Process · equipment · collateral · robots
Phase II / III mapWhat it takes to build it all in-house
Homes, then apartments, then hotels. Named machines. What a lender can lien. Robots only where they earn a station. None of this raises the $5,000,000 Phase I ceiling.
- Phase I already has the house process: buy forms, assemble, kit rebar, cassettes, MEP, finish, truck, set. That is $5,000,000. The ceiling does not move.
- 100% in-house for forms means an EPS plant, steam, mould family, and an evaluation report — $1.2–$2.5M+ on a later file. The SPZ-140TE class press is one machine in that stack, not the stack.
- Apartments and hotels are IBC products. They need fire-tested assemblies, stacked modules, pods, and usually a second building. They are not The 2,500 with more bathrooms.
- Robots that earn a place: cobot palletizer and CNC tending (Phase II, ~$55–95k) once the line is a factory, not a commissioning cell; robotic MIG for commercial frames; automated rebar center when bar tonnage is hotel/apt. Robots that do not: a KUKA house factory, AMRs in 40,000 SF, paint robots during stand-up.
- A used cobot only enters Phase I if something else is deleted. During the stand-up year, labor is cheaper. Do not buy a robot to look like a factory. Two-shift output of 20–24 homes a month is when automation gets paid.
- Collateral on future machines is listed so the next loan is not blind. It is not pledged on this ITL. Serials do not exist until invoices exist.
The entire process
01
Receive and kit
Beads, forms, rebar, steel, openings, MEP, finishes land, get inspected, labeled, stored.
02
Make the form (Phase II)
EPS bead → pre-expand → age → mould ICF blocks → recycle offcuts. Phase I skips this and buys a tested form.
03
Assemble the wall
Forms, bucks, rebar kits, embeds, openings — the ICF envelope of the SKU.
04
Reinforce
Cut, bend, cage, tag. Heat/lot on every kit.
05
Connectors and steel
Plates, embeds, stairs, garage frame, transport hardware.
06
Floor and roof cassettes
Second floor and roof as factory tables, not field puzzles.
07
Wet core / pods
Kitchen, baths, laundry, hotel bathroom pods as repeatable modules.
08
MEP prefab
Harnesses, manifolds, ducts. Buy compressors, fixtures, devices.
09
House / module assembly
Walls + cassettes + MEP + finish under roof. QC packet. Serial.
10
Concrete
Phase I: purchased ready-mix after erection. Phase II: batch if cheaper.
11
Ship and set
Tractors, trailers, escorts, crane (contracted then owned), foundation, plumb, hookup.
12
Commercial extras (apartments / hotels)
IBC fire assemblies, stacked floors, corridors, sprinkler prefab, elevator interface. Different code. Different plant.
Homes vs apartments vs hotels
| Product | Code | Factory | What else |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes (IRC modular) | IRC as adopted by Louisiana. Permanent foundation. FHA/Fannie/Freddie/USDA/VA on the buyer’s mortgage. | Bayou-class SKUs on the 40,000-SF line. Phase I. | None of the hotel stack. This is the loan. |
| Apartments / missing-middle | IBC (not just IRC). Fire ratings, egress, accessibility, stacked modules or panelized walls. | Longer tables, heavier rebar, corridor/shaft fixtures, fire-rated assemblies. Second line or second plant. | UL/fire-tested wall and floor assemblies. Different PE. Different transport box. |
| Hotels | IBC + hospitality: sprinklers, corridors, acoustic, stacked wet cores, elevator hoistway by others. | Bathroom-pod line is the prize — one SKU, hundreds of rooms. Not a Bayou with more beds. | Buy elevators (Otis / KONE / TK). Buy fire pumps. License the installer. The house line is not a hospitality plant. |
Never make — even at 100%
- Elevators and escalators — buy and hire the licensed installer
- Fire pumps, generators, switchgear from a listed manufacturer
- HVAC compressors / VRF outdoor units / chillers
- Appliances, TVs, FF&E for hotels
- Float glass / IGUs from silica
- Cement from limestone; aggregate quarry
- Steel from ore
- Semiconductor controls
- A high-rise stick-built on the 40,000-SF floor
Robots — only where they earn it
Phase I has CNC and handheld auto-tiers. That is enough while the plant is commissioning. The first real robot is a cobot that palletizes forms once the line is a factory. A KUKA house factory is a later file. This floor’s designed factory is 20–24 homes a month on two shifts.
