Trunk Tools Highlighted in ENR Article, “Gilbane Rolls Out Trunk Tools AI Agents Across Its Jobsites”
Article Title: Gilbane Rolls Out Trunk Tools AI Agents Across Its Jobsites
Author: Jeff Yoders, Engineering News-Record
Excerpt:
Gilbane Building Co. said it has selected Trunk Tools as its enterprise-wide construction site artificial intelligence partner to roll out TrunkSubmittal, TrunkText, and TrunkSOP AI agents across more than 200 projects nationwide over the next two years.
The decision follows the launch at ENR FutureTech in May of TrunkSubmittal, the tech firm’s AI-enabled assistant that helps with submittals sent to design teams on construction projects. The tool was made generally available on July 1 and was adopted across 30 active Gilbane projects this summer. In just three months, teams used TrunkSubmittal to review more than 2,000 submittals, improving the quality of those sent to architects, according to the contractor.
The firms signed what Trunk Tools said was a “seven-figure” agreement.
“AI is a transformative force that is shaping the future of construction, and we’re committed to leading the industry forward through innovation,” said Adam Jelen, CEO of Gilbane. “Trunk Tools has already shown it can deliver real impact on our jobsites. Our enterprise-wide rollout ensures every Gilbane team has access to this technology that is proven to support smart, efficient work in the field.”
Since July, TrunkTools has found that 72% of submittals received on Gilbane projects with TrunkSubmittal were non-compliant, 25% partially compliant, and only 3% fully compliant. By flagging these issues early, Gilbane said its teams reduced re-submissions, shortening cycle times by nearly 50% and prevented requests for information, delays and quality issues.
“It helps us optimize efficiency, automates bureaucratic workflows and allows our teams to focus on what they do best,” Heidi DeBenedetti, COO of Gilbane said of the Trunk Tools AI agents.
Gilbane Superintendent Andy Roy described TrunkText and TrunkSubmittal as “game-changers for how we operate,” while Rawle Sawh, director of operations technology, said his team found that Trunk Tool “drastically” improved the jobsite experience and kept the contractor “ahead of the curve in technology adoption and service quality provided to its customers.”
Trunk Tools also introduced TrunkReview, a new agent that aids project managers in bulletin review by analyzing drawing revisions and has proprietary large language models to analyze construction drawings.
“When we launched TrunkSubmittal… our vision was to show how AI could fundamentally change the way submittals are managed,” said Sarah Buchner, Trunk Tools CEO.. “Just six months later, Gilbane has taken it enterprise-wide.”
The rollout “proves that Trunk Tools is delivering real ROI at scale, not experiments—and it’s only the beginning,” she contended, adding that “with Gilbane as a partner, we’re building the foundation for the next generation of AI in construction, from submittals to drawings and beyond.”