Factory Tour at BOXABL Building ADU's and Prefab Tiny Homes for Billionaires
What this covers
Factory Tour at BOXABL Building ADU's and Prefab Tiny Homes for Billionaires" offers an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the cutting-edge BOXABL factory, where accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and innovative prefab tiny homes are being constructed with a focus on luxury, efficiency, and sustainability. These high-end, customizable homes are designed to meet the growing demand for flexible, modern living spaces, appealing even to billionaires who seek minimalistic yet sophisticated solutions. The factory tour showcases BOXABL's advanced technology, modular design, and commitment to revolutionizing the housing industry by offering stylish, cost-effective housing alternatives.
Boxabl: Is this Prefab tiny home that unfolds the answer to our housing needs? Can Boxabl work on a massive scale? Can homes built on an assembly line adapt to local building codes? Elon Musk may have purchased one, but what happens if Boxabl ends up with a backlog of inventory no one wants? Is scalable factory mass production of housing possible? Boxabl’s new factory is building homes like cars. Flat packed and easily shippable, factory manufactured, and engineered for endless custom configurations, Boxabl says it has over 20,000 reservations for the product with the US federal government issuing their first initial customer order of ~$9.2 million. Ask these questions and more as Dave Cooper LIVE hosts a conversation with Founder Galiano Tiramani as they tour the brand new 170,000 square foot factory with the capacity to produce thousands of easily shippable homes and drive millions in revenue.
Boxabl is protected by 17+ patent filings and growing. Poised to disrupt the massive and outdated trillion dollar building construction market, is their ADU scalable? Will they get into single family and multi-family residential housing? Can they solve the affordable housing crisis nationally if not globally? Join Dave as he asks these questions and more in this behind the scenes look at this offsite construction manufacturing facility in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Head on over to our main website: https://davecooper.live Check out more DaveCooper.Live social content here: https://compiled.social/davecooperlive
#Tinyhouse #ADU #AccessoryDwellingUnit #GrannyFlats #Manufacturing #Housing #Engineering #Architecture #BuildingSystems #Offsite #OffsiteConstruction #constructionInnovation2021 #boxabl #innovation #mansion #homeforsale #homesforsale #cncmachining #instamachinist #housegoals #steel #newhomes #metalworking #realty #houses #engineers #fabrication #metalwork #machines #househunting #machining #realestatelife #cnc #homebuyers #elonmusk
BOXABL IS CONSIDERING UNDERTAKING AN OFFERING OF SECURITIES UNDER TIER 2 OF REGULATION A. NO MONEY OR OTHER CONSIDERATION IS BEING SOLICITED, AND IF SENT IN RESPONSE, WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED. NO OFFER TO BUY THE SECURITIES CAN BE ACCEPTED AND NO PART OF THE PURCHASE PRICE CAN BE RECEIVED UNTIL THE OFFERING STATEMENT FILED BY THE COMPANY WITH THE SEC HAS BEEN QUALIFIED BY THE SEC. ANY SUCH OFFER MAY BE WITHDRAWN OR REVOKED, WITHOUT OBLIGATION OR COMMITMENT OF ANY KIND, AT ANY TIME BEFORE NOTICE OF ACCEPTANCE GIVEN AFTER THE DATE OF QUALIFICATION. AN INDICATION OF INTEREST INVOLVES NO OBLIGATION OR COMMITMENT OF ANY KIND. A COPY OF OUR PRELIMINARY OFFERING CIRCULAR MAY BE OBTAINED HERE, https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1816937/000109690621000494/box_1aa.htm
#BOXABL #PrefabHomes #TinyHomes #ADU #FactoryTour #ModularConstruction #LuxuryLiving #SustainableHomes #HousingInnovation #MinimalistLiving
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Boxabl has solved the housing affordability crisis by making buildings shippable and factory-manufacturable using laminated panel composites and modular design, enabling mass production of quality housing at $50,000 per unit.
