Zerund, a Guwahati-based manufacturer of sustainable bricks, has received Rs 7.8 Crores seed funding from a clutch of strategic private investors including Dreamweaver Investments.
The investment was facilitated via the Gruhas ASPIRE accelerator program, a joint initiative of Gruhas Proptech Fund, The DLF Family office and Anthill Ventures.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, Gruhas Proptech Fund promoters, Abhijeet Pai from the Puzzolana Group, Nikhil Kamath, Co-founder of Zerodha and Rahul Talwar, Director, DLF Family Office felicitated the Gruhas ASPIRE cohort at a ceremony held on Wednesday at NEDFi (North Eastern Development Finance Corporation Ltd) Convention Centre in Guwahati on Wednesday.
Started in 2018 by civil engineering classmates David Gogoi, Mousum Talukdar and Rupam Choudhury from Assam Engineering College, Zerund has brick manufacturing plants in Assam’s Guwahati and Pathsala.
The company manufactures high-grade, lightweight bricks which utilize 70 per cent waste material, including plastic and fly ash. The fly ash is sourced from the National Thermal Plant Corporation (NTPC) unit in Kokrajhar.
The company will use the new funding to increase its annual production capacity, which stands at more than 25 lakh bricks and expand its sales and distribution network beyond Assam to other Indian states in the coming months.
"We are on track to boost our annual production ninefold to Rs 2.3 crore bricks in 2026, in line with the expanding demand for sustainable bricks," said David Gogoi, Co-Founder and CEO of Zerund.
He further said, “Our investors in this round comprise experts with an in-depth knowledge of the Proptech (Property-Technology) space. Their support will be critical as we grow beyond our base in Assam and take our homegrown idea to the rest of India and beyond."
India's estimated annual demand for construction blocks by green-rated developers is Rs 10,000 crores. India also generates 270 million tons of fly ash annually and 15000 tons of waste plastic daily, highlighting the potential for eco-friendly solutions to combat carbon emissions.
Over the last four years, Zerund's bricks, which are 15 percent cheaper and 45 percent lighter than the industry standard, have been used in homes, commercial spaces, and institutions such as the Assam Don Bosco University, Cotton University and the Numaligarh Refinery.
In 2021, Zerund raised Rs 4 crores from investors, including NEDFi Venture Capital Ltd. (NVCL) and Villgro Foundation. Zerund is one of the seven start-ups belonging to the Gruhas ASPIRE accelerator program.