Construction Procurement and its Black Box - Eshan Jayamanne from Krane

EPISODE SUMMARYEshan Jayamanne is the founder and CEO of Krane, an AI-native procurement and material management platform built specifically for construction.In this episode, he explains why 95% of construction procurement is still run on spreadsheets and email, how that gap costs projects time and money, and why general ERPs and project management tools like Procore or Autodesk were never built to solve it. James and Eshan dig into how Krane's AI agents handle the "grunt work" of tracking bids, materials, and lead times while keeping humans firmly in the decision-making loop. It's a sharp look at how AI is starting to change one of construction's most overlooked cost centres.GUEST BIOEshan Jayamanne is the Founder and CEO of Krane, an AI-powered construction supply chain platform. He combines deep construction industry expertise with a background in engineering, analytics, and technology. Before founding Krane in 2023, he worked on major projects for organisations including Microsoft, Chevron, UCSF, and Caltrans, focused on productivity, supply chain optimisation, and lean construction, experience that exposed the industry's persistent procurement and coordination gaps.KEY TAKEAWAYSWhy 95% of construction procurement teams, even on billion-dollar projects, are still coordinating materials through spreadsheets and emailHow a single overlooked lead-time change on a procurement log can quietly derail a construction scheduleWhy general ERPs and construction platforms like Procore and Autodesk solve upstream design coordination but not downstream procurement riskHow Krane's AI agents (like Milo for reading specs and Chase for supplier follow-up) remove admin work while keeping vendor selection decisions with humansWhy building a "data moat" from project to project is becoming a competitive advantage in construction procurementWhy supply chain risk is now considered the second-biggest constraint on data centre builds, after power supplyTIMESTAMPS[00:00] Guest introduction & Krane's rapid growth to $21B in active projects[01:50] The construction site problem that sparked Krane[08:06] Where procurement projects actually fall apart[11:52] Why ERPs and construction industry software tools fall short on procurement[16:39] Inside the AI agents: Milo, Chase, and the human-in-the-loop[28:41] Case studies, the future of AI in construction, and where to find KraneRESOURCES & LINKSConnect with Eshan Jayamanne on LinkedInBook a demo of KraneDownload our Tech Map for Mid-MarketDownload our Tech Map for SMEsFind your perfect procurement tech solution in our Software Finder AppSign up for the EntProc NewsletterBook an Intro Call and let's talk all things Digital Procurement!Connect with James on LinkedIn