New member? Post here.

[alastair]

If you're joining the group (or have been around a while), please feel free to click reply below to just introduce yourself, what you're interested in, your background / skills, what you'd like to work on etc, with any files, links you want.

[Scott Kho]

Hi Alastair,

We're a commercial printing company based in Manila, Philippines. I came across open source homes and furniture, and found it very interesting.
We'd like to explore ways in which we can adopt the system here maybe for low cost housing

[Charles Pixley]

My name is Charles Pixley, "Charlie" is fine, found your group after watching a TED presentation.

The concepts and practical applications here are both GREAT and far reaching.

The primary comment or suggestion, I would make, t'o the designers is that it would be great to have a house design that's either round or geodesic

tor replacement homes in the hurricane and tornado zones.  To constantly rebuild using the same old square and rectangle houses

that are so easily torn apart by high winds makes no sense, it's a total waste of energy, labor, money, and insurance costs. 

Would seem to me, if you look at lighthouses, with hundreds of years of standing unharmed, wind resistant homes are past due.

cp

[Caner Candan]

Hi there,

We are a few people living in France and working to make an open yurt
real. All the plans are shared on http://yurtmakers.github.io/yurtcan/
and https://github.com/yurtmakers/yurtcan thanks to the copyleft licenses.

There're made with Sketchup (hope will have a similar FOSS tool in the
future) and we are soon going to add ruby scripts in order to make the
models parameters changeable.

We are also bulding in real at this time life two yurts using these models.

Hope will work all together and share our contributions as good as we
are already doing with free softwares.

Best,
Caner

[Justin Kurtz]

Hello; My name is Justin Kurtz;

I'm a capitalistic social opportunist looking for ways I can help accomplish my purpose, which is to feed, cloth, and shelter the planet so I can build a space chopper and fly into a black hole.  

I'm interested in purchasing equipment and beginning to market and sell products developed out of the TX area for sustainable home solutions and homes.  Chicken coops, other small, retail applications to support building homes for people in other countries etc.

Agree with Charley; geodesic dome homes are the way to go for efficiency!

Would totally build a house with this technology.

Looking to connect with engineers, designers, and entrepreneurial people with knowledge of what potentials, needs, etc from a production standpoint.

[Alvaro Cobo]

Hi guys:

My name is Alvaro. I am sociologist, software programmer, and wannabe of
geographer. I am a convinced follower of the FOSS approach. I am
currently living in the amazon rain forest in Ecuador, and preparing to
move to the very jungle in the next few months. So we will have to build
a efficient house to shelter my family (we are two adults and two young
children), with all the safety and comfort of the modernity, including
communications, while keeping a very low budget.

We are interested in learning and sharing our experiences, and probably
we can be the guinea pig to experiment some of the ideas of the group.

Best regards,

Alvaro

--
'In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while the learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists' ~Eric Hoffer

[James Arthur]

Hi all,

I work with 00 / as part of the WikiHouse team but my main focus is on a couple of related / sister projects: OpenDesk and FabHub.

OpenDesk is an experiment in selling open source furniture.  We're trying to get to a distributed manufacturing model where designs can be purchased and then made locally.  FabHub is a directory of makers, across digital fabrication technologies.  We hope that some of the learning from running these will feed back into WikiHouse, particularly re: the Wikipedia-of-things platform and a marketplace for making WikiHouses.

Thanks,

James.

[Patrick Beseda]

Hi, I'm a new member to the group but I've been watching wikihouse develop for about a year now. I'm a student in Colorado, USA. I am interested in the principles of WikiHouse and how they can be developed into a model for mobile, micro off the grid living. I'm also interested in design tools and open source software so I'll be thinking about how to "parametricize" the current wiki house models and developing new ways of making the open library accessible to more people.

[nick]

James,

Thank you for posting this information. My partner and I here have been discussing this same philosophy as Opendesk for some time and belong to some similar type groups such as Fabhub.  We definitely want to become involved in the the whole aspect of your setup as well.  I look forward to talking with you in the future.

Take Care,

Nicholas

[Kay H.]

Hi, all,

Kay Hoffmann here. I would wish to participate actively if I were physically able and on the correct continent. Unfortunately, neither is true. Can only offer my available skills
to Wikihouse projects.

Am reasonably proficient at:
Research
2-D graphics
English composition/proofing
and
Office scutwork/MS Office apps..

Have background in sociology, public education, illustration, sustainable human habitat theory, and Victorian Novels.
This last item is rarely of use to anyone. I look forward to lending a hand where needed, and thanks to Alastair for getting me into this.

kh
near Seattle, US

[Paul Cline]

Hi everyone, 

Thank you Alastair for adding this post. 

I'm Paul Cline, an Architect is Las Vegas NV working on a redevelopment project downtown. 

One of our project concepts is to bring new fabrication and manufacturing skills into the community. I will share with the group my outline for the project and would love to have your feedback:

The project goal is to use the Wikihouse platform to bring the skills for CNC type design and fabrication into the wider community.

Our aspirational project outline starts with a prototype of a Wikihouse module, altered to create a kind of workstation. This introduces the project concepts to a larger audience and begins to promote our later phases.

Phase two would be to create a prototype occupy-able structure that I've been calling the Hangout Hut. This becomes a direct invitation and promotion for phase 3.

Phase three would be a design competition to design the replacement of the hangout hut, and then fabricate it. Hopefully this would be used for about 10-12 months.

If there are any mentors who might be interested in helping me move this forward please contact me.

Best,

Paul

[nick]

Hi Paul,

I am willing to help in any capacity that I can, big or small. Lets start a dialogue and see where it takes us.

Take care,

Nicholas

[Stanley Ravi]

Thank you Alastair, the Founders of TED, the people in this group
and the million other unknown people who've made this a reality.

I was blown away when you mentioned, "Just use small bells..." in the TED talk.

I've been working on a few infrastructure concepts,
mostly with the scale wide and scale down in mind,

Keeping developing and local economies in mind.

I'll join the other groups in Wikihouse to take and contribute.

I'm from Bangalore India, I'm 46 years old an ardent follower
of the www.transitionnetwork.org

Thanks once more.

Stanley Ravi

[Michael Perina]

I've just got approved to the group.  I'm Michael Perina from Connecticut, in the US.

Varied background from 2D/3D drafting, trained in carpentry, masonry, sheet metal fabrication and welding, and a smattering of degrees in Construction and Engineering Technology.  I'm also highly detail and task oriented, with the occasional "squirrel" moment and sometimes blind to "big-picture" items...like focusing on a particular pin connection while ignoring that the rest of my 3D model has magically subtracted itself from itself...except the pin connection region.

I believe that my largest yearly expense is in tools, with a large-format 3-axis routing table in my near future (my tool "investment" account is still growing, just slowly).

I've erected, lived in, maintained, and dismantled more temporary structures than I could even possibly begin to count.  While metal is lightweight, you can't repair pieces on-the-fly.  The fabric can only be repaired with costly and dangerous chemicals, and is life-limited.  My choice was always erecting something known as a "hard-back" shelter.  Stick-frame construction, with options for wooden skids, concrete footings, or concrete footings and pad.  You could upgrade the exterior, interior, and turn the shelter into any purpose you like.  My personal favorite was always the "large latrine" version, when the plumbers were annoyed they couldn't put holes in my lumber (except the outside sheathing) and were forced to work inside a crawl-space to run drain pipes.

To see an idea like this, to be able to ship raw materials, the tool (that can make more tools), and a portable power source to a region in need of shelter...is genius.  Using no (or very few common) fasteners makes this an immensely powerful bed-down option for not only impoverished areas, but for natural disasters or the person looking for a low-cost solution for a second home/campsite.

If this is going to be tested in nations with codified building requirements, a smaller-scale goal might be a good focus.  Many, at least in the United States, look for lower-cost solutions for utility storage (backyard sheds/not for human habitation).  A 100sqft wooden shed can, commercially sold, cost $750.00US if fully assembled.  That doesn't include delivery charges, tax, etc.

