Textura Launches in the UK and Europe — Colin Smith to Lead Operations
— Well-known construction technology leader opening Textura office in London.
CHICAGO, July 8, 2014 – Textura Corporation (NYSE: TXTR), the leading provider of collaboration solutions for the construction industry, announced today that it has hired construction technology industry veteran Colin Smith to run its European operations. Textura® will offer its suite of collaboration solutions to industry participants across the region, including solutions for payment application management, contractor prequalification, and bid and project management.
“We have been meeting with prospective clients in the UK and European markets for the last 12 months and concluded that our solutions are as applicable in these markets as in North American and Australia,” said Patrick Allin, Chairman and CEO, Textura Corporation. “We understand the need for an exceptional local team that understands the particular processes and dynamics of these markets, and we are delighted to add Colin Smith to lead operations in the UK and Europe. His proven track record of technology leadership and business development from prior roles at Conject, BIW, and COINS means our European operations will be up and running sooner rather than later.”
“These markets urgently require new solutions,” stated Colin Smith, President of Textura Europe Limited. “There is a pressing need for increased visibility and control of payment applications, claims and cash-flow. European industry participants need practical tools to manage their exposure and their response to initiatives like the Fair Payments Charter and project bank accounts. I believe Textura-CPM™ is perfectly positioned to become the de facto standard for payment application management in Europe, as it has in North America – bringing immediate and tangible benefits to our clients. CPM functionality has already been adapted to this market based on our prior experience with developers, General Contractors and Construction Managers in the UK and Europe.”
“The initial geographic focus will be the UK and Germany and working with existing Textura clients who have operations in Europe,” added Allin.
Colin Smith has 30 years of experience as an entrepreneur and top executive of leading construction software firms. Since 2011 he was Group CEO, Conject Holding GmbH. His mission there was to position the Group for growth and profitability by reshaping the businesses, integrating disparate entities and to build and/or buy new regional operations in Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific. Prior to Conject, Colin founded BIW Technologies Ltd. in March 2000. He sold BIW to Conject in December 2010. By the time of the sale, BIW had become the UK’s leading supplier of SaaS-based project management software. Before BIW, Colin spent six years as Managing Director of COINS, the world’s leading construction ERP vendor. In the 1990s Colin held a number of senior management positions, including Sales & Marketing Director at Mentor Systems plc.
Added Smith: “Discussions with prospective clients in the UK and Europe have validated the strong value that our solutions will bring to them. A number of marketing activities have begun to establish awareness of our brand and client interest. We are confident of a successful launch of Textura Europe Limited. Indeed, a number of leading firms have already expressed interest in getting started with CPM.”
About Textura
Textura is the leading provider of collaboration and productivity tools for the construction industry. Our solutions serve all construction industry professionals across the project lifecycle – from takeoff, estimating, design, pre-qualification and bid management to submittals, field management, LEED® management and payment.
