Tech start-up iSeekplant has raised $1 million from angel investors to capitalise on increasing online demand for its solutions.

The capital will help iSeekplant build scale and launch a new bespoke solution offering.

Launched in 2012, iSeekplant allows large construction companies, such as Clough, Downer and BDM Constructions, to search for plant equipment for hire, connecting them to thousands of small and sometimes micro businesses which own the equipment, who can then quote and bid for jobs.

The site has a database of more than 50,000 machines for hire and sees about $1 million in plant hire contracts for civil, residential and resource projects every week, with users making 6,000 daily searches for specific equipment.

This is the second capital raise for iSeekplant, which was backed by 3D positioning and survey solutions giant Position Partners in January 2014.

iSeekplant director Drew McPherson said the capital would support the company’s ambitious growth plan in Australia as it continued to educate the market about the need for more transparent plant procurement processes.

“Plant hire can represent anywhere from 20 to 50 per cent of a project’s budget,” he said.

“Giving project managers direct access to contractors in the area who have the exact equipment they need for a particular job means projects can be priced more efficiently, quickly and accurately.

iSeekplant has a broad range of customers in the oil and gas, mining and construction sectors. The Goldfields gas pipeline in Western Australia and the Cooper Basin gas pipeline plant hire were both priced through iSeekplant.