WikiHouse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WikiHouse

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

WikiHouse is an open-source project for designing and building houses.[1][2] It endeavours to democratise
and simplify the construction of sustainable, resource-light dwellings.[1][2][3][4] The project was initiated in the
summer of 2011 by Alastair Parvin and Nick Ierodiaconou of 00, a London based strategy and design practice,
in collaboration with Tav of Espians, James Arthur now with 00 and Steve Fisher of Momentum Engineering.
[5][6] It was launched at the Gwangju Design Biennale in Gwangju, South Korea.[5][7][8] The project has since
grown to include many chapters around the world.[9]

WikiHouse enables users to download Creative Commons-licensed building plans from its website, customize
them using SketchUp, and then use them to create jigsaw puzzle-like pieces out of plywood with a CNC router.
[1][6] Construction of WikiHouse structures requires no special parts because the cut pieces of wood snap
together with wedge and peg connections inspired by classical Korean architecture.[10][11] The frame of a
WikiHouse can be assembled in less than a day by people with no formal training in construction.[10] The frame
must then be finished with cladding, insulation, wiring, and plumbing before it can be inhabited.[2][11]

After winning a cash prize at TEDGlobal in June 2012, the project invested the prize money into a
partnership with the Brazilian youth mobilization project Dharma and the analysis agency BrazilIntel to
build WikiHouses in the poorest favelas of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.[4] The goal of the partnership, dubbed
WikiHouseRio, is to provide a single "maker lab" where one CNC router can be shared by the community while
also allowing and encouraging community members to develop their own designing and building skills.[4][5]
The WikiHouse team plans to eventually create similar maker labs in other underdeveloped communities
around the world.[4] There are also plans to use WikiHouses as disaster-relief housing in earthquake-prone
countries such as Haiti, Japan, and New Zealand.[3]
By December 2013, while there were no inhabited WikiHouses, there were a few completed prototypes in
addition to a usable walkers' shelter in Fridaythorpe, England.[11] These WikiHouses are single-story, squareshaped structures with sloped roofs and small foundations that measure about 175 square feet (16.3 m2).[2] By
2015, several additional WikiHouses had been built, including the following buildings and at the following
events:
Maker Faire 2013 in Queens[12]
London WikiHouse Version 4.0[13]
150-square-foot (14 m2) FOUNDhouse microhouse[14][15]
WikiHouse at MAKlab in Glasgow[16]
Chop Shop in western Scotland[17]
Space Craft Systems project in New Zealand[18]
WikiSHED fork[19][20]
WikiHouse at the 2015 Vienna Open[21]

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