- Traditional housing is built on-site by hand like custom welding, while Boxabl manufactures complete units in a factory then ships them flat on standard trucks
- Laminated panel technology and precision CNC manufacturing replace hundreds of small pieces and thousands of nails with large pre-finished panels that assemble like Legos
- Factory production enables 300+ units per month at lower cost and higher quality than site-built homes, with every unit inspected and meeting or exceeding building codes
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Housing construction is the last major modern product that is still built by hand rather than on an assembly line, whereas cars, sneakers, televisions and other products are all manufactured in factories with assembly line principles that deliver cost savings and quality improvements.
“This is really the last big uh, modern product that's not built on a in a factory. Everything else we use, you know, cars, sneakers, television, all of it, it's built on an assembly line, so we enjoy the benefits of those principles and that just hasn't translated into housing. They're still building by hand. 90% of buildings aren't built by hand. It's incredibly slow and inefficient.”
State modular housing programs have two main components: comprehensive third-party testing of all building systems (fire, water intrusion, structural, etc.) and third-party factory inspections to replace site inspections, which is less burdensome than traditional building department oversight.
“It really consists of two main components. One is testing. So, every test you can imagine, we're doing on the house. So, that's like building panels, breaking them, lighting them on fire, water intrusion, everything you can imagine, we test it so that then we can say, 'Yes, this meets or exceeds the requirements for building code to create a a safe building.' Beyond that, what traditional buildings are are inspected, you know, at multiple times during the process on on the site... because we're building them all in the factory, they're not able to be inspected on site, so therefore, we need a third-party inspector in the factory.”
Factory-built housing has historically failed to capture market share not because of technical barriers but because the shipping costs of large buildings made them uneconomical compared to on-site construction.
“the reason that factory built housing has never really taken off or taken market share. It's just so expensive to ship the buildings. So, you know, our initial innovation was make them shippable and and so now they are.”
Building construction is heavily regulated at federal, state, and local levels, with local governments using building codes as a major source of tax revenue, creating significant barriers to new construction methods.
“tremendous amount of regulations surrounding building construction, and it's at every level, you know, federal, state, and local. Because the local governments use this as a a major source of tax revenue, they're meddling in it, you know, every chance they get. So, it's it's very difficult to navigate.”
Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) laws in California and similar tiny house regulations in Nevada create favorable market conditions for Boxabl's product, with these regulatory changes spreading across the country.
“ADUs are a big deal because there's no more space. Where do you put aging in place? Where do you put college kids that aren't in college because of COVID and all these different things? This is a perfect scenario for that.”
Boxabl experienced severe supply chain challenges including equipment delays due to steel unavailability, premium prices on raw materials, shipping container delays, and electrical wiring shortages requiring bulk purchases at Home Depot.
“supply chain disruptions have been really difficult... Everything from you know, the the equipment being delayed because the supplier couldn't source steel or whatever else to us having to pay premiums on raw materials, shipping delays where you have shipping container delays, some things just not being available. Like, for example, electrical wiring. We we had to buy, you know, a significant amount of electrical wiring for the first order that we have, and it just wasn't available anywhere from any suppliers. So, we ended up going to Home Depot and buying out the whole store because that was all we could do.”
Boxabl approached R&D by identifying a comprehensive 'problem pie' of all elements affecting housing affordability and then attacking each with equal weight and intensity across seven to eight core inventions.
“the way we approach R&D always in product development is we look at what we call the problem pie, pizza pie, your favorite type of pie, and then we slice it up and we attack all of those elements with equal weight and intensity... I would say we probably have about seven or eight really, really core inventions and that's exactly what's needed to change the industry on a global scale.”
The size and weight constraints of on-site construction (needing to climb four stories, work in snow and sun) necessitate small materials like 2x4s, whereas factory production has no such constraints and can use large panels up to 40 feet long.
“if you're out in the factory, if you're out in the field, rather, and you have to climb up four stories and you're nailing things in in the snow in the in the sun, you know, it's not efficient. You can only move around small materials. That's why 2x4s are 2x4s and why they're small. We don't have that restriction whatsoever. We can build panels here up to 40 ft long in one big piece.”