This scale would provide for a solid model for expansion, at least in one dimension, while providing the necessary data for structural compression, tension, shear, and other load calculations.  I know that there would need to, likely, be two sets of "blueprints": metric and imperial.  Or, we Imperialists (sic) will just need to join the rest of the world in learning that the Metric system is just better, easier, and doesn't cause international space agency face-palms if we all simply conform.

That's just my two cents.  I'm still trying to catch up on all of the conversations bouncing back and forth.  

[nick]

Welcome Stanley and Michael. Thank you for taking the time to tell us about yourselves. michael, i think you may be the closest to me geographically. Well at least in the same timezone. we naturally gravitated towards the shed design when faced with code occupancy requirements and testing. there are a couple shed vendors hitting their stride now.

I am particularly interested in the developing Med Cottages coming out of Virginia. They are on demand mother inlaw suites with all the medical plumbing and mechanicals of assisted living. And knock down construction.

Take care,

Nicholas

[Olivier Van Calster]

Hello everyone, Alastair,

My name is Olivier and I am happy to be greeting you guys from a small country called Belgium. I am currently running a masters degree in architecture and urbanism, with a keen interest in city development and the durability of cities versus (the awful trend of) modern sub-urb living. 

To understand where my disgust for this sub-urb way of living comes from it is important for me to explain the current urban situation in my country. Our capital and largest city Brussels (around 1,3mil inhabitants) is small game in a world of giant metropolitan cities, yet at the same time we manage to be one of the top most populated countries in the world. How is this possible you ask? We Belgians are, as we like to say, born with a brick in the stomach. It means that we are all heavily set on having our little own 'house-on-the-prairie' type of home. Result? a country full of this: http://uglybelgianhouses.tumblr.com without any of this: http://www.gardeninggonewild.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/lurie-garden.jpg

A grey cloud of singular houses lined up next to one another. No real cities, no real nature

As to Wikihouse, I love the concept of sharing commons and shaping it into making/recreating things on your own. The small scale. But I'm especially interested in how to combine it with the problem of massive sub-urbanisation and the undeniable need of densificating city centers. The large scale. I am of the believe that the most sustainable system of living is the high density city. Open, high-risen, green and free to inhabit as you'd like. I wonder if Wikihouse can be part of this system and I hope that it is not just another way of reïnventing the suburban 'house-on-the-prairie', meaning, on it's own, without sense of context... an alien in the green. 

To combine the freedom and "anti-capitalist" approach that I love in Wikihouse with a sustainable highly densified city I immediately think about using Wikihouse as a secundary layer on a primary (concrete?) superstructure. The primary structure provides ramps, walkways or pseudo-streets, collums and pillars on which the secundary wikihouse layer can attach , thus shaping fablabs, stores, houses, schools, playgrounds, community centers,... flexible city-scape.

This idea is partly represented in how these Venezuelan squatters have managed to create their own unique urban environment: https://vimeo.com/49094660

Anyways, it's nice to be part of this movement and I hope to join you guys in further discussions :-)

Cheers,

Olivier

Op zaterdag 25 mei 2013 23:58:00 UTC+2 schreef alastair het volgende:

[Andrea Rossi]

Hello everybody,

My name is Andrea Rossi, and I'm an Italian student at the Dessau Institue of Architecture (Germany).

I'm currently developing my master thesis together with Lila PanahiKazemi, on the use of computational design approaches for the intervention in informal settlements in Istanbul.
For an overview of the approach we are developing, you can have a look at my youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/TempAutonArch

After developing a set of urban planning and design tools, we are at the moment looking into a possible construction system, and for this reason we are interested in the WikiHouse project.
We built a quick 1:10 prototype (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bA48UhdHy2g) and now we are trying to address the main issue of the scalability of the system from single units to aggregation of different units on multiple levels.

We would really appreciate if anybody would have suggestion on how to expand the structural system to welcome multiple storey structure, both from the structural configuration and the material point of view.

Thank you for sharing all this, I believe it is a great possibility to have a real impact on contemporary cities worldwide.

Best,
Andrea

[Justyna Swat]

Hello everybody,

my name is Justyna and i am an architect leaving and working in Paris, France. I am invested in  collaborative economy. Mainly focused on the subject of it's influence on the area of design, architecture and urban design. I am also a member of OuiShare and  a members of the OuiShare Fest - paris 2013 organisation team. Where i was responsible for the OuiShare Fest Wikihouse Workshop and a the FabJam.

I had a great pleasure of working with Alastair on the OuiShare Fest Wikihouse module which i will try to upload on to website as soon as i can. 

The design, cutting and assembling process was a great experience. We have all learned a lot.

The module is currently a part of an exposition in the 104 museum here in Paris. https://twitter.com/SharingEconomy/status/340837600250187776/photo/1

I would love to continue my adventure with Wikihouse and open design. I can also help out others interested in the project here in France . I hope to start a WikiHouse France chapter.

I will be more active soon:)

Best regards and nice to meet you all.

 

--
J.

[Kenneth Kittrell]

Hello everybody!

Thank you Alastair for including me in this group. I am recent university graduate and work currently as a contract analyst for an energy utility in Chicago, Illinois. Though much of my background and work experience has been in administrative and health care roles I have a fervent appreciation and interest in urbanization and providing sustainable living for small communities. Recently I just finished up two years of work with two non-profit organizations in which our team designed and assisted in the construction of bridges in rural areas of China in order to provide those locals with access to greater communities and their resources. During the second year I researched geographical, topographical and hydrological data for the construction of a series of mills in a watershed in the Rivière Grise of Haiti. Our plan with these mills was to utilize the frequent rain brought about by hurricanes to power generators in the mills that would provide energy to the communities where hurricane damage would otherwise leave them normally without power.

Though I don't have a direct background in design and/or architecture, I'm more than willing and excited to bring ideas in assisting with the Wikihouse team to provide efficient and sustainable technology assistance to the world as a whole!

Looking forward to working with so many bright and like-minded people! Let's do this!

With Kind Regards,
Ken Kittrell

[blyn...@gmail.com]

Hi everyone,

My name is Bevan Lynch, i'm an Animator and designer/maker living in Sydney Australia.
I'd love to help out by creating visualizations, both digital and scale physical models, and to help generate a strong Australian local WikiHouse community.

[Yanni Nicolaides]

Hi everybody,

I'm Yanni Nicolaides, brazilian architect student. I'm from NY, USA, but live in Pelotas and Porto Alegre (south brazilian cities) since a child, so please excuse my terrible english.

Since I watched Alastair's presentation on TED (and congrats, that was simply awesome) I could not get a sleep without thinking on how could I help on this project, specially here in Brazil where we suffer from so many infra structure problems, from huge number of homeless people to building collapses.

Two weeks after watching that TED, we already got a group (of 6 until now) who team up on saturdays to try to make something happen. We already got the CNC machine set up, and on last saturday printed the first 2 prototypes (which I treat as two babies).

So, I'm joining the group to share, learn and help in any possible way. We're looking forward to be another "wing" of this incredible project.

I would like to congratulate Alastair, Nick, Beatrice, Jimmy, Dinho  and all the members of 00:/, spacecraft and many excellent groups behind this concept; more than that, I want to thank you all for thinking socially and encouraging people like me to live FOR our world and not against it.

My twitter: @nikolaides and my facebook fb.com/yanninicolaides , anyone of this group please feel free to add me or get in touch to share some ideas.

[Arq. Pablo Quintana]

My name is Pablo, I am an architect from Buenos aires , and I am very interested in this project... I think it is a very creative approach to a global problem and it has lots of potential... Plus I found myself automatically dragged into studying your advances do far and the system you are designing.
I started to do some research in local prizes on materials and CNC machines in Argentina... I am just starting to understand the technical requirements and differences...
Would love to get in touch with people interested in this project from around here... And will stay in touch with the rest of you being part of this team.

