Let’s be honest, the cost of homebuilding continues to climb, forcing homebuilders to slowdown production or even halt construction all together.
However, Plant Prefab, a sustainable construction company, recently announced it secured $6.7 million in Series A funding from Obvious Ventures and the Amazon Alexa Fund to fuel its growth.
The funding will go towards expanding its team and developing Plant Prefab’s patented Plant Building System, according to the company.
Obvious Ventures Managing Director Andrew Beebe said his company loves teaming up with companies trying to make a positive impact in the world.
And he’s not wrong, Prefab is working to make healthier an affordable homes.
The California-based company claims to be the first home factory in the nation focused on manufacturing sustainable high-quality durable custom single- and multifamily homes.
“Plant Prefab is focused on dramatically improving efficiencies and environmental responsibility in the $330 billion market for new homes in the U.S.,” Beebe said. “With increased costs, labor shortages, reduced affordability, and the enormous impact housing has on carbon emissions, there are few challenges more important than creating more accessible, healthy housing.”
Prefab explained that its approach reduces construction time by 50% and cost by 10 to 25% in major cities. The company also builds homes in ways that minimize the negative impact of development on energy, water, resources and indoor air quality, according to the company.
“In the housing-crunched major cities like Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco, along with areas like Silicon Valley, it takes too much time to build a home from groundbreaking to occupancy, and labor shortages, construction delays and increased construction costs are exacerbating this trend even further — and making homes increasingly less affordable,” Plant Prefab Founder and CEO Steve Glenn said.
Glenn added, “Building homes in factories addresses these challenges, particularly as we’re able integrate online technology, new building systems, and automation to dramatically reduce the time and cost necessary to design and build high-quality, custom homes.”
Alexa Fund Director Paul Bernard said the company is thrilled to support Plant Prefab as they make sustainable, connected homes more accessible to customers and developers.
“Voice has emerged as a delightful technology in the home, and there are now more than 20,000 Alexa-compatible smart home devices from 3,500 different brands,” said Alexa Fund Director Paul Bernard said. “Plant Prefab is a leader in home design and an emerging, innovative player in home manufacturing.
