Three years ago, Denver-based Prescient was a three-person firm testing the waters with an advanced manufacturing technology meant to standardize and shorten the commercial construction process.

Now backed by more than $100 million in investment capital, Prescient is riding a wave of new commercial building that is struggling with labor shortages and demanding increased efficiency.

Prescient integrates computer-aided design technology and a library of prefabricated steel trusses, columns and panels, and then installs the framing for apartments, hotels and dorms up to 14 stories high in an Erector Set-like fashion.

The current construction market has been a boon for the young firm: Prescient has 3 million square feet of its prefabricated, light-gauge steel framing under contract and another 4.2 million square feet in order backlogs. About 60 percent of the business is orders from out-of-state customers.

“The moment we put a product in one particular area, then it suddenly mushrooms,” executive chairman Satyen Patel said.

Prescient, backed by more than $100 million in investment capital, is trying to meet the demand by bolstering its manufacturing and storage capabilities.

The company recently fired up a new 120,000-square-foot plant at 14404 W. 65th Way in Arvada and has plans to open two more similarly sized, highly automated shops on the East Coast and in Texas within a year.

“It really gives us an opportunity to grow,” Patel said.

When combined with the two Denver facilities off Downing Street, which total about 80,000 square feet, Prescient’s annual production capacity is expected to reach 5 million square feet, up from 1.2 million square feet, Patel said.

Prescient’s workforce and revenue are also expected to reach new highs. The company, which grew its revenue eightfold this year to $40 million in sales, is expected to post $150 million in sales in 2016. And Prescient could add another 150 employees to its 200-worker operation, Patel said.

That new production capacity equals about 50 Hyatt House hotels, he said, referencing the upscale all-suite hotel brand. Prescient recently completed installing the framing at a new Hyatt House in Lakewood, a process that took six weeks with a crew of 29 people.

The structure for a project of that size would typically require 70 to 80 workers and 16 to 18 weeks, he said.

A process that boasts greater efficiency could prove quite attractive to some developers, said Christopher G. Crosby, executive vice president at Denver-based development firm Nichols Partnership Inc.

Nichols is kicking the tires on Prescient, he said.

“The premise is they can do a better-quality project for less cost in less time and for greater sustainability,” he said. “It’s heartbreaking to see all the waste of a construction site.”

Colorado’s construction industry barreled ahead this year, growing 18 percent to $16.8 billion and outpacing Dodge Data & Analytics’ projected 15 percent growth.

Expectations for 2016 are a little more subdued. The industry is expected to grow another 4.5 percent, said Michael Gifford, president and CEO of the Associated General Contractors of Colorado.

“Maybe we’re cresting a hill and ride that level for a while,” he said.

Colorado has added 12,000 construction jobs in the past year, bringing employment up about 8.3 percent to 157,100 jobs.

“It’s a layered challenge,” Gifford said. “You can add 12,000 (jobs), but what are their skills on Day 1 when you add them on the job site?”

Firms are searching for ways to increase productivity, he said.

“It’s necessary because a lot of America needs to be rebuilt, a lot of Colorado needs to be rebuilt,” Gifford said. “And there’s only so many hands to go around, so you have to be creative.”

Alicia Wallace: 303-954-1939, awallace@denverpost.com or @aliciawallace