I am joining this group to keep learning and sharing... Hoping to help in any way I can... Maybe sometime soon we can gather some people to open a local wiki house team.

[Dante-Gabryell Monson]

Am happy I found out about this http://wikihouse.cc project ( via the TED video )

My name is Dante, and I am originally from Brussels, Belgium ( Western Europe ).

http://hitchwiki.org/en/Dante

Am open to engage in personal conversations on these topics, and engage in project development.  ( feel free to find me on fb )

///

I see parallels with other approaches and projects.

For example

http://www.alchematter.org/

" Alchematter is a new way to share designs for open hardware objects "

///

Perhaps some of us also know 

the p2p foundation wiki ( about 20 000 entries ? )

http://p2pfoundation.net 

and blog :

http://blog.p2pfoundation.net/

///

A programmer friend created this presentation

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1aBHJ1FS5oM5HHn5SyrjhqdF9bJNdBF6jz65D7divds8/edit#slide=id.gddb49da5_00

( he mentions a software called netention which is in development 

https://github.com/automenta/netentionjs2 )

I am aware there are two other groups for wikihouse, focusing on hardware and software

http://www.wikihouse.cc/community

///

Regarding personal exchanges, for context,

Here are some excerpts of a recent exchange between me and Eric H.

http://sharewiki.org/en/Spime_Housing

considering a "Spimes" approach, and including many elements from the point of view of " Neo Nomadic Lifestyles"

///

A next step may be in "4 dimensional" modulable / self assembling constructions ?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0gMCZFHv9v8

http://selfassemblylab.net/

http://sjet.us/

http://architecture.mit.edu/faculty/skylar-tibbits

[Sorcha Cremin]

Hello everybody!

My name is Sorcha, Im Irish but currently living in Rio de Janeiro and would be very interested in participating with people in this area.

I really like the principles behind Wikihouse and would love to learn more.

I am an Urban Development Planner and am really looking for some more hands on experience and Wikihouse seems to be an exciting way of doing just that!

Hope to hear from you guys!

Sorcha. 

[Brian Korsedal]

Hi,

I'm Brian Korsedal and I'm an inventor from Phoenix, Az.  I've written software which compiles shapes into spaceframes.  We're able to compute things the size of warehouses right now.  It's kinda like geodomes 2.0.  We can compute them in any shape.  We're also assembling them and testing.  We'll be ready to ship kits soon.  I'll include a flyer about what we are doing.

We are getting a CNC machine soon.  Probably a blackfoot 4ft by 8ft model from http://www.buildyourcnc.com.  It's an open source plywood based CNC machine, from what I can tell.  I'm still researching it.  We'd love to collaborate with the wikihouse team.  I think we are working on complimentary ideas.

Once we get a CNC machine here, we'll probably try to print out a wikihouse.

-Brian

[nick]

Hey Brian,

Thanks for posting and nice to (virtually) "see" you again.  Many many people here have brought up the concept of geodesic domes and their application as a build platform for wikihouses.  It will be great to see your input.  I also think you will be happy with the blackfoot CNC.  The makelab here where I live built one and I have been impressed by its overall competency for the price. 

Take care,

Nicholas

[diego divi]

Hi everyone,
My name is Diego Diví, I live in Tucumán (North of Argentina), I'm a lawyer and write a blog about citizenship building and participative democracy using new technologies. Here is a link: http://ciudadaniadospuntocero.blogspot.com.ar/
I find the wikihouse project is a great way to empower people, and think modern democracy is heading to a more active role of citizens in which not only they will vote, but also will control government and be part of the solutions to people's needs. The Wikihouse project seems very promising on this matter and I will be following it close.
If I can be on any help to anyone, just let me know.
Cheers,

Diego.

[Brian Korsedal]

What we are doing isn't a geodome.  I wrote a compiler which takes a shape and converts it into a spaceframe of bars.  So you can make skull houses or whatever you want.

You can see some examples of different things we've compiled on sketchfab ( http://sketchfab.com/arcology1/recent ).

I think for small structures, wikihouse will work great.  I hope that our two systems can work well together.  We can design sections that will bolt onto the ends of a wikihouse structure.

We have a few things wikihouse can't do.  We can do a 3D scan of terrain and build a structure which conforms to the terrain instead of having to flatten it.  For instance, we can build up the side of mountains.  We also want to do large structures.   Computer generated cities which are then compiled out and assembled. 

We also use steel as our main component.  It's termite resistant, fire resistant and will probably outlast plywood.  However, it's probably a bit more expensive. 

So it all depends what you want to do.  We want to print out whole sustainable cities.  Like a pancake arcology which varies from one to four stories tall and conforms to the terrain.  Think lean linear citys from Paolo Soleri's vision but not as tall (  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xX_GD7omON4  ) surrounded by Open Source Ecology farms.

[Neil Berrow]

Hey I'm Neil, I live in Cape Town South Africa.

I'm a Web Designer, my family have historical experience with building modular homes and I think this idea is perfect for the 3rd world.

I'm keen to start teaching 3D modelling and small scale building with students and the poor communities, spreading the knowledge to those that need it will help gain momentum.

I would like to find solutions for settlements, such as sanitisation. Making cheap or recycled solutions that will solve the basic issues at a low or free cost.

Wikihouse has a lot of potential, it would be great to see a project that displays the cost effectiveness of Wikihouse and the application in settlements.

[magi...@126.com]

Hi Everyone!

 

I'm a new member from China, Shenzhen. I am planning to major in Architecture in college. I can use Photoshop, CAD and InDesign well. And I'm learning to use SketchUp.

I'm currently planning to use the idea of modular construction to help the poor in remote countryside.

If you're intersted in this proposal, let's make friends!

[willfoxy]

hi all! i'm Will; I've been a product manager in a few of the UK's telecoms companies for about 7 years. Love the potential for what this project could deliver so looking to help in any way I can! Thanks.

[Alfonso Spina]

Hi everyone! 

This is Alfonso Spina, Italian architect registered in England too, just moved to London. I am committed to sustainable design and processes and have a good experience in managing, designing and supervising small buildings (in timber as well), good knowledge in low carbon issues and techniques, some experience in furniture making as well.

I really look up Wikihouse project and would like meeting the core-team soon!

I am interested in building and process design, building components, envelope patterns, natural materials, carpentry & connections, documentation, testing & validation, diffusion of knowledge, open source models & hardware.

Having managed my sole-practitioner architectural practice in Rome (sometimes joining colleagues for small projects and freelancing as well), I gained an all-round experience, from software packages command to concept design, economical and technical design solutions evaluation and also supervising works on site (pretty different from inspecting as it is usual now in UK). I got some experience in self-construction and am a team-member of an Open Hardware working group focused on energy and transmission.  

The whole Wikihouse project is great, so it would be cool working on it, still don't know where my contribution could be more useful (and how much time I might spend on it)

All the best

Alfonso Spina

--------------------------------------

[Lee Daymond]

Hi everyone, I work in the North East of England in energy efficiency and renewables, our company also has a Community Interest Company that were looking to incorporate a project with WikiHouse.

 

Please get in touch to share ideas, we have great contacts with insulation companies and are looking at integrating battery storage PV into a design.

 

Thanks

[Brad Jensen]

Hi everyone!

My name is Brad Jensen and I want to build a WikiHouse segment for the Detroit Design Festival.  I am a member of the local Techshop, so I have access to a CNC router.  I would be interested to hear from other Michigan-based people who are interested in WikiHouse and who might be willing to help out in the build.  I am also interested in talking to others who have participated in Design Festival builds who would be willing to help me estimate time and costs.  I would be intersted to know if anyone has tried to use the WikiHouse system in conjunction with shipping containers.  Finally, I would be interested in hearing more about alternative materials that could be used.