Traditional site-built housing construction is analogous to someone arriving in your driveway with metal pieces, welding torches and hammers to assemble a car, which would take forever and be incredibly expensive and poor quality.
“imagine that you ordered a car and some guys arrive in your driveway with a bunch of pieces of metal and welding torches and hammers and they start building that thing in your driveway. That seems crazy. It would take forever, it would be incredibly expensive and probably poor quality. Uh, but that's how housing's done.”
Boxabl's core innovation is the shipping solution (folding/compact design), with multiple other innovations supporting it, and this shipping capability can be changed last or retained while other aspects evolve across product generations.
“Our core innovation is shipping and then beyond that we have a lot of other innovations. The shipping thing, that's always going to be there. We can change everything else about the building anytime we want and we'll probably continue to do that as we go forward and have next generations of the product just like any other, you know, product like an iPhone or car that has a different version every couple years.”
Traditional stick-framing construction is not compatible with factory automation because lumber framing is inherently variable and difficult to automate, whereas Boxabl's engineered panel design is automation-compatible.
“the lumber stick framing that's traditional construction and traditional modular construction, it doesn't it doesn't really work that well with the automation and that's kind of why it hasn't been done yet.”
Boxabl's laminated panel composite process glues different substrates together to create large precision-cut pieces that assemble rapidly, replacing the traditional approach of hundreds of small wood pieces and thousands of nails.
“we've gone from, you know, hundreds of little pieces of wood and thousands of nails down to just these big blocks that are precision cut in the CNC and then rapidly laminate together.”
Boxabl designed one universal product that meets building code requirements for all climate zones and seismic conditions (high wind, earthquakes, etc.) rather than regional variations, enabling global manufacturing and scaling.
“We wanted one product that works everywhere, and you know, what we've come up with, it it hits it hits them all, and that means, you know, first and foremost, it's it's very low cost and rapid to manufacture. And then beyond that, we've kind of been able to to tweak all the engineering and outperform on everything else.”
Boxabl's foundation requirements are minimal compared to traditional construction because the Casita's floor is very strong and rigid, serving primarily to anchor the structure rather than support variable loads.
“the floor on our units is incredibly strong and rigid. So, that means the foundation requirements are much less. We're not, you know, building with stick framing on a foundation. We're just simply using the foundation to anchor this thing into the ground. So, that opens up the option for people to use the lowest cost foundation solution”
The entire Casita folds down to approximately 5 feet wide from its full 20-foot length, allowing it to fit on standard 8.5-foot-wide highway-legal truck loads while remaining fully finished.
“So, imagine there's no furniture in here, there's no bed or couch. You just have this empty room. That's all going to fold up and it's going to fold down to about here and that way we can finish all this stuff in the factory. So, like 5 ft by the length of the unit, we can finish anything in the factory.”
Boxabl has patented technology including smart walls with chases (channels) every 13 inches running through all panels (floor, ceiling, walls) that allow flexible routing of electrical, plumbing, sprinklers without thermal bridging.
“Part of the technology we have, patented technology, is our walls are smart. I actually hate the expression smart but they really are smart. They are every about 13 inches or so there is a chase on every panel, the floor, the ceiling, the walls, everything. A chase is simply a hole that runs through the middle of the panel. It doesn't doesn't have any thermal bridging, it's all very well insulated.”
Boxabl's engineering required balancing multiple competing requirements including strength, weight, cost, water resistance, fire safety, wind resistance, and energy efficiency, with solutions that exceed traditional building code minimums.
“you had all these different requirements for for building code, for strength, for safety, for water, for fire, wind, energy, all those different things, they don't always align. So, you know, you might try to make the building stronger, but then it becomes much heavier, and that's a problem, or, you know, maybe you want to make it cheaper, but but then it's not as energy efficient. So, you know, it was a big balancing act, and what we've come up with now is really amazing, and it it fills all those needs, it exceeds all the the standard requirements of traditional buildings.”
