BuildGuard

Audit your projects against latest codes before permits

Score: 7.7/10SLHard BuildReady to Spawn
Brand Colors

The Opportunity

Problem

Small construction business owners are overwhelmed by complying with frequently changing building regulations and permits.

Solution

BuildGuard lets users upload project plans and runs automated audits against current regulations for their area. It highlights non-compliant areas with fix suggestions and generates a compliance report for permit submissions. Small owners save time on self-checks and reduce rejection risks.

Target Audience

Small construction business owners

Differentiator

Visual plan upload + AI audit with annotated reports, beyond text checkers

Brand Voice

friendly

Features

Plan Upload

must-have12h

Drag-drop PDFs/images of blueprints

Audit Scan

must-have18h

AI analyzes vs local codes

Issue Highlights

must-have14h

Annotated visuals + fix suggestions

Compliance Report

must-have10h

Downloadable PDF summary

Saved Audits

must-have8h

Dashboard of past scans

Batch Upload

nice-to-have7h

Audit multiple plans

Export to Permit

nice-to-have5h

One-click to PermitAI integration

3D Model Support

future12h

Future IFC file audits

Total Build Time: 86 hours

Database Schema

users

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
emailtextNo
nametextYes
created_attimestampNo

audits

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
user_iduuidNo
locationtextNo
plan_urltextNo
issuestextYes
scoreintNo
created_attimestampNo

Relationships:

  • user_id references users(id)

reports

ColumnTypeNullable
iduuidNo
audit_iduuidNo
pdf_urltextNo
generated_attimestampNo

Relationships:

  • audit_id references audits(id)

API Endpoints

POST
/api/audits

Upload and audit plan

🔒 Auth Required
GET
/api/audits

List user audits

🔒 Auth Required
GET
/api/reports/:id

Download report

🔒 Auth Required

Tech Stack

Frontend
Next.js 14 + Tailwind + shadcn/ui + React Query
Backend
Next.js API + Supabase + OpenAI Vision API
Database
Supabase Postgres
Auth
Supabase Auth
Payments
Stripe
Hosting
Vercel
Additional Tools
Cloudinary for image storagePDF generation

Build Timeline

Week 1: Setup and upload

20h
  • Auth
  • File upload
  • Dashboard

Week 2: AI audit core

28h
  • Vision API integration
  • Issue detection

Week 3: UI and reports

22h
  • Annotations
  • PDF reports

Week 4: Payments and flows

16h
  • Stripe
  • Onboarding
  • SEO
Total Timeline: 4 weeks • 86 hours

Pricing Tiers

Free

$0/mo

Low-res plans only

  • 3 audits/month
  • Basic reports

Pro

$30/mo
  • Unlimited audits
  • High-res
  • Saved audits

Enterprise

$120/mo
  • All Pro + Batch
  • API
  • Support

Revenue Projections

MonthUsersConversionMRRARR
Month 1805%$120$1,440
Month 670010%$2,100$25,200

Unit Economics

$45
CAC
$360
LTV
4.5%
Churn
82%
Margin
LTV:CAC Ratio: 8.0xExcellent!

Landing Page Copy

Audit Plans, Catch Code Violations Early

Upload blueprints, get instant compliance checks and reports – ace your permits first try.

Feature Highlights

AI plan analysis
Visual issue highlights
Fix suggestions
Permit-ready reports
Unlimited history (Pro)

Social Proof (Placeholders)

"'Found issues before inspector!' - Tom, Owner"
"'Game-changer for bids.' - Emma, Foreman"

First Three Customers

Target via Google ads on 'permit rejection reasons'; join contractor Discord/Reddit for beta testers; offer free audits for reviews from local builder associations.

Launch Channels

Product Huntr/SaaSr/ConstructionManagersTwitter #BuildTechBetaList

SEO Keywords

construction plan compliance auditbuilding code checker toolblueprint code review softwarepre-permit compliance scancontractor audit app

Competitive Analysis

$500+/mo
Strength

Full PM suite

Weakness

Overkill for compliance only

Our Advantage

Standalone audit at micro-price

🏰 Moat Strategy

Dataset of user audits trains better AI detection

⏰ Why Now?

Vision AI advances + labor shortages push automation

Risks & Mitigation

technicalhigh severity

Poor image recognition

Mitigation

Use top Vision models + manual fallback

financialmedium severity

High AI costs

Mitigation

Optimize prompts, tier limits

Validation Roadmap

pre-build7 days

Demo manual audits to 10 users

Success: Would pay $30

launch7 days

50 audits in week 1

Success: 20% convert

Pivot Options

  • Safety inspection audits
  • Material spec checker

Quick Stats

Build Time
86h
Target MRR (6 mo)
$2,200
Market Size
$60.0M
Features
8
Database Tables
3
API Endpoints
3