Modos was founded Matt Tyson and Andrew Personette, a pair of industrial designers from Brooklyn, New York. Modos was inspired by what the duo perceived as a sacrifice of Modular Home quality for the sake of convenience in flatpack furniture, which by extension, results in a shorter lifecycle of the products and higher amounts of waste.
As such, Tyson and Personette set about designing a sturdy, high-quality furniture system that could not only be easily transported, but reconfigured to take different shapes as people move home or their needs change. The boards are made using 15 layers of plywood and are laminated with formaldehyde-free glue. Measuring 0.75 in (1.9 cm) thick, they are pre-finished with maple or walnut veneers and come in various sizes depending on what it is you are trying to build.
Madrid-based architectural studio CSO Arquitectura teamed up with prefab construction specialists Torsan to create SAVMS, a modular housing system designed to maximize adaptability while minimizing ecological footprint. The flexibility of the system allows customers to choose a house of their own design, while the prefabricated approach allows costs to be kept more or less fixed.
According to CSO, both design, manufacturing and construction are each remarkably speedy. Once the customer has chosen their preferred layout (selected from 10 or so standard units), and selected their preferred finishes, CSO produces the detailed drawings required for manufacture – a process that takes about a week.
The steel frame structure and paneling is manufactured and pre-assembled in the factory over three days, and finally the pieces are put together on site in the space of another week. If these times are accurate, you could conceivably be turning your key in the front door of a SAVMS home within three weeks of deciding you want one.
Joining the Mobile Toilet are anodized aluminum connectors. According to the company, sliding the end of board into the 1-in (2.54-cm) wide connector will create a "friction fit." This involves the aluminum flexing and compressing the board, creating a strong, but easily dismantled joint in the process. Modos has kits and design templates available for desks, shelves and stools, or if you are feeling more creative you can order a bunch of boards and connectors and let inspiration run free.