[hannalie malan]

Hi my name is Hannalie Malan

I am an architect living in Cape Town, South Africa. I am extremely interested in working together with NGO's and other relevant projects to introduce the WikiHouse project to South Africa, in a way that speaks to our informal housing -urban -and infrastructural issues in the townships on a community-ownership based level.

This project takes the idea of participatory architecture to the next level, which is exactly what is necessary.

[Justin Fiema]

Hey, everyone! I heard of this group through the DC3...

I'm a design architect...I really enjoy a very detailed oriented approach to design: reveals, joinery, figure, material quality - thorough simplicity. It's something I'm passionate about.

I have strong graphic as well as technical software skill set: anything from Revit to SketchUp to Adobe Creative Suite - I have a solid understanding of those tools.

Aside from the discipline side of things, I enjoy active life, psychology, sports, philosophy...and am very much so easy going.

That's the quick rendition of my background! Other than that, I'll keep looking for opportunities to meet you all. I'd love to see what might be developing in this group!

[nick]

Hello Justin,

Welcome to the group. I am working with Revit 2013 currently and also trying to break into SolidWorks 2013 and Mastercam.

Nicholas

[Nick Truch]

Hi Alastair,

Hi members,

First Alastair, I wanted to congratulate you for your TED talk : it was just amazing, so deep and so true ! I was really happy to hear such ideas about architecture ! Your talk is now part of my "hope talks" : the ones wich give me hope in humanity...

I'm living in Lyon, France, and would be really happy to share ideas and talks about wikihouse project. I'm a computer science engineer in Lyon 2 university and I'm a great fan of architecture and design, especially when it's worrying about what (and for who) it was made for at its early basis : the majority (cf bauhaus in Weimar - 1919). THe idea was : how to design things so that it's practical and cheap to produce... We are far from what design is today... In this way, I think Wikihouse is a pure design project ! 

I think there could be many parts to Wikihouse project : wikielectricity, wikiplumbery, wikipowering, ... and so on. I'm sure every expert has plenty of ideas about its "components" that could take place in this human-size lego project.

Right now, I don't know how I can help but what I'm sure of is that I'm really excited about this project, so if somebody here is thinking "Wikihouse in France" please contact me and share your thoughts !

(hopefully, my french is much better than my english...)

Nick

[Eric Hunting]

By way of introduction, I offer an apology. When I first learned of this project a couple years ago I was rather disappointed with the early web site and the lack of shareables for a project calling itself 'open source'. I could see much promise in the concepts but, coming in the context of other dubious high-profile 'open' projects like the RiverSimple OScar that seemed to toss around the term like the latest in management theory buzz-words, I suspected more of the same bandwagon hopping. Having been reintroduced to the project recently, I am very happy to admit I was wrong and am very pleased to see a truly vital open hardware project has developed. This is important technology which I suspect offers one of the most likely paths for digital fabrication to enter mainstream housing construction and demonstrate its potential impacts in low-cost and relief housing. I've long suggested that, for better and worse, housing construction is slowly evolving toward 'high-tech Papier Mâché'. Here we see the potential for the up-side of that evolution. 

Long active in the Maker/Open Manufacture movement, my current projects are;

TMP2: http://tmp2.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

IOSI:  http://tmp2.wikia.com/wiki/International_Open_Space_Initiative

Space@Home: a home & garden show of the future related to IOSI

Utilihab: http://utilihab.wikia.com/wiki/Utilihab_Wiki

Nomadic Eco-Villages:  https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/19g_XYezo_jHEZINUqZNZUswZaLsuNHpvbsT3vNkW3eU/edit?pli=1#slide=id.p

I'm particularly interested in the prospect of prefabrication and modularization of Wikihouse interior finishing as I've explored with Utilihab, since in industrialized countries interior finishing represents the largest portion of home construction labor. (and in the US labor is as much as 80% of the cost of a home) I'm also very impressed with the parametric design approach being cultivated here with the development of software plug-ins and the potential for the creation of interactive configurators that might become the nexus of Value Network peer production systems. I'm also interested in the possible application to pavilion-style home designs (a personal favorite of mine), as opposed to the stressed-skin systems used at present and wonder if there is a way around the high materials performance usually needed for that. 

Thank you, and best of luck with this promising project. 

[H Savas (Richmond-London/UK)]

Any Light Gauge Steel Frame Wikihouse projects?
Hal

Tel: +44 7770 302 822 England      www.hallukesavas.webeden.co.uk
Central Asia, Middle East, North Africa, Europe

Private e-mail from H Savas MBA FCIM MBIFM ICIOB aff.CIBSE for communication only. Information contained in this e-mail is strictly confidential and is intended solely for the individual/s to whom it is addressed. If you are not the intended recipient or have received this e-mail in error please delete it immediately. Any disclosure including but not withstanding reading copying or distribution of all or part of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited and may be unlawful. Although this email and any attachments are believed to be free of any virus or any other defect which might affect any computer or system on which they are received and/or opened, it is the responsibility of the recipient to ensure that they are virus free and no responsibility is accepted by Londonhs for any loss or damage arising, in any way from receipt or use thereof. Any opinion, statement or advice contained in this email is private and non-binding unless physically signed for.

[Hello WikiHouse]

Hi Nick

Thank you for posting! Great to hear that you want to contribute. Your thoughts about a Wiki for construction is very similar to what we are thinking here in London, and we are waiting to build a Wiki for construction into wikihouse.cc, which would be the perfect place to start building a library of wiki electricity etc...watch this space!

There is the WikiHouseFR team, do you know them? They would be the best people to get in touch with (that we know of) in France. They are @epoissonq and @j_taws I think Emmanuel is on holiday until the end of August, but Justyna may be about.

Best

Sarah

--

WikiHouse Team

To find out more, join the community, or to support the project, please visit

www.wikihouse.cc

[nick]

Hal,

I have not seen any wikihouse projects of light steel however, there is a company here in my city that makes a bolt together aluminum chassis house. They are called Cat Five houses and are a subsidiary of Rapid Deployable Systems which make bolt up aluminum and light steel structures for industrial and temporary applications. I would paste a direct link but I am replying from my mobile. Their kits have high seismic and storm ratings as well as R40 thermal ratings.

Nicholas

[nick]

Catfivehouses - these are not nearly the same and there is a Modular Pod light steel frame system offered.
 
  Our shop just recently fabricated a prefab retaining wall from mild steel plates that were 1220mm x 2440mm sheets and we also have worked with aluminum in sheet form quite a bit. It occurred to me after reading you inquiry that we could make a Wikihouse from sheet metal.  Maybe 6061 aluminum would be more suitable for its weight in lieu of steel or maybe a combination of both materials.  I checked what we paid for the metal materials and the pricing is in the same ballpark as the wood products that we currently use. Obviously the thickness of material would be less and therefore it would require some reworking of the openings for some of the part joinery amongst other things.   I am going to look into this a bit further and will let you know but I think we just may try it.

Nicholas

[nick]

Uber shelter- almost forgot about this one.

Nicholas

[Ben Sumner]

Hello, My name is Ben Sumne, I was blown away by your TED presentation and really want to get involved with this. I am determined that when I build my house, it will be a wiki house. I am currently investing in building a CNC machine.

[adi cahya]

Hi Alastair,

My name Adicahya, im from Indonesia. Looks like you haven't got any member from Indonesia right? :)

I'm an industrial designer from auto industry, but like architect as much. 

I just started to design my own house, and searching for "different" method of building a house.

I like your project as general, and the concept structure you guys have developed.

But, is there any plan to design a more suitable design for developing country?

I see Scott Kho from Manila here, and been talking to friends from India about designing a quick and affordable house system.

I think there are a demand for this kind house system.

For a start, is it possible to use other material than plywood for the fins? In high humidity (and rainy most of the year) region like Indonesia, playwood can cause a problem.

