WeMaintain has hired a UK Fire Division Head, signalling the PropTech’s further move into the fire alarm and suppression market.
The hire follows WeMaintain’s acquisition of the fire systems maintenance company Shokly in a stunning year for the start-up, marked by $36m in Series B funding, contracts to supply elevator and escalator solutions to KeolisAmyDocklands (DLR), Workspace and British Land, and praise from French President Emmanuel Macron.
The new Head of Fire Division, Dave Martin, joins WeMaintain after a Royal Navy career working in weapons engineering, electronics, and hydraulic and pneumatic systems. In his post, Dave Martin will integrate WeMaintain’s proprietary IoT technology in fire safety systems in the UK, helping WeMaintain’s growing team implement smart building solutions.
WeMaintain enables end-to-end monitoring and maintenance solutions for commercial and residential asset owners and building managers, giving them a real-time understanding of a building’s use and operation, supporting smart maintenance and a superior customer experience.
Commenting on the hire, WeMaintain’s UK Managing Director Tom Harmsworth said: ‘With the acquisition of Shokly we have excellent technology benefiting our customers for the live monitoring of their fire alarm systems. Dave has the industry knowledge and network to maximise these benefits in the UK.’
Dave Martin said: ‘I’m delighted to help establish WeMaintain as a frontrunner in the UK’s smart building space whilst maintaining our quality engineering focus as the centrepiece of our service offer for all building operations.’
In a 20-year career as an electronics specialist, Dave Martin founded a fire and security installation company for the design, maintenance, installation and commission of all fire security and life safety systems implementing large and small installations, notably in Dubai for the local government.
Mr Martin added: ‘In the United Arab Emirates, I enjoyed working with different cultures, helping them to achieve common goals. This experience will be vital when liaising with WeMaintain’s international offices and diverse team.’
Since its launch in 2017, WeMaintain now has offices in the UK and Singapore, has 100 employees and is eyeing the US market.
About WeMaintain
Founded in late 2017 by Benoit Dupont, Jade Francine, and Tristan Foureur, WeMaintain is a French PropTech start-up that is radically transforming the critical building operations market. To do so, it offers building managers and owners a solution that combines the technical skills of engineers with the agility and predictability of its proprietary technology. It takes care of the invisible yet indispensable operations that are essential to a building. WeMaintain puts quality back at the heart of the lift maintenance market, enabling managers to optimise their assets and the experience offered to occupants. WeMaintain began with lift maintenance and has recently expanded into fire safety following the acquisition of Shokly. WeMaintain supports a wide range of clients in both the residential and office markets and has won major contracts with clients such as Allianz Real Estate, WeWork, in the Paris region, and the DLR in London. Since its launch, the company has raised €38.8M from Eurazeo, Red River West and BPI France Digital Venture. The WeMaintain team, based in Paris, London and Singapore, currently comprises 100 people.
For more information, go to wemaintain.co.uk
