Manhattan, NY ProSentry, a New York-based technology service provider, has closed a $2.55 million seed funding round led by members of New York Angels, Inc., with participation from members of HBS Alumni Angels of Greater NY and other investors. The company’s approach to system design has earned its team a reputation for creating smart building solutions that can be installed across a wide range of new and existing buildings.
Founders John Rusk and Nadav Schnall recognized that the most common building malfunctions - like water and gas leaks — also cost a building’s community the most in health, safety, and resources. ProSentry’s solution starts there. The company architected its smart building system to minimize risk and elevate outcomes — employing a network of smart sensors that monitor critical building functions in real time and give users remote insight and control over their spaces. The ProSentry Smart Building Platform brings this data together in one centralized access point to building-wide data, streamlined for risk prevention and effective response.
“The system is specifically designed to adapt to the ever-evolving needs of buildings,” said Rusk. “As the IoT space continues to expand, so does our customizable scope of sensing capabilities.” Aside from our water sensors, we meet our clients’ evolving needs with sensors for natural gas and oil leaks, temperature and humidity monitoring, as well as rodent traps, smoke and vape detectors, automatic water shutoff valves, and water metering.”
With a platform-led system design, the company created its solution to easily respond to and integrate with the latest technological advancements. Its responsive approach delivers cost-saving proactivity and straightforward practicality that speaks clearly to the residential and commercial real estate industry’s needs.
ProSentry’s foundation was laid when Rusk had a water leak in his upstate New York residence. After months of costly and stressful repairs, he began working on a comprehensive building-wide solution for multi-tenant buildings. Since 1986, John has been a hands-on NYC contractor, and spent 15 years teaching residential project management at Columbia. During this time, he has forged relationships with a broad community of architects, engineers, owners and building managers.
Schnall’s decade of experience in New York City property management lent to ProSentry’s holistic problem-solving approach, which considers every space and occupant in a building. Though each building’s needs are unique, he saw the same reality: the finances, resources, relationships, and well-being of a property often depended on a manager’s ability to effectively prevent and respond to risk and daily operational issues. In tediously piecing together available tools to meet each property’s requirements, he saw the need for a new type of technology - one that was customizable, integrative, and grounded in practicality.
The two connected at New York’s Plaza Hotel, where Schnall was the condominium’s general manager and Rusk was leading large-scale renovation projects. They united over a shared vision of a system that works for building owners, managers, and tenants alike — one that incorporates proactive technology, functional tools, and integrative implementation. ProSentry built its team around combined industry expertise in technical system strategy and design as well as commercial real estate development and management.
Today, ProSentry is not just looking to solve one issue. As a holistic solutions provider, the company takes a big-picture approach to multi-solution integration, with industry disruption grounded in the hands-on experience of its team.
“We come together around the desire to design smarter solutions for properties, people, and communities,” said Schnall. “We believe that staying on the forefront of technological innovation has a direct impact on our ability to elevate safety and success of the building community.”
Hardware agnostic and platform-led, the company’s system is designed to stay consistently positioned at the helm of tech and hardware advancements. Built-in flexibility keeps its customers ahead of code and legislative requirements as well as the needs of an ever-changing industry.
LoRaWAN-operated, ProSentry’s platform is powered by a customized ecosystem of wireless sensors that — unlike Wi-Fi — can transmit over long distances and through brick and concrete. Inspired by the transmission of whale sounds, LoRa quickly sends small packets of data to channel robust sensing capabilities into a complete and current view of a property and instant alerts.
Connective and remotely accessible, the platform’s accompanying mobile app ensures its clients stay connected to their buildings from anywhere around the globe, allowing users to remain location-independent and continuously informed of relevant information.
Currently, ProSentry is gaining momentum for enhancing multi-unit building compliance in adherence with NYC Local Law 157 requiring natural gas detectors in multi-unit dwellings and building its scope of smart sensors catering to specific challenges faced by other US cities.
After completing this heavily oversubscribed $2.55 million round from a broad and diverse group of investors, ProSentry looks forward to a future of continued growth and innovation while remaining true to its original commitment to serve properties, people, and communities.
ProSentry’s Smart Building Platform streamlines smart sensor technology into one centralized dashboard for building-wide insight, risk prevention, and effect response.
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