Juan Grobler
Infrastructure doesn't have a software problem. It has a data problem.
Major capital projects run on dozens of systems: scheduling, cost, procurement, engineering, contracts, field reporting. Each holds part of the truth, and few of them talk to each other. Decisions worth millions get made from spreadsheets reconciled by hand.
Juan Grobler's work is about closing that gap: connecting the data behind complex projects so that owners, contractors and investors can see one picture and act on it.
Where his work sits
Bringing fragmented operational data into a single, governed foundation.
Connecting applications, services and data stores so information flows instead of being re-keyed.
Cost, schedule and risk information that is current, consistent and trusted.
The planning, financing and delivery of large, capital-intensive programmes.
Using AI and machine learning on connected data to surface risk and support decisions, not to replace judgement.
Built in from the start, drawing on Juan's background in IT strategy, governance, security and risk management.
Founded 2015 · New York and Miami Beach
As Founder and CEO of Global Footprints, Juan is building an enterprise data and intelligence platform designed to transform how major capital projects are integrated, managed and delivered.
Global Integrator connects ERP, scheduling and engineering systems on a scalable integration platform. CostHub and LEMS give project teams real-time cost, labour and project intelligence.
The platform has supported major infrastructure and industrial projects in energy, mining, transportation and the public sector, with delivery across the US, UK, Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific.
Visit Global Footprints ↗How it works
The platform Juan built connects the systems a capital programme already runs, then turns the combined data into one trusted record of cost and performance.
ERP and financial systems, scheduling platforms, BIM and engineering systems, procurement, and field and contractor reporting. On most large projects these are run by different teams and different companies, and none of them holds the whole picture.
A no-code, platform-as-a-service integration layer with real-time, bidirectional data flows between enterprise and project systems, project data orchestration, and a secure, scalable cloud architecture. It is designed for extract, transform and load work and for feeding wider enterprise AI and machine learning initiatives.
Captures labour, equipment and materials data directly from operations, so cost engineers and project controls teams work from what actually happened on site rather than from late summaries.
Unifies source data from across the platform into consolidated cost visibility, real-time performance monitoring, earned value and variance analysis, predictive forecasting and executive dashboards.
Juan's view is that AI is only as useful as the data underneath it. “With our integration tools combined with Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning capabilities, we can easily connect to multiple data sources as part of an extract, transform, and load process or a larger enterprise AI/ML initiative,” he said in 2023. “This empowers organizations to gain new insights from their data.”
Where it is used
Energy and utilities
Transportation and rail
Mining and natural resources
Infrastructure and construction
Government and public sector
On a UK rail programme, Global Integrator cut the project team's weekly reporting from six hours to thirty minutes, according to Global Footprints.
Before Global Footprints, Juan applied enterprise technology in mining, manufacturing, telecommunications, retail, gaming and hospitality, and in defense and construction, across the United States, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Europe and the UAE.
Juan's technology career began at IBM in 1998, selling application development, middleware, database and data warehouse software to manufacturers, banks and retailers. Since then he has applied technology in mining, manufacturing, telecommunications, retail, gaming and hospitality, energy, transportation, defense and construction.
After an AI company acquired Global Footprints in 2023, he ran its cost engineering business, built a cost engineering reporting and standards team around earned value management, and supported sales and product development for AI in engineering, architecture and construction.