If you interested, i will be glad to help..I can do various CAD, and a little bit of Revit if needed.

[DAVID ASHER]

On Saturday, 25 May 2013 17:58:00 UTC-4, alastair wrote:

If you're joining the group (or have been around a while), please feel free to click reply below to just introduce yourself, what you're interested in, your background / skills, what you'd like to work on etc, with any files, links you want.

I my be not to informed but I have use  http://www.phlatboyz.com/ to export the Wikiladder Gcode right of Sketchup see attachments used http://www.ncplot.com/ to check code

D Asher

[isabel...@rwth-aachen.de]

Hello,

my name is Isabel Nolte. I´m an architecture student at RWTH Aachen University, Germany. This semester I do my Master's thesis at the chair of CAAD under supervision of Professor Peter Russell. My project is to design working spaces for students using the WikiHouse construction system. The WiKiHouse-WorkingSpace shall be comfortably habitable, energy self-sufficient (off-the-grid) and still easy to assemble. I hope I can find help here in this community and I hope that I can help WikiHouse and other members in this community with my work. I´m looking forward to contribute to WikiHouse. To say it with the words of TED - it´s an idea worth spreading - and worth to be realised!

[Justin Kurtz]

Have any of you seen the MicroHouse project as part of OSE?  http://opensourceecology.org/wiki/Chris_Reinhart_Log

May be a way to coordinate.

On Thu, Oct 3, 2013 at 3:31 PM, <isabel...@rwth-aachen.de> wrote:

Hello,

my name is Isabel Nolte. I´m an architecture student at RWTH Aachen University, Germany. This semester I do my Master's thesis at the chair of CAAD under supervision of Professor Peter Russell. My project is to design working spaces for students using the WikiHouse construction system. The WiKiHouse-WorkingSpace shall be comfortably habitable, energy self-sufficient (off-the-grid) and still easy to assemble. I hope I can find help here in this community and I hope that I can help WikiHouse and other members in this community with my work. I´m looking forward to contribute to WikiHouse. To say it with the words of TED - it´s an idea worth spreading - and worth to be realised!

--

"Amateurs don't need coaches, Professionals do."

Justin C Kurtz

Speaker/Trainer/Coach

JCR Projects

314-529-1068

[rodolfo gonzalez]

Hello Everyone, 

My name is Rodolfo Gonzalez from Mexico. I would like to learn how I can get started bringing this concept to Mexico. 

Best, 

Rodolfo Gonzalez 

[Andy Parkinson]

Hello Everyone,

My name is Andy Parkinson, I am a geographer, ecologist and entrepreneur, that is interested in high performance building, in particular building enclosure and building science with a focus on cold climates (I recently completed a Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Design). 

Andy

[Rafael Verissimo]

Hello everyone.

My name is rafael, please forgive my poor English (which is a translation ..;)) I am designer-designer, very interested in about the Wikihouse project is corelation with construction design for the population. I do not know where to start, and I do not know how the group function .... to be my hands in the dough .. thank you for that answer come

Rafael

Paris - France

Le samedi 25 mai 2013 23:58:00 UTC +2, Alastair a écrit:

Si vous êtes à rejoindre le groupe (ou ont été autour d'un certain temps), n'hésitez pas à cliquer réponse ci-dessous pour présenter juste vous s'il vous plaît, ce que vous êtes intéressé, votre fond / compétences, ce que vous souhaitez travailler sur etc, avec les fichiers, les liens que vous voulez.

[Bruno Postle]

Hi group, I'm Bruno Postle, ex-architect in Sheffield UK. I have a background in mobile buildings, tension structures, and monumental sculptures, I'm a contributor to Fedora Linux, CPAN, Hugin panorama and lots of other free software stuff. My built projects have for a long time very much involved using CNC/laser cutting technology to make difficult things easier, so I'm here to maybe learn something and to share. This paper gives an idea of the work I do, though I don't consider this particular technique much use in housing: http://www.mdpi.com/2075-5309/2/4/424

I'm very much concerned with the need for compact, livable, walkable cities, and for this the problem of designing a house to best fit its environment seems critical. Another way of putting it is that some day I'd like to answer the challenge put by Christopher Alexander at the end of this talk: http://www.patternlanguage.com/archive/ieee/ieeetext.htm

--
Bruno

[Mike METZ]

hi
Mike, 38, bet. Orleans & Paris (France). Sustainable lifestyle since I was born. I'd like to create a wikiGreenHouse for agriculture stuffs.

[Chris Gummo]

Hello everyone, 

I recently joined the Wikihouse Google Group. I have been following what Wikihouse has been doing for a little while now, and would like to get involved (not sure how though). 

My background: aside from being obsessed with affordable housing solutions and small living spaces, I have always been interested in design/build. I went to Architecture school looking to become a designer, but after getting my degree I realized that I am more of a fan of the actual construction of structures. However, I have been independently working on designing and building pre-fab/micro structures. (and went back to school for Construction Management)

All of that aside, I am very interested in volunteering some of time and experience to Wikihouse. What intrigues me most about this project is that Wikihouse is providing more than just another "product". In order to solve the world's housing dilemma we need solutions and information, not just a one size fits all approach.\

Great works guys. 

Chris Gummo (Washington, D.C.) 

[Jerry Isdale]

I (Jerry Isdale) am the founder of Maui Makers, a makerspace out in middle of the pacific.  

I've seen Wikihouse at Maker Faire and have been discussing it with friends back here.
One of my friends owns a large flatbed cnc and is very keen on the concept.  He has been making a 1/2 scale model as a practice piece (started with 1/4 but it was too tight for bit maneuvering to make good parts).

Plan is to use the 1/2 scale model as a table top, or to side, at various expos and events around our island home. And to build a full size version at my place in Haiku as a dojo/dance studio that can be moved to festivals, etc.
We already have a fair number of people queuing up for their own structures.

One issue we will have is the high humidity and rain on our north & eastern shore locations (100+"rain/yr). We figure that painting and thus sealing up the wood should help, but only a real experiment will tell.  Cant be any worse than the structures already built there!    The other side of the island is a desert, which offers other test issues.

Has anyone tried taking one of these to Burning Man yet?

Jerry Isdale, 

http://MauiMakers.com

http://spaceGAMBIT.org

[Kate Latham]

Hi Jerry--   Kate from eFab Local here... you could try Advantech instead of plywood if you are worried about swelling. Is that available there?

[Danny Gnaniah]

Hi alastair....I'm looking forward to getting WikiHouse started in Malaysia – probably even getting govt. support on getting land for a testbed community. The prices of homes in Malaysia have skyrocketed in the past few years and the middle to low income families are starting to fall through the cracks – I'm looking to put this up to say that there is a better alternative. Hope to hear from you on how I could get started here. I also have access to some talented developers (all my staff) who are interested in helping the platform grow further. Will really appreciate it if we could touch base on how I can kick this off here in Malaysia. Thanks!

[Andy Parkinson]

Danny,

I am working to launch WikiHouse in Mongolia, where I lived for 13+ years.  I am now based in Vietnam, traveling up to Mongolia regularly.   And so I am also interested in how we can apply WikiHouse in South-East Asia (as well as North East Asia), and in particular how to develop building envelope solutions for hot humid climates.  You can also direct email me at: andrew (dot) m (dot) parkinson (at) gmail (dot) com

Andy

[Fredric Dorothy]

Hey Andy, I was really curious about how you see WikiHouse fitting
into Mongolia? Are you planning on targeting some of the nomadic
groups or urban dwellers?

