In The Future, Affordable Housing Can Be Downloaded

Danish architecture students have designed a micro-home using affordable and sustainable materials. They want to show how open source design and digital fabrication could change the way we build houses.

During their residency at IKEA’s future living lab SPACE10, Johanne Holm-Jensen and Mia Behrens developed a simple cabin to fit the need for future living for the many. The first prototype was installed in the Danish town Stevns spending a mere €163 on building materials per square meter (or €8,000 in total).

This micro-home was built using abundant standard plywood — a cheap sustainable material that is globally available. Once you download the design files, your local maker space or fab lab knows how to produce all the different pieces of the puzzle with a CNC milling machine. (Very IKEA!) Eventually, people are allowed to further improve and adjust the house design to their local environmental circumstances, available materials and lifestyles.

As more citizens gain access to digital fabrication methods, flexible open source plans could soon remove architects, builders and the logistical supply chain from construction processes. This could further lead to the democratization of building houses worldwide, offering especially people with a minimum income access to a home. Request the open source files here or get started with something smaller like urban furniture by WikiBlock.