Carpenter/Inventor Michael Cox Wins Arch Grant

Date Posted: November 21, 2024

Posted In: Ideas, Organizations, People,

by Tom Finan, Executive Director/Co-Founder, Construction Forum

Michael Cox, a staff carpenter for BJC Healthcare, took a constant problem that he was encountering on the job — damaged drywall from flooding — and turned it into patented, marketable product, which he calls StepStuds™ .

Thursday (Nov. 21st) that innovation garnered Cox recognition and a $75,000 grant as one of the recipients of this year’s Arch Grants program. Arch Grants, a St. Louis nonprofit, annually awards $75,000, equity-free grants to startups. Michael Cox’s grant was part of  $1.7 million in funding to 20 startups in the 2024 group.  Arch Grants also added three later-stage new companies to its to its Fellows Program, a peer advisory and business growth collective it launched in 2023.

“I cannot begin to tell you what it means to me to be a 2024 Arch Grant winner,” Cox told Construction Forum in a text Thursday night.” To be one out of only 20 chosen out of almost 600 companies worldwide is amazing. Also, having Arch Grants’ full support along with the grant itself will allow me the opportunity to to take StepStuds™ to a new level.”

Cox’s said StepStuds™ are a new category of metal supports in construction, he stated. Installed at floor level, the horizontal base studs lift the drywall over three inches, keeping it off the floor and completely dry during most water events. The studs’ drainhole system helps guide water away from walls. This eliminates tearing out and replacing damp and moldy drywall and puts spaces back in operation much more quickly, Cox said.

Cox said the four-piece system can be installed in minutes. Because most flooding affects just a few inches of drywall when StepStuds™ is used, he said,  complete drywall panels might not need to be replaced. Rubber baseboard can be stripped away and mold-creating moisture can quickly be removed from behind the wall. Even in instances where drywall must be replaced, less is required, Cox said.

A member of Carpenters Local 1596 for 32 years before becoming a staff carpenter at BJC, Cox saw hospital spaces taken offline for prolonged periods after flooding events, which can be frequent in healthcare facilities.

He received a U.S. patent for his product last summer.  Cox explained that the patent resulted from trial and error, mostly during the pandemic, during which he created multiple prototypes. He has worked with a Missouri manufacturer and continues to modify the design to suit multiple applications.

Michael Cox exhibited the product at healthcare infection control and wall and ceiling industry events, where it was well received, he said. He has had meetings with several St. Louis-based companies and has also had interest expressed from as far away as Germany. He is working on scaling manufacturing of StepStuds™ to meet demand.

StepStuds™ is now in use buildings across the BJC Kingshighway campus. “The need for patient rooms is constant,” BJC quoted  Ryan McKey, a facilities supervisor in a newsletter. “A quick turnaround is always our goal. The StepStuds™ system helps us achieve that while also reducing labor, material costs, and dust, which greatly impacts cleaning. We’re very proud of Michael’s effort to create an innovative solution.”

Arch Grants has provided $18.5 million in grants to 272 early-stage companies since 2012. Its portfolio companies have raised more than $765 million in follow-on capital, generated over $1 billion in revenue and created more than 3,900 jobs locally, according to the organization.

Of the 20 companies in this year’s Arch Grants class, 12 are based in the St. Louis region. The 2024 group also includes companies relocating to St. Louis from Massachusetts, Illinois, New York, Virginia and Washington, as well as from Lagos, Nigeria. As part of the Arch Grants award, each company will commit to operating their business from St. Louis for at least one year. After that period, Arch Grants awardees who demonstrate the ability to expand operations in the St. Louis area are eligible for up to $100,000 in nondilutive follow-on funding through the organization’s Growth Grants program.

This year’s winning companies were chosen from over 550 applicants, according to Arch Grants.