Delaware Builder Circle
One-on-one conversations with senior construction, MEP, and engineering leaders in the Delaware Valley. You share what's broken in your work. The Hive brings a concrete service to the table.
What it is
Not a cohort. Not a dinner. Not a community program.
A real one-on-one meeting — 30 to 60 minutes — between Dan Cohen (founder of The Hive) and you. Coffee in Wilmington, a Zoom call, a stop in your office, a site walk. Whatever works.
The purpose is direct: Dan learns how you actually run your work, what's broken, and what would change your week if it existed. In return, The Hive brings a concrete service to the table — something real, specific to your firm, that we can commit to.
What The Hive can put on the table
- MEPCalc — free, forever, at mepcalc.thehivemakes.com. Thirty-plus MEP tools for load, duct, pipe, and plumbing calcs. Already live.
- MEPCalc Pro beta invitation — if it fits your firm. AI-augmented MEP design and drawing review with multi-jurisdiction code-checking. 25-seat beta, 9 to 12 months, in-person onboarding, free during beta.
- Early-access on anything we're currently building that touches your work — multi-jurisdiction code tools, drawing review assist, cost-benchmarking. Honest: some of these are forthcoming, not live today.
- A direct line to Dan for as long as the conversation keeps being useful. No subscription, no newsletter retarget, no LinkedIn-DM follow-up afterward.
What we ask
- 30 to 60 minutes of your time in a format that's easy for you.
- Honesty about what's actually broken in your work — not what looks good in a conference panel.
- Permission to learn from the conversation for The Hive's broader building. We never name your firm or project without explicit approval.
Who fits
Director-level or equivalent seniority in construction management, MEP services, design engineering, specialty trades, or owner's representation. Delaware / Southeastern Pennsylvania / Southern New Jersey. DBT40 alumni and similar regional recognition are natural fits, not required. The real test is whether you're the person others in your field already turn to for hard questions.
How it works
- Email Dan — subject "Delaware Builder Circle — let's talk."
- Short note: who you are, your firm, your role, and one sentence on what's most broken or most interesting in your work right now.
- Dan replies within two business days with meeting-time options in your preferred format.
- Meeting happens.
- Within a week, Dan sends a one-page recap of the service The Hive can commit to for your firm — or a thank-you-and-here's-what-I-heard note if nothing matched. No obligation either way.
Connect
Email: dan.cohen@defimagic.io
Subject line: Delaware Builder Circle — let's talk
Who's running it
Dan Cohen. Wilmington, Delaware. Founder of The Hive. Systems builder at the intersection of AI and practical tools. University of Delaware alum. Reachable at dan.cohen@defimagic.io or on LinkedIn.