Co-founder and CEO Jacob Buser. (Photo: Podium Automation/PRNewswire)
Now, a Brooklyn-based manufacturer is reimagining how industrial control panels are designed and built. The manufacturer, Podium Automation, is planning to ramp up manufacturing capacity rapidly to meet growing demand for quick-turn control panels. Podium is, in effect, working to modernize the backbone of industrial automation, according to a company release.
The company reported in June that it raised $18 million in Series A funding to power the production buildup for customers ranging from scale-ups to Fortune 500 manufacturers. The funding round, led by Construct Capital, is reported to bring Podium’s total funding to more than $23 million.
Podium designs and manufactures control panels in less than four weeks using a software-enabled process that is reported to reduce time and errors.
“Digital models take the place of hand-drawn schematics, automated fabrication and intuitive work instructions handle physical assembly, and each panel is fully validated in Podium’s UL 508A certified facility before shipping,” the release stated.
Podium’s proprietary software is said to streamline the end-to-end process of panel design-build by connecting customer requirements, eCAD design tools, and shop floor instructions. Instead of relying on an electrical engineer’s knowledge of a vast component landscape, Podium’s software intelligently selects and connects electrical components based on customer and UL requirements.
Panels are not only designed for manufacturability, but also for speed and availability of components in the upstream supply chain, the company said in the release.
“Control panels are everywhere, but the way they’re designed and built hasn’t fundamentally changed in decades,” said Jamie Niu Serota, co-founder and CEO of Podium Automation, in a statement. “We founded Podium to build the vendor we always wished we had. Ordering a control panel should be fast, accurate, and transparent. At Podium, faster and better are the same thing.”
In addition to lead investor Construct Capital, participating investors in the funding round included Andreessen Horowitz, Transition Ventures, Sunflower Capital, and Banter Capital.
As part of the financing, Dayna Grayson, co-founder and managing partner at Construct Capital, will join Podium’s board of directors.
“The industrial economy runs on essential components like control panels, and the legacy supply chain behind them is exactly the kind of foundational infrastructure Construct was built to invest in,” Grayson said in the release. “Jamie, Jacob, and the Podium team have created the modern vendor this category has been waiting for, and the demand they’re already seeing makes it clear how much the market needs what they’re building.”
With the new capital, Podium will rapidly expand manufacturing capacity, grow its engineering and operations teams, and continue investing in the software platform that powers its design and fabrication process.
“Podium is an excellent example of what happens when world-class software meets a foundational industrial category,” said Oliver Hsu, partner at Andreessen Horowitz, in the release. “Jamie and Jacob are founders who understand both the legacy world of control panel manufacturing and how to rebuild it from first principles. The result is a combination of product and operational excellence that meets the current moment for American reindustrialization.”
Podium Automation is reportedly one of the fastest UL 508A control panel manufacturers in the United States, serving companies that need high-quality panels delivered quickly and efficiently.
“Podium’s software layer unlocks speed, quality, and transparency from first quote to final delivery,” the company said.