| Cell | Machine | When | Band | Why / why not |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Warehouse / ICF | Collaborative palletizing cell Universal Robots UR10e / UR20 or FANUC CRX with PalletPRO; Robotiq grippers | Robot — Phase II | $55,000–$95,000 | First robot that earns its keep. Palletizing is dull, heavy, repeatable. Does NOT fit the $5M Phase I mfg bucket unless we cut the paint booth (~$24k) AND a forklift — still short. Buy after form volume is real. |
| ICF / CNC | Machine-tending cobot UR10e or FANUC CRX-10iA/L | Robot — Phase II | $50,000–$85,000 | Handy once the CNC runs two shifts. One operator plus cobot beats a second hire before a KUKA line. |
| Warehouse | Used UR10 palletizing cell (stripped) Used Universal Robots integrator (U.S.) | Robot only if we cut | $35,000–$55,000 | Only if we cut ~$45k from Phase I (e.g. defer spray booth to contract paint, or skip the second tractor). Not recommended. Labor is cheaper than a robot in the stand-up year. Revisit when the line is at mature one-shift (~108/year), not while commissioning. |
| Rebar | Rebar machining center Schnell / KRB / MEP / WEIBUILD class | Robot — Phase II | $400,000–$1,500,000 | This is the robot (gantry + magazines) that matters for apartments/hotels — tons of bar. A one-shift house mix does not pay for it. A hospitality pad of repeating rooms starts to. |
| Steel | Robotic MIG cell + positioner Lincoln / Miller + FANUC Arc Mate or ABB IRB; or KUKA | Robot — Phase II | $140,000–$320,000 | Handy for apartment/hotel steel chassis (Z Modular does this). Not handy for a handful of Bayou garages in the stand-up year. |
| Steel | Powder booth + oven, or robotic coat later Gema / Nordson class | Robot — Phase III | $80,000–$220,000 | Manual powder first. Robot coat when SKUs freeze. |
| Handling | AMR / AGV fleet (2–6 units) MiR / OTTO Motors / Fetch | Robot — Phase III | $120,000–$400,000 | Handy in a 80k+ SF plant with frozen aisles. A waste of money in 40,000 SF with two forklifts. |
| Finishing | Paint robot in the existing booth ABB IRB 5500 / FANUC Paint or a used integrator cell | Robot — Phase III | $90,000–$220,000 | Handy when finish SKUs freeze and volume is daily. Not handy while the plant is commissioning. |
| QC | Laser tracker / 3D scanner cell FARO / Leica AT960 / Creaform | Robot — Phase II | $45,000–$140,000 | Metrology, not a welding robot. Pays on first-article and stacked hotel modules. |
| Commercial modules | Longer framing tables, stacking jigs, fire-board station In-house + Randek / Weinmann class panel line if wood; ICF remains our wall | Robot — Phase III | $200,000–$900,000 | Weinmann/Randek are wood-panel robots. We only buy that if we add a wood panel SKU. ICF apartments still need stacking jigs, not a German timber line. |
| MEP prefab | Industrial wire machine + PEX manifold CNC Komax / Schleuniger + Uponor industrial | Robot — Phase II | $45,000–$110,000 | The wire machine is the automation. A cobot can load harness boards. A stand-up year of houses does not need it. Hotel bathroom pods and a repeating hospitality SKU do. |
| Real estate | 80,000–120,000 SF commercial module plant New or reused industrial — not the 40,000-SF house building stretched | Not this company yet | $8,000,000–$18,000,000 | KUKA ‘automated modular house building’ turnkeys live here — tens of millions. That is a different company until Louisiana houses print money. |
| Full auto house line | KUKA / similar automated modular-house system KUKA automated modular house building | Not this company yet | $8,000,000–$25,000,000 | Available. Not in budget. Not Phase I, II, or a $5M ITL. Revisit after a proven plant and a second capital raise. |
Named equipment — the rest of the process
Phase II mid-range about $3,442,000–$8,760,000. Phase III (second plant / KUKA class) $16,410,000–$44,520,000. Planning bands, not quotes.
