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Ikea's flat-pack refugee shelter is entering production

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Re: Ikea's flat-pack refugee shelter is entering production

#51

Post by Sanddancer »

danudey wrote: post #27
maerF0x0 wrote: post #10

They should do a tom's shoes thing with this. We both could have a house.

Sure, but then you have to find some place to put it. The house I'm living in is worth $25k, but the land it's on is worth $1.6m last I checked. It's not always about a place to put your things, it's about where to put the place to put your things.

Depends. There's a lot of cheap land in the western US once you get away from the city where $5k-$10k will get you a place you can plop a few of these things down when you wanna get away from things. You'll have to bring your utilities with you, but water tanks, solar panels, etc aren't horribly expensive these days.

Re: Ikea's flat-pack refugee shelter is entering production

#52

Post by mchristoff »

adamesque wrote: post #24

There's a startup in Austin, TX aiming to compete in a similar space: http://www.reactionhousing.com Full disclosure: I work there. ;) And if you find this sort of mission compelling: we're hiring software engineers! (firmware, backend) http://www.reactionhousing.com/careers/#embedded-firmware-en... http://www.reactionhousing.com/careers/#software-engineer Our design is quite different (and geared towards a shorter l…

Have you thought about marketing them as burning man shelter as well?

Re: Ikea's flat-pack refugee shelter is entering production

#53

Post by munificent »

Someone1234 wrote: post #18
euroclydon wrote: post #4

If my wife and I had lived in one of those for our first two years of marriage, we could have saved up one heck of a down payment for our first house.

Likely but the real problem with doing so is actually land. Even if you own some many cities take issue with non-permanent domiciles that are lived in for long periods (not least of all because you escape housing tax, and aren't up to "code"). However several people have done what you're suggesting by: - Living on a boat (either out at sea, moored just off-shore, or at a marina). This can range from being cheaper, to…

> Campervan, or enclosed truck. They often park semi-legally overnight and move every few days to escape harassment. Bathrooms are problematic (gym? work?).

My neighborhood has had an increasing influx of these in the past few months. At first I figured, "Live and let live. If this is all they can afford until they get back on their feet, more power to them."

Since then, I've learned that the solution to the bathroom problem is often "shit in the alley behind my house", and their daytime activities typically consist of dealing and doing drugs and scattering trash. I ran out of sympathy right around the time I found a used needle near the front yard where my toddler likes to run around and play.

Re: Ikea's flat-pack refugee shelter is entering production

#54

Post by Sanddancer »

codeshaman wrote: post #20

These things are great. But at the same time - so weird. Helpless victims of failed states, social injustice, greed, hatred, etc can now rely on high tech structures to take care of them. Genocide ? No problem, we've got you covered. We've got just the perfect structures for $1000 a pop for you to take shelter in. I mean, it IS the right thing to do, but at the same time, I don't know.. I guess would prefer that some…

It's a bandage. Bandages suck. They're obvious, they're uncomfortable, etc. But they're needed. Housing like this gives refugees a bit of solace while the bigger problems are dealt with. It means that the earthquake victim doesn't have a leaky roof or a mudpit for a floor come monsoon season. It means the genocide victim has a real door, and all the psychological benefits that that provides. It means that these people have a bit of a chance to heal. It's not much,, but it's a start.

Re: Ikea's flat-pack refugee shelter is entering production

#55

Post by bane »

stove wrote: post #7

These units seem to be priced at $1,000 for anyone else who was curious. Source: http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2013-09/thousand-do...

10,000 of these are contracted to the UNHCR.

I've always found it curious; often innovations in the refugee arena would often be very welcome in other venues: camping, cheap structures, etc. These things are always priced really cheap, but we never see them really entering into the commercial market -- or when they do, they're always going for some kind of 2x the price scheme.

For example, these 188 sqft shelters would be great as a sheds, or workshops in affluent areas. Heck, I'd like to buy one for my parents to use as a storage shed on their property. Equivalent sized sheds (without solar power, or good design) run >$2000.

I see this all the time, nifty water purifiers, portable lights, radios, etc. There's some really interesting stuff being produced for refugees. Instead of crazy 2:1 schemes or whatever, why not just sell these on a 20% markup and donate the profit to buying more shelters? Or just sell them and push the price down due to the greater economies of scale?

The refugee space always seems so weird to me.

Re: Ikea's flat-pack refugee shelter is entering production

#56

Post by maxerickson »

adamesque wrote: post #24

There's a startup in Austin, TX aiming to compete in a similar space: http://www.reactionhousing.com Full disclosure: I work there. ;) And if you find this sort of mission compelling: we're hiring software engineers! (firmware, backend) http://www.reactionhousing.com/careers/#embedded-firmware-en... http://www.reactionhousing.com/careers/#software-engineer Our design is quite different (and geared towards a shorter l…

How long are the beds? I'm 6' tall and find that many things are too short. From the pictures, they don't look to be tremendously long (but it is hard to tell).

Also, what's the longest period of time that 4 of you have lived out of one of the prototypes? They look pretty tiny for 4 people. Especially when someone decides they need to get out of one of the upper beds in the middle of the night.

Re: Ikea's flat-pack refugee shelter is entering production

#58

Post by cjensen »

abandonliberty wrote: post #48

Nice to see the 28 billion dollar charity actually doing some. http://www.fastcodesign.com/3035734/infographic-of-the-day/i...

This cannot be said often enough: "non-profit" is a phrase relating to the tax situation of a corporation. It is not synonymous with "good", "charitable", or even "not greedy." On the flip side, "for-profit" is not necessarily synonymous with "evil" or "non-charitable".
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