Qnect, llc Joins Forces with Walters Group

HADLEY — The software company Qnect llc is raising a $2 million Series A funding round led by strategic partner, Walters Group, a 59-year-old steel fabrication, erection, and special services company based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Qnect’s vision is to be the world’s premiere resource for advanced connection engineering, and welcomes Walters as a strategic partner.

Qnect develops software to automate steel-connection engineering. The lead product, QuickQnect, helps steel fabricators detail 3D models that lead to faster, more accurate, less expensive shop drawings, and therefore, better projects, said Qnect’s CEO, Jef Sharp. The over 10X speed improvement opens up possibilities for early BIM coordination, estimating, pricing optimization, and iteration of steel connection designs for engineering efficiency.

Sharp is optimistic about the partnership, “This industry is driven by schedule, accuracy, and cost efficiency. With sophisticated physics, engineering, and software development, we deliver all three. And by combining one of North America’s most respected fabricators with forward-thinking software and engineering, Qnect will accelerate implementation to the construction industry both in the U.S and internationally.”

Peter Kranendonk, SVP at Walters Group, agrees. “The partnership will provide great opportunities for input, collaboration, and product-development strategy that will even further enhance Qnect’s revolutionary service to the structural steel fabrication and design communities. Qnect will make an unforgettable difference in how stakeholders experience building with steel in years to come.”