Be Fast and Flexible

Linetrack: A Browser-Based Tracking Platform for Cross-Company Projects in Manufacturing

Please introduce yourself and the startup Linetrack briefly to our readers!

Hey, I’m Michael, one of the co-founders of Linetrack. My background is technical, with a degree in mechanical engineering and technology management. The description “extroverted techie” probably fits me, as my co-founders say. That’s why I’m responsible for sales and fundraising at our company. You could call Linetrack a Swabian family startup, which, historically speaking, is not a bad starting point.

With Linetrack, we’re developing a browser-based tracking platform for cross-company projects in manufacturing. Up-to-date project information is automatically collected from suppliers and service providers, processed in a compliance-appropriate way, and made available to the project manager.

Why did you decide to start a company?

The decisive factor that unites our team is the shared desire to leave a lasting impact and accomplish something meaningful. Founding our own company gives these ambitions an ideal platform.

Personally, there were various ways I could have pursued my professional passion – including taking a job under the right conditions. But ultimately, the idea for Linetrack was born out of a concrete challenge I experienced while working in industry – the collaboration of multiple companies on a single project. Despite an intensive search, I couldn’t find an existing solution on the market. From the very beginning, our goal was to relieve the burden on project managers, project buyers, and component owners.

What vision is behind Linetrack?

With Linetrack, we want to create a platform for resilient project collaboration in industry – one that not only increases efficiency for the OEM, but also involves SMEs. This is meant to help value creation networks differentiate themselves from international competition.

From the idea to launch, what have been the biggest challenges so far, and how have you financed yourselves?

Looking back, despite our studies and everything else, we had no idea what it actually means to build a company. By that I mean widespread ways of thinking such as:

“Don’t tell anyone about your idea, or it will get stolen.”

“A detailed business plan is mandatory – and I mean one of those 60-page things.”

“Sales start once the product is finished.”

Acquiring the right knowledge that experienced founders already have was definitely a challenge. We already had the skills to execute.

At the moment, we’re being supported by the “Junge Innovatoren” (Young Innovators) funding program of the state of Baden-Württemberg. From September onward, we’ll be financed through the “Start-up BW Pre-Seed” funding program, and of course through our first revenues.

Who is Linetrack’s target group?

Linetrack’s target group is OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) in industry with project-based value creation, as well as their value creation network. This includes, for example, special-purpose machinery manufacturers. Our focus is on the project managers and project buyers within these companies.

How does Linetrack work? What are the benefits? What sets you apart from other providers?

With Linetrack, we have the ability to configure individual projects or upload them to the platform via an interface. Within a created project, responsibilities for various project sections are clearly assigned. All participating parties are invited onto the platform. Suppliers receive free access through a compliance-appropriate collaboration license and can also benefit from a short video training. When data is due, it is automatically collected across the entire value creation network. The processed information is available to both the project manager and management.

By reducing email ping-pong, we save time and increase planning reliability across the entire course of the project. Especially for larger projects, this prevents costs from spiraling out of control.

Unlike internal project management tools, Linetrack was specifically developed to break down the complex requirements of cross-company industrial projects into manageable sub-packages. It is important to us to make technology access fast and super simple for every company. This enables automated tracking across the entire value creation network.

Linetrack, where is the journey headed? Where do you see yourselves in five years?

We are currently in the final stages of launching development collaborations with OEMs. In these partnerships, we adapt the platform to the individual requirements of the company and its value creation network. At the same time, we are expanding our development and sales teams.

Our vision for the next five years is to establish Linetrack as a fixed component of cross-company projects.

If companies within our target group are interested in using Linetrack or helping shape the platform, we warmly invite them to reach out to us directly. We look forward to the exchange and collaboration!

Finally: what 3 tips would you give aspiring founders?

• “Be like Water”: Be fast and flexible, and don’t insist on your original idea.
• “Network, network, network”: You don’t have to be able to do everything yourself. Often it’s enough to know the right people.
• “Do good and talk about it”: Match your idea and your MVP with your target group and investors very early on.

We would like to thank Michael Sindlinger for the interview

The statements of the author and the interviewee do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial team or the publisher.