Boxabl plans to establish a Boxabl standard IRC (International Residential Code) to replace industry standards, with eventual goal of federal government adoption.
“we believe once we're done we'll be able to register those as HUD homes, as trailers, as RV homes. And in fact we think that the standards are so low in the industry we plan to have a Boxabl standard code and we'll work our way through up through hopefully to the federal government and get an actual Boxabl standard IRC code. Across the country if not across the globe.”
All precision components and substrates are pre-manufactured by outsourced CNC providers and brought into the Boxabl factory as finished components ready for assembly, making the factory primarily an assembly operation rather than a true manufacturing facility.
“Everything is standardized and repeatable, so we will get more and more efficient as we go, we'll get faster and and better at things, and we'll dial it in and refine that assembly line on ongoing basis.”
Boxabl's demand from consumers includes every conceivable use case for a small room module beyond the original ADU concept, including workforce housing and creative applications.
“people coming up with every single use case you could ever imagine for a little room module. You know, everyone has a different thing that they want to do with it and, you know, it's everything from a backyard ADU to workforce housing to, you know, many many other crazy and wacky things that you could do with a room module as well.”
Establishing a strong national brand known for high quality could reduce local government regulatory barriers, allowing Boxabl to operate with fewer restrictions than small independent builders.
“Hopefully, if we create, you know, a a national brand where we're well known for high quality, etc., those restrictions can can be reduced a little bit”
Boxabl's approach starts with manual processes in the initial factory to prove and refine the product and process before adding automation, rather than immediately investing in expensive automation systems.
“this kind of starter factory that we're doing here, it has a lot of manual processes in it and that's because we have to figure things out on a basic level before we start adding in that automation. We have to make sure that the product and the process is going to stay the way it is and then we'll start adding in that automation as soon as it makes sense”
Boxabl plans to develop Boxabl-certified contractor networks with a Boxabl University (online with in-person options) that will have different grades of installers, benefiting homeowners, contractors, and the company through quality assurance.
“We will have we will have a Boxabl certified contractors. We will be putting together a Boxabl U, a Boxabl University. It will be online. We prefer you to come in person and there will be different grades of installer. Everybody's happy. It means the homeowner gets what they need. They need they get someone to install the product they know is certified. The the certified installer gets to turn more projects, gets sales leads from us, and everybody is keeping an eye on everybody else.”
One house folds up and unfolds in approximately 90 minutes in the factory, and after foundation and utility preparation, unfolds and connects on-site in a few hours.
“basically the final output is going to be one house every 90 minutes.”
Boxabl experienced massive global demand and social media interest immediately after announcing the product, receiving tens of thousands of emails and inquiries from people in every country for diverse use cases.
“the amount of inquiries that we get on a daily basis is absolutely massive. So, it's just resulted in in resources kind of rolling in from from every angle, you know, our customers, investors, partners, installers, people in different countries like thousands and thousands of people interested in doing this and it's great and and it's kind of all thanks to you know, social media and you know, getting the word out there.”
The Casita ships fully finished with all appliances, cabinets, windows, and furnishings already installed, requiring only foundation preparation and utility connections on-site.
“basically everything we can cram into it when we ship it will ship with it, the unit.”
Boxabl's initial factory is 170,000 square feet, but achieving full automobile-style mass production would require a multi-million square foot facility costing approximately one billion dollars.
“the big picture there is this is a 170,000 foot factory. What you need to do a full automated automobile style mass production is a multi-million square foot factory, a billion dollar factory and we think we'll get there as soon as we prove things out here.”
Architects are supportive of Boxabl because the company handles heavy lifting (structure, systems, manufacturing), allowing architects to focus on creative design.
“with architects, uh architects obviously create very beautiful buildings. And we thought to ourselves early on, how is an architect going to react? Are they going to hate us? Basically. And uh it was 180°. They love us for the same reasons. We take care of the heavy lifting.”
The Casita retails for $50,000 and will be available to the public in early 2024 after fulfilling an initial government order of 150 units.
