It appears that Ikea is branching out into house building. Construction is underway in Scandinavia and the United Kingdom currently. MetaEfficient ( a web magazine that covers the latest green products and technologies) quotes "Having seized the market for affordable home furnishings in the past decade, the Swedish retail giant is now planning to provide the homes themselves." They are called "BoKlok" homes, pronounced "boo klook" as I understand. MetaEfficient continues " Jokes about homebuyers being handed a pile of flatpack boxes and one of those fiddly little Allen keys are greeted with forced "haven't heard that one before" smiles at BoKlok's HQ in Malmo. "Yes, we get a lot of that, even though they're built in factories by skilled craftsmen," says Ewa Magnusson, BoKlok's marketing manager."BoKlok homes don't exactly come in flatpacks, but they're not far off. The timber-framed buildings are almost entirely prefabricated." I will be watching for them to bring home building to the US. Read the article(See the photos): (and tell me what you think, Would you live in one?) http://www.metaefficient.com/archives/architecture-and-building/ikeas-affordable-houses-now-under-construction.html
CHECK IT OUT! Toyota is building homes as well. Looks like the Pre-fab industry is alive and kicking. View article & photos: http://www.toyota.co.jp/en/more_than_cars/housing/