| Phase | Cell | Machine | OEM class | Product | Low | High | Lien |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I | ICF assembly | CNC foam / hot-wire + tables + jigs (in Phase I budget) Cut and assemble purchased forms | U.S. foam CNC (Hotwire class) | home, apt, hotel | $95,000 | $95,000 | ucc |
| I | Rebar | CNC bender, cutter, stirrup, jigs, MAX tying tools (in Phase I budget) Cut, bend, cage, tag | KRB / Schnell class + MAX | home, apt, hotel | $155,000 | $155,000 | ucc |
| I | Floor + roof | Framing tables, panel saw, CNC router, lifting fixtures (in Phase I budget) Factory floor and roof cassettes | In-house tables + U.S. wood CNC | home, apt, hotel | $115,000 | $115,000 | ucc |
| I | MEP prefab | Wire, PEX, duct plasma, test stands (in Phase I budget) Harnesses, manifolds, ducts | Komax class / Uponor / HVAC plasma | home, apt, hotel | $90,000 | $90,000 | ucc |
| I | Kitchen + bath | Cabinet saws, edgebander, shower station (in Phase I budget) Wet core as an assembly | Used SCM / Holz-Her class + Schluter tools | home, apt, hotel | $68,000 | $68,000 | ucc |
| I | Finishing | Spray booth + HVLP (in Phase I budget) Factory paint and cladding packages | U.S. booth / Graco class | home | $52,000 | $52,000 | ucc |
| I | Ship and set | Tractors, trailers, telehandler, mini-ex (in Phase I budget). Crane contracted. Deliver and erect | Used Class 8 + construction fleet | home, apt, hotel | $300,000 | $300,000 | title |
| II | Warehouse / ICF | Collaborative palletizing cell Palletize forms, kits, finished blocks | Universal Robots UR10e / UR20 or FANUC CRX with PalletPRO; Robotiq grippers | home, apt, hotel | $55,000 | $95,000 | ucc |
| II | ICF / CNC | Machine-tending cobot Tend the foam CNC and label | UR10e or FANUC CRX-10iA/L | home, apt, hotel | $50,000 | $85,000 | ucc |
| I | Warehouse | Used UR10 palletizing cell (stripped) Optional Day-1 cobot if something else is deleted | Used Universal Robots integrator (U.S.) | home | $35,000 | $55,000 | ucc |
| II | EPS plant | Batch or continuous pre-expander + aging silos + convey Pre-expand beads | Modix USA / Dongshan / Epsole class | home, apt, hotel | $180,000 | $420,000 | ucc |
| II | EPS plant | Shape-moulding press (SPZ-140TE class, ~1,200×1,400 mm, ~8.5 t) Mould ICF blocks | Ebid Toys SPZ-140TE class / Modix USA / Dongshan. Prefer U.S. support for SBA collateral. | home, apt, hotel | $120,000 | $280,000 | ucc |
| II | EPS plant | Straight, corner, T, lintel, buck, half-height moulds Tooling for the Ameridura form family | Same press OEM + independent mould shop | home, apt, hotel | $250,000 | $650,000 | ucc |
| II | EPS utilities | 1–4 t/h boiler, accumulator, vacuum, cooling tower, compressor Steam, vacuum, cooling, air | Cleaver-Brooks / Miura class boiler (U.S.) + EPS-line auxiliaries | home, apt, hotel | $280,000 | $650,000 | fixture |
| II | EPS plant | EPS crusher / densifier / reclaim Grind and reuse offcuts | INTCO / GreenMax class or EPS-line OEM | home, apt, hotel | $40,000 | $120,000 | ucc |
| II | Real estate | Dedicated EPS / ICF manufacturing bay (Zone J on the 7-acre plant parcel) House the EPS plant | Metal building — separate from the 40,000-SF house line (fire, steam, pentane) | home, apt, hotel | $400,000 | $1,200,000 | real-estate |
| II | Concrete | Ready-mix batch plant, silos, reclaim Batch instead of buying every yard | Vince Hagan / Erie Strayer / CTB class (used U.S. plants exist) | home, apt, hotel | $350,000 | $600,000 | fixture |
| II | Rebar | Rebar machining center Automated cut / bend / pack by component | Schnell / KRB / MEP / WEIBUILD class | home, apt, hotel | $400,000 | $1,500,000 | ucc |
| II | Steel | Fiber laser + shuttle table Cut plate and tube faster than plasma | Mazak / TRUMPF / Cincinnati / used U.S. 4–6 kW | home, apt, hotel | $250,000 | $550,000 | ucc |
