One of the shareholders, Sebastián Bardacosta, a telecommunications engineering student, tells us what this initiative is all about and what the business prospects are.
“Some of the group that participated in the competition remained interested in building low-cost, self-sustaining homes in Uruguay—moving from the academic realm to the real world,” he says.
To that end, the proposal was presented to the entire group, and some of its members accepted the challenge. “We are 15 shareholders from different fields—there are architects, managers, engineers, interior designers, and others,” Bardacosta explains.
The company is already up and running and offers everything from consulting services to help turn an existing home into a smart home to the option of building the same model as La Casa Uruguaya, with choices of 1, 2, or 3 bedrooms.
“Our goal is to make this concept as widespread as possible so that everyone can consider the possibility of having a smart home.”
To give people a chance to see what the housing looks like, they are building a model outside Montevideo.
“Our idea is to leave it fully set up so that someone can spend a weekend there, use the home automation system, learn about the best practices the house offers, understand how it saves energy, and see that it’s a beautiful home, built with high-quality materials and designed for functionality,” he adds enthusiastically. “The house is meant to be a benchmark in the field of sustainability.”
He says that “it isn’t expensive to build a home like this,” but they need this concept to catch on and for “everyone to start considering this option.”
The house built for the competition has a floor area of 80square meters, 3 bedrooms, a living room, a kitchen, a bathroom, and an extra room that can be used as an office or a bedroom. has also has modular construction system that makes it much more affordable.
As for the challenge of a company with 15 shareholders, Bardacosta says it’s not a problem: “We’ve been through a similar situation when we filed for bankruptcy.”
“There were 33 of us, all from different fields; we worked for a year and a half without pay, facing the usual challenges, but we got through it,” he adds.
“We follow a business model called Mondragón, which is designed for companies with multiple shareholders. The company has a board of directors that makes executive decisions, and then various working groups—such as the Engineering and Architecture departments—each with their own leaders,” he explains.
Before the interview ends, Bardacosta reiterates: “We want the house to serve as a hub for knowledge and best practices to promote energy efficiency across the country.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GV8GogYwM40