On Fri, Feb 21, 2014 at 1:17 AM, Andy Parkinson
<andrew.m....@gmail.com> wrote:
> Danny,
>
> I am working to launch WikiHouse in Mongolia, where I lived for 13+ years.
> I am now based in Vietnam, traveling up to Mongolia regularly. And so I am
> also interested in how we can apply WikiHouse in South-East Asia (as well as
> North East Asia), and in particular how to develop building envelope
> solutions for hot humid climates. You can also direct email me at: andrew
> (dot) m (dot) parkinson (at) gmail (dot) com
>
> Andy
>
>
> On Friday, February 21, 2014 1:02:16 PM UTC+7, Danny Gnaniah wrote:
>>
>> Hi alastair....I'm looking forward to getting WikiHouse started in

>> Malaysia - probably even getting govt. support on getting land for a testbed

>> community. The prices of homes in Malaysia have skyrocketed in the past few
>> years and the middle to low income families are starting to fall through the

>> cracks - I'm looking to put this up to say that there is a better

[Andy Parkinson]

Fredric, take a look at these articles and you will understand the problem.

http://ahiglobal.wordpress.com/2013/05/15/the-race-against-winter-in-the-slums-of-ulaanbaatar/

http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=7521

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/20/ulan-bator-killer-winter-stoves

[rodolfo gonzalez]

Hello Andy, 

After living in China for 8 years and selling a number of companies I am coming back to Mexico looking to involve myself in affordable housing in the south of the country. I reached to wikihouse late last year without much help. How did you make it work?

Regards,
Rodolfo Gonzalez

[Mark McGuigan]

Hi Kate. Can you send a link to Advantech. Can't find it online.

[nick]

http://www.huberwood.com/advantech/home-advantech

They also have some new products called Zipsystem. Which has an exterior membrane adhered to it. Also can get polyiso foam on it. Sort of like an open faced SIP. hope this helps.

Nicholas

[nick]

Patrick,

Heard a piece on NPR's all things considered about your project Foundhouse and Wikihouse. Pretty cool!!

http://www.npr.org/blogs/alltechconsidered/2014/02/17/273045696/diy-houses-in-the-internet-age-some-assembly-required

[Peter Hirsch]

Hello from New Haven, Connecticut,

My name is Peter Hirsch. I am a Masters student at the Yale University School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. My research explores the connections between design and environmental stewardship by employing both an architectural and industrial ecological perspective. Industrial Ecology is a field of study that applies the concepts of ecology and natural ecosystems to industrial processes. This involves material flow and life cycle analyses, 

The WikiHouse immediately got me energized about its incredible potential in developing countries. As Alastair's talk discussed, currently too small a proportion of the world's population benefits from Design. From the environmental perspective, though, applying the design model that is disseminated in today's architecture studios would lead to an entirely unsustainable condition. I am hoping to investigate the advantages of a WikiHouse through the lens of material and energy efficiency. 

I am very interested in WikiHouse's connections to informal construction practices. I know that there are efforts in Rio, and would love to connect with the group down there. To best understand the materials, labor, and development involved in a WikiHouse, I am planning to construct a home here in Connecticut this coming Summer. I am currently in the initial phases of securing funding, but wanted to reach out to the community, introduce myself and get a better sense of simultaneous efforts around the world. Looking forward to some updates in the coming months!

Best,

Peter

[nick]

Welcome Peter! Thank you for bringing the enthusiasm this morning. Wikihouse is a wonderful concept and a wonderful community that keeps growing everyday. Looking forward to your involvement and let me know if I can help in any way.

Take care,

Nicholas

[Patrick Beseda]

Oh yes! Lacy got a good quote in there. Honored to be mentioned in the same article as Wikihouse and Sketchup. Super glad that NPR ran the piece. Thanks for posting!

--

Patrick Beseda

303.518.6920

patrick...@gmail.com

[Andy Parkinson]

Introducing WikiHouseMGL, Mongolia chapter @ www.wikihouse.mn 

Mongolia has some severe housing challenges related to rapid urbanization and an extreme climate, we hope that WikiHouse, and enabling self-build in general, can be part of the solution.  

[Andre Nery]

Hey guys!!

My name's André, I am graduated in Tourism here in Brazil and have worked within this market for 3 years. After that, I made a post-grad in marketing management and moved for 1 year to a telecom company (Oi). Nowadays I work at Google in, São Paulo, and also drive a project regarding education called Polo Criativo (polocriativo.com.br).

I've always connected with entrepreneurship and tried to make connections with people in this environment as a way to empower the all environment.

Innovation and education always fascinating me and I really look for the development of the group. =)

Nice to meet you guys!!

[mo...@barrelandgrove.com]

Hi, I'm VERY interested in bringing WikiHouse to Namibia. I like the VenusProject, Zeitgeist Movement, Aquaponics and I'm a Wine & Olive Merchand full-time and part-time consultant in the natural resourced economic field. I can't wait to set up home outside town and hope to slowly develop a WikiShowHouse village :-) I joined the group to keep in touch with like-minded people.

[Steven Winter]

Hi Wikihouse!

My name is Steven Winter and I am from Boulder, Colorado. I am exploring using WikiHouse to build a fully functioning off grid tiny house, an 8 feet by 12 feet structure on a trailer bed. I will be designing the solar electric system for the house. I am relatively new to SketchUp and 3D design but I should have access to a CNC machine and I'm excited to make use of WikiHouse in order to build the tiny house.

It'd be great to be pointed to information about spans and loads. If anyone is interested in helping with 3D modifications to the WikiHouse files to accommodate an 8 by 12 foot trailer that would be awesome! If anyone is interested in talking over Skype, on the phone, or in person (I just met with Patrick Beseda and Lacy Williams today, and it was great!) about the project, I'd love to.

Steve

[Patrick Beseda]

Steven, it was really great to meet you the other day. If you want any help with modifying the files for your design or if I can help in any other way, let me know. I'm excited to see your project progress!

[Alex Whitcroft]

Hi,

I'm an architectural designer currently based in London, doing design work as well as currently working as developer for small sustainable houses.  Been aware of Wikihouse for a while now and have been considering using it for our houses.

Have been rather busy and so haven't really got involved, but very interested to do so now.  Anyone who wants help with something / has a project I could jump in on let me know!

[Dejan Fortuna]

I'm an architect by profession and have been studying the topic of low cost housing in my country Slovenia for some time now. I strongly agree with the philosophical and ethical background in Alastair's TED talk and find it fascinating how it resembles my work on the topic.

In January I finished my studies as an architect, and this was the topic of my diploma (kind of a masters degree before the Bologna school reform). To avoid making things up I tried to examine what building  technologies are present in Slovenia and started working with that. I found that CNC timber frame cutters are present in even some of the smaller timber frame construction building factories and that these machines aren't even remotely optimally utilized.  So I developed a building system where by utilizing these machines and with a help of an experienced design team (architect and a construction consultant would suffice) the future owner of the new house could potentially lower his building budget by half. This meant that the problems with building codes and limitations of its construction are practically in existent, because we can use tested construction details, but adapting them so the builder doesn't need a lot of additional tools or knowledge to construct the house on his own. The goal of this was to provide comfortable homes for the users, without having to be in debt for the majority of their life. If anyone is interested in details of this work I can share it with him. I'm also posting two visualizations of the mock project I did for this paper.

I also did some work on other projects like renovations of old buildings for different cultural programs. I have quite a good understanding of building techniques, having to visit many of these construction sites and working with various engineers. I’m proficient in all the standard architectural programs (autoCad, Revit, 3ds Max, Adobe CS,…) and I love to use SketchUp for my work. I’m fascinated by the newest BIM capabilities of SU and I am really looking forward to exploring this section of the program. For this I can help build a library of components for the current Wikihouse building system if nobody set out to do this. I’m planning to learn ruby someday but I haven’t gotten around to do it jet. Maybe if the need arises I would have an excuse ;)

Wikihouse project has enormous potential, maybe the only thing that is missing right now (or I just haven’t stumbled upon this yet) is a real life utilization of the idea in a form of a real live in house. If anyone is up to something like that please contact me and I will help with the designs, construction drawings,visualisations or really anything I can, to help create a WikiHome.