| II | Steel | Robotic MIG cell + positioner Weld connectors and module frames | Lincoln / Miller + FANUC Arc Mate or ABB IRB; or KUKA | apt, hotel | $140,000 | $320,000 | ucc |
| II | Steel | Powder booth + oven, or robotic coat later Coat frames | Gema / Nordson class | apt, hotel | $80,000 | $220,000 | ucc |
| II | Handling | Overhead bridge crane Lift finished modules inside the plant | Konecranes / Street / Spanco class | home, apt, hotel | $150,000 | $400,000 | fixture |
| III | Handling | AMR / AGV fleet (2–6 units) Move kits between cells | MiR / OTTO Motors / Fetch | home, apt, hotel | $120,000 | $400,000 | ucc |
| III | Finishing | Paint robot in the existing booth Spray interior/exterior packages | ABB IRB 5500 / FANUC Paint or a used integrator cell | home, apt, hotel | $90,000 | $220,000 | ucc |
| II | QC | Laser tracker / 3D scanner cell Dimensional scan of modules | FARO / Leica AT960 / Creaform | home, apt, hotel | $45,000 | $140,000 | ucc |
| II | Millwork | Nesting CNC router + software Nested CNC for boxes | SCM / Biesse / Homag class | home, apt, hotel | $80,000 | $180,000 | ucc |
| II | Stone | CNC stone / waterjet Countertops | Park Industries / Breton class | home, hotel | $150,000 | $300,000 | ucc |
| II | Hotel / apt wet core | Pod assembly line: waterproofing, fixtures, test, crate Bathroom and kitchen pods | In-house fixtures + Schluter / Kerdi systems; not a branded robot line | apt, hotel | $80,000 | $220,000 | ucc |
| III | Commercial modules | Longer framing tables, stacking jigs, fire-board station Stackable floor cassettes and corridor modules | In-house + Randek / Weinmann class panel line if wood; ICF remains our wall | apt, hotel | $200,000 | $900,000 | ucc |
| II | Fire protection prefab | Victaulic grooving + cut shop Cut, groove, kit sprinkler mains | Victaulic / Ridgid / Wheeler-Rex | apt, hotel | $12,000 | $40,000 | ucc |
| II | MEP prefab | Industrial wire machine + PEX manifold CNC Faster harness and manifold production for pods | Komax / Schleuniger + Uponor industrial | home, apt, hotel | $45,000 | $110,000 | ucc |
| II | Windows + doors | Window/door assembly depth: tables, hardware, seal, test Assemble opening packages instead of buying finished units only | In-house + bought IGUs (Cardinal / similar). Never melt glass. | home, apt, hotel | $25,000 | $80,000 | ucc |
| II | Commercial extras | IBC mock-up bay + accredited-lab fire/acoustic retainers (UL / Intertek class) Prove fire and acoustic assemblies before selling apartments or hotels | Lab partners. In-house mock-up walls and floor cassettes. | apt, hotel | $80,000 | $250,000 | poor |
| III | Real estate | 80,000–120,000 SF commercial module plant Second plant for commercial volume | New or reused industrial — not the 40,000-SF house building stretched | apt, hotel | $8,000,000 | $18,000,000 | real-estate |
| III | Full auto house line | KUKA / similar automated modular-house system Turnkey robotic modular factory | KUKA automated modular house building | home, apt | $8,000,000 | $25,000,000 | ucc |
| II | Site | All-terrain crane (owned when utilization pays) Set modules | Grove / Liebherr / Tadano used | home, apt, hotel | $180,000 | $350,000 | title |
| Phase II + III planning (excludes Phase I already bought) | $19,852,000 | $53,280,000 | |||||
Future collateral — do not pledge it on this ITL
Identified so the next loan is not blind. Phase II midpoint $5,936,000 — that is the file after this one. Phase III (second plant / KUKA class) $30,465,000. Combined $36,401,000. No UCC until the invoice exists. Lab retainers and mock-ups are not listed — they are not collateral. Phase I machines that can actually be pledged are on /collateral, with the as-completed plant and the BPO.
