Macher

Why construction workers ignore site tools, and what to design instead

Macher is an AI-native documentation platform for German SME construction firms. Every tool aimed at this segment fails the same way: built for managers, then handed to workers. Workers ignore them and stay on WhatsApp. Records still get made, just not in a form the office can actually use. I worked on this in the IT and Service Innovation course at LSE, as part of a seven-person team. My contribution covered user research with German contractors, defining and prioritising the functionalities needed for MVP, shaping the future-state workflow that set the bar for success, and branding. The project won the top prize from VC judges on final pitch day, out of 15+ groups.

Worked on:

Product Strategy, User Research, UX, Branding

In details:

Challenge

The construction software market is crowded, but every existing tool treats the worker as a data-entry endpoint. The real problem sits one layer deeper: workers already document, just not where the office can use it. German site crews are also heavily multilingual, with significant Polish and Turkish-speaking workforces, so any tool built around German-language forms loses a share of the crew before adoption begins. The strategic question wasn't how to build a better form. It was how to make structured documentation a by-product of behaviour workers already perform on their phones, in whichever language they actually speak.

Challenge

The construction software market is crowded, but every existing tool treats the worker as a data-entry endpoint. The real problem sits one layer deeper: workers already document, just not where the office can use it. German site crews are also heavily multilingual, with significant Polish and Turkish-speaking workforces, so any tool built around German-language forms loses a share of the crew before adoption begins. The strategic question wasn't how to build a better form. It was how to make structured documentation a by-product of behaviour workers already perform on their phones, in whichever language they actually speak.

Solution

Solution

Results

Results

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