{"id":6779,"date":"2023-02-15T13:51:39","date_gmt":"2023-02-15T18:51:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/?p=6779"},"modified":"2026-03-26T15:15:46","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T19:15:46","slug":"changing-the-way-we-build-cover-and-the-future-of-home-construction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/startups\/changing-the-way-we-build-cover-and-the-future-of-home-construction\/","title":{"rendered":"Changing the Way We Build: Cover and the Future of Home Construction"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"embed-megaphone\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"200\" scrolling=\"no\" src=\"https:\/\/playlist.megaphone.fm\/?e=TLFIE4175763509\" width=\"100%\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><!-- Megaphone -->\n\n\n<p>Change is constant, especially in a world as technologically advanced as ours- but not every field is progressing at the same breakneck speed. We have (almost) autonomous cars and can fling satellites into space, but most of us are still building and buying homes that are designed and made in the exact same ways they were created in the middle of the 20<sup>th<\/sup> century.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Cover is here to change that. They\u2019ve developed a factory-backed construction solution that allows homeowners to create custom floorplans from a pre-engineered set of parts. Think Legos, but with insulation, electrical, and waterproofing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Startups podcast host Kevin Blevins sat down with Craig Derian, Cover\u2019s VP of Engineering, to talk through the passion behind the project, the engineering that has brought the idea of founders Alexis Rivas and Jemuel Joseph to life, and Cover\u2019s vision of the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>What You\u2019ll Learn in This Episode:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>&nbsp;<\/strong>How Cover sells its solution to potential customers (05:55)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The difference between tiny homes and Cover\u2019s custom backyard homes (10:53)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>One of the most difficult installations that Cover has undertaken (18:27)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cover\u2019s experience with Siemens tools (31:14)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cover\u2019s future goals (32:23)<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Lessons to entrepreneurs who are just getting started (38:37)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Siemens Startups Program<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At Siemens, we understand the struggles of early-stage startups. Let us remove the barriers on your startup journey by helping you transform your engineering ideas into real, marketable products with industry-leading software solutions. Join the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sw.siemens.com\/en-US\/digital-transformation\/xcelerator-startup-solutions\/design-simulation-startups\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Siemens Startups Program<\/a> to grow your startup to its full potential. Want to get in touch? Reach out via our <a href=\"https:\/\/resources.sw.siemens.com\/en-US\/launch-your-engineering-startup\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">lead form.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"bio-block row\">\n    <div class=\"col-3 order-last bio-pic\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2023\/02\/1653757081587-1.jpg\" alt=\"Guest: Craig Derian, VP of Engineering\" \/>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"col-9 bio-info\">\n        <div class=\"bio-header\">\n            <h4 class=\"speakerintro\">Guest: Craig Derian, VP of Engineering<\/h4>\n        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-biography\">\n            <p>Craig Derian comes from a background in automotive engineering with Tesla- an experience that has driven his interest in creating revolutionary, highly engineered products that delight customers and combat big problems, from sustainability to the housing crisis. He is currently Vice President of Engineering at Cover.\u00a0<\/p>        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-contact\">\n            <p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/craig-derian-62395a4\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Connect with Craig<\/a><\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"bio-block row\">\n    <div class=\"col-3 order-last bio-pic\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2023\/02\/Kevin-1.jpg\" alt=\"Host: Kevin Blevins\" \/>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"col-9 bio-info\">\n        <div class=\"bio-header\">\n            <h4 class=\"speakerintro\">Host: Kevin Blevins<\/h4>\n        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-biography\">\n            <p>Kevin Blevins is the Portfolio Development Executive for SMB and Startup Companies and manages the Siemens Digital Industries Software Startup Program. He works with the Siemens sales organizations as well as Siemens Partners to engage and evangelize the Siemens Startup Program in the Americas. Kevin has spent more than 35 years in the Engineering and Manufacturing software industry. Prior to this he spent seven years in the automotive design industry. Kevin has been with Siemens for 33 years. During this time, he has held positions in Technical Support, Technical Sales Support Leadership, Sales Director for the Automotive Region, Partner Sales Executive, and his current position. Kevin has a Bachelor of Science in Engineering Technology from Lawrence Technological University in Southfield, MI.<\/p>        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-contact\">\n            <p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/kevin-blevins-a325079\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Connect with Kevin<\/a><\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n<div class=\"bio-block row\">\n    <div class=\"col-3 order-first bio-pic\">\n        <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2023\/02\/logo2-3.png\" alt=\"\" \/>\n    <\/div>\n    <div class=\"col-9 bio-info\">\n        <div class=\"bio-header\">\n            <h4 class=\"speakerintro\"><\/h4>\n        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-biography\">\n            <p>Cover is a technology company that designs, manufactures, and installs custom Backyard Studios. Cover\u2019s mission is to make living in a thoughtfully designed and well-built home a reality for everyone. Using proprietary design software and a precision manufactured building system, Cover delivers exceptional design, functionality, and energy performance, in a fraction of the time of traditional custom construction. For more information, visit <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cover.build\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.cover.build<\/a><\/p>        <\/div>\n        <div class=\"bio-contact\">\n            <p><a href=\"\" target=\"_blank\"><\/a><\/p>\n        <\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Change is constant, especially in a world as technologically advanced as ours- but not every field is progressing at the&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":89293,"featured_media":6839,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spanish_translation":"","french_translation":"","german_translation":"","italian_translation":"","polish_translation":"","japanese_translation":"","chinese_translation":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[324],"tags":[385],"industry":[],"product":[],"coauthors":[754],"class_list":["post-6779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-startups","tag-podcast"],"featured_image_url":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/32\/2023\/02\/01-Designs3Days.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/89293"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6779"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6779\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11582,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6779\/revisions\/11582"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6839"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6779"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=6779"},{"taxonomy":"product","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product?post=6779"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/podcasts\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=6779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}