Danielle Dy Buncio: Co-founder and CEO of VIATechnik, a Construction Technology Firm

March 4, 2020

This profile on Danielle Dy Buncio is the second post in a month-long series of profiles about female STEM innovators in honor of Women’s History Month. This profile also celebrates Women in Construction week by focusing on Dy Buncio, Co-founder and CEO of VIATechnik, a construction technology firm. Check back each weekday to read a new profile.

With role models in construction early in her life, Danielle Dy Buncio followed her parents passion for construction throughout her childhood, education, and now in her career as a mover and shaker in the industry.

At the age of three, Dy Buncio’s parents started their own construction company which opened the door to the many interesting and innovative structures that can be built with the right planning and team1. When Dy Buncio was in primary school, her parents were building a hydroelectric power plant, which Dy Buncio used as inspiration for a science fair project1. 

This passion for creating necessary and mindful structures guided Dy Buncio through her school years until she fully dedicated herself to this career path when she graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor's degree in civil engineering and later with an MBA at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Management after taking time in between to gain real-world experience working for construction companies in California’s Silicon Valley and Sydney, Australia1.

“After graduating, I moved back to Chicago to work in family business and in 2010 I started at Northwestern. I thought about going back into the family business but realized my passion was more in entrepreneurship on the tech side of construction,” Dy Buncio told ConstructionDive in an interview. “I founded VIATechnik in 2012 with my husband and we focused on bringing tech to design and construction companies with a goal of improving productivity on the job.1”

After formal education and education on-the-job, Dy Buncio decided to follow in her parents footsteps by launching her own construction company in 2015. VIATechnik, Dy Buncio’s response to the industry’s slow adoption of technology, was one of the first “start-ups” guided by her alma mater’s Stanford Center for Integrated Facilities and Engineering (CIFE)1,2. VIATechnik is was an early adopter and now leader in the application of Virtual Design & Construction (VDC), implementation, and education in the construction industry1,2.

In 2016, Dy Buncio was identified as a “Woman to Watch” by Girls in Tech for her perseverance in a male-dominated industry and for her professional accomplishments which include working on the Apple Park (Apple Campus 2) and the Tesla Gigafactory through her company1.

“Having someone to look up to makes a huge difference. If you have someone to look up to, as a man, you almost always have someone in a mentor position who looks like you. For women in this industry, that person probably doesn’t look like you, so it’s harder to look up to them,” Dy Buncio said in her interview with ConstructionDive. “With my mom, I had a great role model, which allowed me to grow up in an environment where I saw what it was like and really helped me visualize that role.1”

VIATechnik’s mission aims to transform the current rote design and construction field into digitally focused industries of the future to bolster the efficiency and accessibility of construction to aid in housing and construction challenges across the globe2.

As a member of CIFE and leader in the field, VIATechnik was offered and accepted the responsibility of leading Stanford’s VDC course2. In addition, Dy Buncio was invited to join the Stanford Alumni Real Estate Council (SREC), a group of the “Top 100” Stanford alumni, and became an influencer of the Stanford Professionals in Real Estate (SPIRE) through her and her company’s SREC membership2.

After her string of successful endeavors, Dy Buncio has some advice for other women who want to enter a male dominated field.

“If we can stand up and do great things and make sure we’re remembered for what we want to be remembered for, that’s really powerful,” Dy Buncio advised. “Other women should start realizing it’s a competitive advantage. Mentorship, talking about role models and urging other women to realize that competitive advantage are great ways to help women in the industry.1”

For more information on Capitol's many construction degrees, click here.

References

  1. Construction Dive. (2017, March 8). A foot in the door: Danielle Dy Buncio on improving diversity by starting in schools. Retrieved from https://www.constructiondive.com/news/a-foot-in-the-door-danielle-dy-buncio-on-improving-diversity-by-starting-i/437383/.
  2. VIATechnik. (2019, September 3). Danielle Dy Buncio, CEO of VIATechnik, joins Stanford Real Estate Council. Retrieved from https://www.viatechnik.com/danielle-dy-buncio-ceo-of-viatechnik-official-member-of-stanford-real-estate-council/.