[Me2005]

I'm an apprentice architect who found this through the Sketchup blog post quite a while ago and thought it was interesting. I started doing some analysis, however, and have come to wonder if it is any better than traditional building methods.

To break it down by the 10 wikihouse building principals:

#1: Lazyness - It'd be lazier to use the centuries (even millennia) of R&D on nearly every other construction method. Light/Stick framing, post & beam, unit, dugouts, mud structures, and other types of houses have been around nearly as long as people have been. Coming up with a totally new way to make houses is hard and requires loads of research and analysis.

#2: Cheap/Sustainable Materials - Plywood is one of the more expensive building materials, and the CNC process produces loads of waste. I don't have numbers for the efficiency of dimensional lumber vs. plywood in terms of efficiency from a tree, but I do have numbers showing that building a wiki-house is more expensive, and uses a larger volume of delivered material (plywood and 2x's) than stick-framing the same structure by about 13%. Cost is more for just the material in the wikihouse by a little more than the same percentage; not including necessary machine time and assembly.

#3: Simple design, No power tools - This always has been slightly confusing to me, as large-scale CNC machines are difficult to obtain and/or expensive to use in many parts of the world. A skill saw, hammer, drill, and miter saw are available just about anywhere and together do not need to cost more than $500. Even without the power tools, a stick-framed or post-framed house could be built with just a hand saw, chisel, and hammer. Granted, some skill is required to build a stick framed house, but no more than would also be required to build a proper foundation on a wikihouse. More skill/knowledge is needed for a post-framed house to be properly constructed. If we open up some semi-unconventional (aka: 'not modern') construction, cob houses require almost no tooling or skill.

Also, the Sketchup wikihouse has something like 4,000 individual plywood parts. A superior stick-framed copy* has 360 2x/plywood members, plus, say, 2-3,000 screws. I'm not sure what the fastener requirements are, but even if the wikihouse doesn't need any screws, it's got more parts. If it does need screws, it's got more by a factor of 2-4x.

#4: Habitability - This has more to do with insulation and cladding than structure. A wikihouse's cladding and insulation would be similar to a traditional house's cladding and insulation.

#5: Safety/Security/Health - This has more to do with the actual footprint than the structure. The health part is partially evaluable though: plywood is traditionally manufactured with chemicals that might be considered undesirable. No big deal since stick framing uses plywood too. Post & Beam doesn't automatically use it, ICF's don't but usually do use (often encapsulated) foams. Unit and traditional structures probably could get away from chemicals in their construction with some compromises in roofing options.

#6: Local Design - Most other building methods are tried and true across boarders; wikihouses are not (yet?) ICC recognized. Some traditional methods may not be recognized, but could probably get approval with a demonstration.

#7: Creative Commons - Most traditional building methods are too old for anyone to own them, and those that aren't (ICF's, SIP's) are still governed by ICC or are interested in telling you how to use them so their product can be used.

#8: Shipping - Plywood and CNC'd products need to be shipped three times (from the forest to the plywood factory/sawmill, from the mill to the CNC, from the CNC to the site), and from higher-level industrial areas than raw materials such as trees, mud, straw, and sand do. Most locales will use the building method that makes sense for them already because it is nearby; i.e.: post & beam or stick framing in forested areas, unit blocks in arid areas.

#9: Dismantle - I'm not convinced this is always a benefit. Most homes built today could be dismantled with no more difficulty than a wikihouse. But why would you ever do it? And until material costs & material longevity is such that this makes sense, it won't happen - it's cheper and easier to swing a wrecking ball and dump the remains than to salvage for someone intent on changing/removing the building (unfortunately).

#10: Design for Mistakes - This seems less-well handled in a wikihouse, where every part needs to be carefully catelogued and CNC cut at moderate expense, than in any other method, where a mis-cut or lost piece can easily be replaced at the local building supply store (or from the local forest, field, quarry, etc.). Loosing a single piece of a several thousand part wikihouse is a bigger deal than loosing a few sticks of 2x from a stick-framed house.

*"Superior" becuase it has proper eaves and gable overhangs, 2" drops at the uncovered outdoor areas, and is 100% ready to receive finish materials such as house wrap, roofing, and siding. It'd also be easy to get approval for and build, as it's using standard 16" o.c. studs. For the comparison model I used 2x8's, even though that's crazy expensive and unnecessary (double 2x4 walls would be just as wide would cost less) as that's approximately what the wikihouse used. The gable ends are still open as in the wikihouse version though. I've attached the file so you can look for yourself.

------------

Now, this isn't to say the concept of a "wiki for houses" is a bad idea. I think a tremendous idea would be to figure out some basic designs and provide extremely detailed plans, details, and instructions - above and beyond the standard architect's fare, explaining how to lay out a foundation, how to square up a wall, and giving exact counts on parts required. Do it again and again, for houses that are accessible, simple to build (not overly complex plans), built with different local materials and methods in mind, and livable. Ideally providing the whole documentation set for things from small sheds to fair-sized houses that anyone anywhere could print out (or send in digitally - some jurisdictions allow that now!) and get approval to build. This would mean designing to the highest-common denominator - the strictest codes would need to be followed exactly. Some jurisdictions may require architectural or engineering approval no matter what - accept that there's nothing we can do about that other than list out code requirements in various places. But for those places that allow it, the goal of providing simple housing that can be made by the owner would be easy to realize.

[Maximiliano Dorsa]

Hola Alastair!!... mi nombre es Maximiliano Dorsa, soy de Argentina, ciudad de La Plata, provincia de Buenos Aires. Hace bastante tiempo que conozco WikiHouse, pero un poco menos que empece a hacer prototipos y pruebas sobre los modelos y los ensambles. Soy arquitecto recien recibido de la Facultad de arquitectura de La Plata, y estoy trabajando en un computo y presupuesto de un prototipo minimo de vivienda, para presentarselo a algunas personas que tienen mas influencias en la facultad y en el instituto de la vivienda, aunque no estoy seguro que me ayuden mucho. Es todo muy nuevo para ellos, por ahora tengo que constatar que es un modelo de vivienda mas barato que otros sistemas, como lo son el tradicional, y el Steel Frame. A su vez en estos dias me estoy presentando en un concurso de la facultad con el sistema Wiki House, para darlo a conocer a la comunidad. Pero no tengo mucho apoyo todavia. Me gustaria si pueden darme algunos consejos de como proseguir, por supuesto viendo como se desarrollan otras comunidades como Brasil, me dan muchas ganas de unirmele, o quien sabe fundar una aca en Argentina.

Ni bien tenga el 3d completo, y la entrega del concurso se los voy a adjuntar por este medio.

Muchas gracias!

Abrazo!

Maxi

[Nate Hill]

Hi all.

I'm new to the group.

I run a public library space in Chattanooga TN called The 4th Floor.

I was just getting all psyched up about WikiHouse because I'd like to try to build some stuff here, but it appears that right while I was starting to poke around there's been a major website update and everything has changed.

Can I still access the plans and the SketchUp plugin?

Thanks!

Nate Hill

On Saturday, May 25, 2013 5:58:00 PM UTC-4, alastair wrote:

[Alex Whitcroft]

Hi Nate, Max, Dejan,

Welcome to the WikiHouse community!  Sorry for the slow response!  We've been rather snowed under with the WikiHouse 4.0 build and then the new website launch.  But please stick around and jump in. 

Nate,

Yes, the website has been re-launched.  It may seem like a step backward for now, but it will be growing over the coming months and we will be putting more files, etc up.  Thistime the plan is more finished "kit" style files and fewer rough working models.

If you want to download a WikiHouse model and start playing you can download the "STUDIO" from here: http://www.wikihouse.cc/studio/

We'll also soon be putting the WikiHouse Commons up where teams can all share files and collaborate.  You can signup to be added when it goes live here: http://www.wikihouse.cc/commons/

The Plugin in has disappeared for now... it will be back!  However, If you're just starting to explore the system don't worry about the plugin quite yet, go download the STUDIO and have play with that to get a feel for the system and start trying different configurations, etc.  The plugin should be back by the time you really need to print anything.