| SKU | Asset | Phase | Planning value | How it would be liened |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EQ-FUT-R-COBOT-PALLET | Collaborative palletizing cell Universal Robots UR10e / UR20 or FANUC CRX with PalletPRO; Robotiq grippers | 2 | $75,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-R-COBOT-TEND | Machine-tending cobot UR10e or FANUC CRX-10iA/L | 2 | $67,500 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-EPS-PRE | Batch or continuous pre-expander + aging silos + convey Modix USA / Dongshan / Epsole class | 2 | $300,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-EPS-PRESS | Shape-moulding press (SPZ-140TE class, ~1,200×1,400 mm, ~8.5 t) Ebid Toys SPZ-140TE class / Modix USA / Dongshan. Prefer U.S. support for SBA collateral. | 2 | $200,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-EPS-MOULDS | Straight, corner, T, lintel, buck, half-height moulds Same press OEM + independent mould shop | 2 | $450,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-EPS-STEAM | 1–4 t/h boiler, accumulator, vacuum, cooling tower, compressor Cleaver-Brooks / Miura class boiler (U.S.) + EPS-line auxiliaries | 2 | $465,000 | Fixture vs UCC — counsel at purchase |
| EQ-FUT-EPS-RECYCLE | EPS crusher / densifier / reclaim INTCO / GreenMax class or EPS-line OEM | 2 | $80,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-EPS-BUILDING | Dedicated EPS / ICF manufacturing bay (Zone J on the 7-acre plant parcel) Metal building — separate from the 40,000-SF house line (fire, steam, pentane) | 2 | $800,000 | Later 504 / mortgage |
| EQ-FUT-CT-BATCH | Ready-mix batch plant, silos, reclaim Vince Hagan / Erie Strayer / CTB class (used U.S. plants exist) | 2 | $475,000 | Fixture vs UCC — counsel at purchase |
| EQ-FUT-RB-AUTO-LINE | Rebar machining center Schnell / KRB / MEP / WEIBUILD class | 2 | $950,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-ST-FIBER | Fiber laser + shuttle table Mazak / TRUMPF / Cincinnati / used U.S. 4–6 kW | 2 | $400,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-ST-WELD-CELL | Robotic MIG cell + positioner Lincoln / Miller + FANUC Arc Mate or ABB IRB; or KUKA | 2 | $230,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-ST-POWDER | Powder booth + oven, or robotic coat later Gema / Nordson class | 2 | $150,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-MH-BRIDGE | Overhead bridge crane Konecranes / Street / Spanco class | 2 | $275,000 | Fixture vs UCC — counsel at purchase |
| EQ-FUT-MH-AMR | AMR / AGV fleet (2–6 units) MiR / OTTO Motors / Fetch | 3 | $260,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-FN-PAINT-BOT | Paint robot in the existing booth ABB IRB 5500 / FANUC Paint or a used integrator cell | 3 | $155,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-QC-SCAN | Laser tracker / 3D scanner cell FARO / Leica AT960 / Creaform | 2 | $92,500 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-CB-NESTING | Nesting CNC router + software SCM / Biesse / Homag class | 2 | $130,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-CB-WATERJET | CNC stone / waterjet Park Industries / Breton class | 2 | $225,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-HT-POD | Pod assembly line: waterproofing, fixtures, test, crate In-house fixtures + Schluter / Kerdi systems; not a branded robot line | 2 | $150,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-HT-STACK | Longer framing tables, stacking jigs, fire-board station In-house + Randek / Weinmann class panel line if wood; ICF remains our wall | 3 | $550,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-HT-SPRINKLER | Victaulic grooving + cut shop Victaulic / Ridgid / Wheeler-Rex | 2 | $26,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-MEP-AUTO | Industrial wire machine + PEX manifold CNC Komax / Schleuniger + Uponor industrial | 2 | $77,500 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-WD-DEPTH | Window/door assembly depth: tables, hardware, seal, test In-house + bought IGUs (Cardinal / similar). Never melt glass. | 2 | $52,500 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-HT-PLANT | 80,000–120,000 SF commercial module plant New or reused industrial — not the 40,000-SF house building stretched | 3 | $13,000,000 | Later 504 / mortgage |
| EQ-FUT-KUKA-LINE | KUKA / similar automated modular-house system KUKA automated modular house building | 3 | $16,500,000 | UCC-1 when purchased |
| EQ-FUT-FL-CRANE | All-terrain crane (owned when utilization pays) Grove / Liebherr / Tadano used | 2 | $265,000 | Title when purchased |