“we're planning to retail this for $50,000 and we'll be opening to the public hopefully sometime early next year after we deliver on our initial orders.”
Boxabl units can be stacked and connected in endless configurations and shipped as standardized ISO containers with ISO corners for crane handling and fork pockets for movement.
“it has something on ISO corners on the four corners. That's what the cranes and the the the the cranes from uh, for yards and the boat yards used to pick these things up. So, it's very standardized. It has uh, fork pockets as well to move it around. So, it is built to be very, very movable all around all around the world.”
Paolo Tiramani previously ran an intellectual property licensing company for several decades, inventing and patenting products licensed to industry with royalty arrangements, similar to music/book royalties.
“For a couple of decades I had a company that was a fairly successful. It was an IP company, which for your viewers is an intellectual property licensing company. It's just a fancy way of saying that we sat around invented things. IP sounds better than invented. Invented sounds like you're crazy. And we would just come up with product. All the product have to have patent protection. And then we would license it to industry in the similar way that somebody would would take like a musician or a songwriter or somebody that writes books and they get paid a royalty.”
Building materials in Boxabl units are water-resistant and non-flammable, using concrete board, steel, insulation, and magnesium oxide ceramics instead of sheetrock and lumber that would rot or mold.
“We're not using sheetrock, we're not using common lumber that would traditionally rot or mold. So, really really nice, and we were able to just wipe it off, and and it was good to go.”
Current building code standards in the industry are perceived as inadequately low by Boxabl, implying their product exceeds minimum requirements by a meaningful margin.
“the standards are so low in the industry we plan to have a Boxabl standard code”
The laminated panel pressing process applies approximately 250,000 pounds of pressure, creating an extremely strong unitary structure that will never come apart.
“Believe me, when we press that down with a quarter of a million tons, yeah, a quarter of 250,000 lbs worth of pressure, it really makes for a unitary number that's never ever going to come apart.”
Every Casita unit coming off the production line has precisely specified locations (down to the millimeter) for electrical outlets, lighting, wiring, and all mechanical systems, eliminating guesswork and enabling consistent, efficient manufacturing
“if we simplify the process of what we're building and we stick to that process you can get the efficiencies, you can get the benefits. Each and every home that is coming off the line for the Casita, you know where the wiring, where the plugs, where the lighting needs to be down to the millimeter”
Boxabl plans to expand globally through local partner factories rather than shipping units worldwide, as different countries have different architectural styles, regulations, and consumer preferences requiring local adaptation.
“Ultimately, however, even though we're very efficient to ship, we need factories around the world and uh, different countries have different local tastes, different flavors, different architectural styles, different rules, uh, different laws. And so, we'll be having a partner factories and we're having those discussions now. It is a very big world to fill and we do it with partner factories that can provide a local flavor product.”
Boxabl uses Porsche consulting services with 700 consulting engineers to design the production line, leveraging Porsche's expertise in automated production line manufacturing.
“We've had Porsche come in, Porsche consulting. They have 700 consulting engineers to help us set up a production line because they're numero uno in terms of production line know-how, automated production line I mean.”
Boxabl can manufacture the Casita at a retail price point of $50,000, representing dramatic cost reduction compared to traditional housing construction.
“we're planning to retail this for $50,000 and we'll be opening to the public hopefully sometime early next year after we deliver on our initial orders.”
Boxabl uses mechanical ventilation with mini-split heating/cooling systems for the Casita, and larger units could incorporate heat recovery ventilators for energy efficiency.
“the quality of the air is handled by mechanical um um solutions and and mechanical ventilation. So, we use uh a mini split system that heats or cools the air inside. And uh for this small unit, I don't think it's necessary, but in bigger ones, we could add um uh heat recovery uh ventilators as well uh to get in that that fresh air.”
Boxabl's first order is from the federal government for 150 Casita units, allowing the company to focus on manufacturing optimization without the complexity of managing direct customers, financing, or diverse contractor relationships.
