Virginia Tech Establishes Procon Innovation Center, a Dedicated Lab for Myers-Lawson School of Construction Students

Tech-forward facility plays crucial role in shaping future of construction, empowering next generation of industry leaders with cutting-edge tools and resources

FAIRFAX, VA, UNITED STATES, October 3, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Procon Consulting, one of the region’s premier tech-focused construction management firms, is empowering the next generation of construction industry leaders with the establishment of the Procon Innovation Center at Virginia Tech, the alma mater of Procon’s Co-founders Mark Ilich and Kyu Jung.

Located inside the newly constructed Hitt Hall at the university’s Blacksburg, Virginia campus, the cutting-edge facility fosters hands-on learning and collaboration for students in the Myers-Lawson School of Construction and College of Engineering.

The Procon Innovation Center is an advanced facility designed to support large-scale, student-led projects and experiential learning. Equipped with cutting-edge resources, like robotics and 3D concrete printers, students in the Myers-Lawson School of Construction will partner with industry in the development of new tech-driven solutions and approaches that have the potential to transform building construction.

Childhood friends from Richmond, Virginia, who both graduated from Virginia Tech, Jung and Ilich founded Procon with a focus on using innovation to disrupt the AEC industry. Leveraging their backgrounds in engineering and technology, combined with their entrepreneurial spirit, Procon continues to provide clients with unmatched construction management services and custom solutions to some of the nation's most complex build and infrastructure projects.

Ahead of the company’s 25th anniversary in 2025, the business partners established the Procon Innovation Center to give back to the university that fostered their success, investing in facilities and resources that will drive the next generation to progress the construction management industry.

“Virginia Tech does a great job connecting students with industry, and we shared so many impactful experiences as students there, with influential professors like Yvan Beliveau and Thomas Mills, who gave us valuable hands-on real-world projects that launched our careers and inspired us to start Procon,” said Jung. “Repurposing a business plan we created in a graduate class as our foundation, we saw an opportunity to solve industry challenges with emerging technology. We want students to have those same opportunities for innovation and disruption in the industry and champion construction tech for the future.”

A project with the General Services Administration (GSA) to get web-based project management tools off the ground gave Jung and Ilich a platform to showcase their expertise and gain recognition in the industry, leading to more contracts with government clients like the MTA in New York City and solidifying Procon as early adopters and implementers of technologies to advance the industry.

Twenty years later a global pandemic prompted the GSA to request virtual site inspections of all projects across the region, a monumental task Procon was already set up to manage, enabling work to continue and complex projects to be completed on schedule. Procon’s leadership in the construction technology space has positioned them to land highly visible CM projects with NASA, the National Park Service, and Architect of the Capitol.

“While technology has advanced quickly over the last 25 years, construction is right on the cusp of the biggest transformation the industry will see over the next 15 years, improving cumbersome processes with the adoption of innovations like artificial intelligence, robotics, building information modeling, 3D printing and more,” said Ilich. “The Procon Innovation Center will enable students to have hands-on experience in creating that transformation that shapes the future of the construction industry. The timing of the center’s opening is auspicious, as October is Careers in Construction Month and this facility will inspire students to explore what an amazing career you can have in construction.”

About Procon Consulting
Procon was founded in 2000 with a focus on providing collaborative solutions in program and project management. Over 25 years the firm has evolved to meet the changing needs of clients to offer a full range of management and consulting support services for construction, project controls, commissioning, and technology solutions. Headquartered in Fairfax, Virginia, with offices and projects nationwide, Procon provides strategic and technical advice, management, and implementation support for clients and projects in the built environment. Listed among Engineering News-Record’s Top 100 PM-CM-for-fee Firms, Procon’s innovation and client-centered service are at the core of their continued growth and success. Learn more at www.proconconsulting.com.

Sally Ginsburg
Procon Consulting
hello@proconconsulting.com
Visit us on social media:
Facebook
LinkedIn
Instagram