Dejan,

Following We are currently trying to focus, as the WikiHouse Foundation, on building out the infrastructure that the community needs to deliver projects and develop WikiHouse.  There are a couple of "live houses" in the pipeline around the world using the current WikiHouse system - including some people here in the UK looking for land to build some on.  If you are interested in building one near you then we'd be more than happy to chat about what you need in terms of support.

And... if you wanted to get involved developing the WikiHouse Sketchup Plugin that would be amazing!

Max,

Wonderful to here you're spreading the word near you!  How did the WikiHouse design contest go?  If you want to take your local community further, you could set up a local Chapter: http://www.wikihouse.cc/community/

[Stan Zhang]

Hi Alastair and every members,

My name is Stan Zhang, a master student from Kengo Kuma Lab, the University of Tokyo.

I found your very interesting and inspiring lecture at TED Talk. Your start point, concepts and practical approaching really attracted me.

Now I am working on my master thesis, and it is about how Open-source Architecture can help with temporary shelter in natural disaster conditions, considering about the rebuilding projects after Nepal's big earthquake.

I think OsA has huge potentials on this field with the characteristics of short-term construction, low cost and shared blueprints. In addition, there are lots of possibilities about its updating and reusing after the rebuilding procedure is over, considering about its flexibilities, such as easiness of construction and replacement of components.

At the same time, I am thinking about the design variety. Sharing blueprint is an unprecedented fantastic idea. But sharing might also mean that it makes architecture become more like an industrial product, which, in my opinion, would cause a lack of design variety. After doing some research about Greg Lynn's theory about typology and his Tea-Coffee Tower project, I think there might be a possibility to generate several similar but different blueprints from an original one, then even several people buy the same product, they would each get an unique one.

Thank you for providing such an convenient and easy way to communicate. I really appreciate hearing from you.

Best regards,

Stan

[Ana Isabel Sa]

Hello, everyone.

My name is Ana Isabel, I'm an architect and reseracher from Belo Horizonte, Brazil. I'm currently working on my masters dissertation at UFMG (Unversidade Federal de Minas Gerais) and I'm a member of the reserach group Indisciplinar: www.indisciplinar.com

For my masters I'm researching the use of digital plataforms for collaborative spatial production / transformation. One of the tools I approach is wikihouse.

So, for now, my main interest is to gather information about people's experience's with wikihouse. It would be great to get involved in actual projects myself as well, but guess I have to turn in this dissertation before :)

If you're willing to collaborate, I've developed a short form with some questions which can be acessed here: http://goo.gl/forms/UN3MM5dpR0

All the responses can be anonymous, and will be used only for academic purposes.

Also, if you wish to share further information, I created a topic on the group, where you can do it. Everything will be apreciated!

Thank you very much,

[shukry sharby]

Hello everyone,

My name is Muhammad Shukry but my alias is shukry sharby. Just call my shukry.

I am a practicing design/junior architect working in a architecture firm in Malaysia. I came across WikiHouse several years ago and I think this project is interesting and have a pretty place in it's future. I am also interested in building a mini prefab office, WikiHouse style. I am also one of the designers of Aker's Urban Farming kits, founded by Aaron Makaruk and Tristan Copley Smith. Check them out here: AKER

Currently I'm working on modifying the Studio version since it's the one that is available to download which is the sketchup files. I'm also working on an affordable office for startups and co working space with my partner and hopefully I can find investors/funders that can support our initial push.

I am looking forward to working on any collaboration with anyone here.

Regards.

On Sunday, 26 May 2013 05:58:00 UTC+8, alastair wrote:

[Michael Jensen]

Hello all,

I'm Mike and I'm checking out Wikihouse with the intent of building some small structures. I look forward to talking and interacting with others along the way.

[sabat...@gmail.com]

hola Pablo  soy Mariano, arquitecto tambien, vivo en Madrid y estoy interesado en todo esto de la wikihouse.  En Madrid  trabajo con fresadoras  de CNC, asi que todo esto me parece familiar. Me gustaria en desarrollar estas casas en Argentina. He leido tu mensaje, y quieria preguntarte si has avanzado algo, si has podido formar un grupo o si has hecho alguna experiencia concreta.  Te dejo mi correo para contactarnos..un saludo mariano

. marian...@yahoo.es

Den söndag 16 juni 2013 kl. 15:57:46 UTC+2 skrev Arq. Pablo Quintana:

My name is Pablo, I am an architect from Buenos aires , and I am very interested in this project... I think it is a very creative approach to a global problem and it has lots of potential... Plus I found myself automatically dragged into studying your advances do far and the system you are designing.
I started to do some research in local prizes on materials and CNC machines in Argentina... I am just starting to understand the technical requirements and differences...
Would love to get in touch with people interested in this project from around here... And will stay in touch with the rest of you being part of this team.

I am joining this group to keep learning and sharing... Hoping to help in any way I can... Maybe sometime soon we can gather some people to open a local wiki house team.

[Harry Knight]

Welcome to the google group Mike! Glad to hear you're exploring using WikiHouse. If you haven't already, jump on the commons here http://www.wikihouse.cc/commons/ and you can access sketch up files which you can then start playing with and adapting. You can then also add back any changes into the commons by starting a project folder.

Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

H

[studioproje...@gmail.com]

Hi, 

I'm new here, I'm really sorry if this is a silly question but has anybody actually built a wikihouse as their home in the UK? I am based in Ireland and would be interested in building one! 

[Brett Moan]

I'm Brett. I'm a Software Developer working in San Antonio Texas. (I work primarily with SQL and bash, but I have dabbled in Java, C++, PHP, etc.)

I've been browsing this group over the last few months when I had time and I am very interested in WikiHouse. So interested in fact, that in a year or two, when it comes time to stop renting and get a house of my own, I am seriously considering building a WikiHouse my primary residence. (Provided that at that point it is a reasonable choice financially).  

I would be like to get involved in any WikiHouse chapters in my area, or provided there isn't a chapter but there are others in San Antonio who are intrested, possible begin one.

[kushal D samant]

Hey Alistair ,

I am Kushal. An architect from India. 

I have a project folder on the commons. 

I am interested in making wikihouses that suits airbnb terms of accomodation.
This may lead to my dream of traveling around the world for property development work using wikihouse.

For the current prototype, I have two ways of going about this;
1. make partitions in an existing farmhouse.

2. build a wikihouse on another part of the land.

I would like to know the steps that you guys take chronologically, after making the skp model - a detailed checklist from skp model to final printing.
and you feel free to add on to the checklist - making it easier for newcomers to understand the process and take initiative asap.

Regards,
Ar. Kushal D Samant
CA/2014/62537

[Harry Knight]

Hey Kushal,

Thanks for getting in touch. What's your timeline like? We are currently developing a process that would help you from start to finish. It will be a digital platform to guide you through the crucial steps. This will develop over time as it grows but the first iteration will be a useful guide.

At the moment the structures go through the normal process you would encounter on any other build.

H

[kushal D samant]

Hey Harry,

My current time frame is 3 months. To give you an exact idea, I will shift to another project on 23rd of November 2015.
Thanks for the help. I will keep all of you in the loop.

Best,
Kushal.

WikiHouse Foundation, Registered non-profit, UK, 9152368

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[Anil]

Hey everyone, 

My names Anil, I'm a designer, hacker, maker, educator, community leader and advocate for change born in UK and now in California, USA. Working on building my first iteration of WikiHouse as a community CNC project. If anyone has any suggestions on breaking down Sketchup model for CNC router, would appreciate your help.

Cheers! :o)

[Mike Caskey]

Have you made progress on your project? I'm new to the group and I'm looking for more conversation about WikiHouse, as well as resources like a CNC machine.