Sodex Innovations: how a start-up is shaking up the construction industry

Fascination with excavators. There’s no doubt about it. There is a very odd attraction to heavy construction equipment. Most mothers and fathers know this from their own experience. But children are not the only ones who are attracted to excavators. After all, there are a growing number of excavator sites where novices learn how to use the construction machines under expert instruction – and then dig a hole themselves. For many, this is a childhood dream come true. Driving an excavator makes you happy! Of course, this romanticized idea barely corresponds to the hectic routine on the construction site.

But this somewhat glorified fascination with excavators is precisely what laid the foundation for the up-and-coming Austrian start-up Sodex Innovations. The three founders (Ralf Pfefferkorn, Raphael Ott, and Bernhard Gantner) are currently taking the construction industry to the next level with Sodex Innovations.

Start with model excavator

The three founders met during their studies at HTL Rankweil (Federal Higher Technical Institute for Education and Experimentation). What began as a school project in 2017 is now a full-fledged company with twelve team members. It started with a vision of an autonomous excavator – and actually became reality. Starting with a miniaturized model in 2019, Ralf, Raphael, and Bernhard worked on an autonomous 2.5-tonne excavator as part of their diploma thesis. They were successful, as the following YouTube video shows.

But the three young entrepreneurs accomplished much more than just turn their vision into reality. They also managed to accumulate quite a few sponsorship and innovation awards. At the same time, Ralf, Raphael, and Bernhard gained deep insight into the construction industry – which caused some disillusionment. The trio quickly realized that the requirements for excavators vary so much depending on the application that an autonomous system would hardly be feasible at a reasonable cost. Ralf explains: “Of course, it hurt when we had to leave a lot of our work behind – but it was clear to us that we didn’t want to develop a product that didn’t meet market requirements.”

However, by now the young entrepreneurs had acquired a profound understanding of the construction industry in general – and, more specifically, excavator technology. Accordingly, it was clear to the three innovators that they would use this knowledge and experience to take the construction industry to the next level. That was the birth of Sodex Innovations.

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