“So, the first order we're fortunate enough to have a big order from the government. So, it really allows us to focus on the manufacturing as we, you know, scale up the plant. So, it's an order for 150 Casitas and we just figure out manufacturing. It's a great position cuz I don't have to worry too much about dealing with customers, dealing with financing, dealing with contractors, any of the other stuff.”
The Casita's exterior and interior wall panels are composed of the same layered materials (concrete board, steel, insulation, magnesium oxide), providing uniform performance and structural redundancy regardless of which side experiences loading or environmental stress
“the internal and external panels are the same. They're basically layers of concrete board, steel, insulation and a version of non-flammable ceramic board called NGO magnesium oxide”
Boxabl projects the ability to produce approximately 300 houses per month at full capacity in the current facility operating on two shifts.
“once we get up to speed, it should be hopefully about 300 houses a month.”
Factory production is currently expected to begin with the first unit delivery approximately one to two months after the factory's temporary occupancy certificate was obtained.
“So, you know, we just got in here last week and we are starting to turn on the equipment, learn the ropes, and then hopefully in a month or two the first house comes out.”
Boxabl experienced an unexpectedly large waiting list of consumers interested in purchasing units, creating uncertainty about delivery timelines.
“Right now we just have an absolutely massive uh waiting list. So, um not really sure how it's how it's all going to work out. We're going to try to approach the list uh tactfully and uh the most important thing here is that we're going to be looking to the to the next step as soon as we possibly can.”
Boxabl's two founders have different skill sets: Galliano focuses on business growth and vision, while Paolo focuses on intellectual property, patents, and innovation.
“we really have very different skill sets... Yana's had a number of very successful businesses prior, very different skill sets to mine with a good overlap. But very different. He's much more on the business and growth and then I'm much more on the on the IP and intellectual property patent and the innovation side.”
Early prototypes had no roof with a large gap in the ceiling during a Las Vegas trade show, it unexpectedly snowed (rare for Las Vegas), water leaked into the unit causing flooding, but the team cleaned and dried it before the show opened without attendees noticing.
“So, you know, we didn't expect any bad weather. So, yeah, so so this prototype we had, um, it didn't have a roof on it and and there was just a big gap in the ceiling because we were showcasing everything else. Uh, so, you know, the morning of the show, it snowed in Las Vegas, which doesn't happen a lot. So then, we ended up with snow on the roof, the sun came up, it melted, it started uh, flooding the whole unit, and and it was horrifying. I was up there with like a broom at like 6:00 in the morning trying to broom all the all the the snow off, but we ended up getting it dried off and cleaned up, and the show opened, and and no one noticed.”
Boxabl started development in 2017, initially building larger prototypes before pivoting to the Casita as the flagship product.
“we started working on this kind of 2017 uh, really uh, getting in there and and figuring things out... Our first units were about 800 square feet each. The first prototype we built was like a 1,600 square foot house. And then we started thinking about it and said, what's a a smart place to start? You know, where where are there lower barriers to entry? Where is there a a growing market demand? And the tiny house thing just made so much sense.”
Boxabl has very few conflicts between founders because they respect each other's expertise and don't compete in overlapping domains.
“We don't have too many conflicts, actually. We're very respectful of each other and I think that's just a great way to to work with family.”
Boxabl provides vacuum lifting systems to load panels without manual labor, with plans to upgrade to robot arms as automation increases.
“Right now, we do have these vacuum lifting systems but as soon as it makes sense, we're going to be swapping those out for the robot arms and then this process should be incredibly fast where wall panels are just turning out.”
The Casita features a 9.5 foot interior ceiling height, which creates a noticeably different and more spacious feeling than typical factory-built housing despite the overall compact size.
“it's got high 9 and 1/2 foot ceilings which you don't always get from the from the video but it's very different when you when you stand inside of it.”
The company has massive interest from potential contractors and installers globally but has not yet officially organized them into a network, with plans to formalize contractor relationships and recruitment once production ramps up
“right now, since we're at early stages, we don't officially have everyone. However, we do have a massive list of of inquiries from interested contractors”