Originally posted by Equitable
This is (from my perspective in the construction industry) the most important update from FBR in the time I’ve been a shareholder. While this does not cover every little detail, it gives a clearer picture of the why and how of WaaS.
It acknowledges that adoption of a new form of capital intensive equipment by construction companies was going to take time and provides a solution to that problem. The benefit of that solution is retaining control of our IP and, provided we can have Hadrian produced in sufficient numbers, generating our own adoption of robotically-built walls.
I am keen to learn how a critical mass of Hadrians will be paid for to enable us to reliably offer WaaS and hope this will be in an update before too long. Manufacturing sufficient numbers quickly enough to commit to construction contracts key. We need to be able to confidently bid for blocklaying/wall building tenders knowing we can then perform on time.
I am not convinced that ‘…offering bricklaying services is the lower risk’ option. Construction is a tough, unforgiving, adversarial business (I know, I spent most of the past 20 years enforcing construction contracts). There are serious costs if you don’t get it right and don’t finish on time.
However, I do agree it is potentially the higher value option. As a bricklaying contractor, FBR will have a massive competitive advantage over all those brick/block laying companies who will still be using slow and messy manual methods. We will be automated and also own the IP for our automation. As I’ve said in another post, if the WaaS model is executed well, FBR will seriously disrupt the blocklaying sector.
I note this update answers the question many posters have asked about the geographical manufacture of the machines; they will be manufactured near to where they are needed. It appears likely we (or a manufacturer on our behalf) will buy a truck, bring parts from our established global supply chain, and fit out the truck ready for use. Looking back at how Hadrian 1 was assembled last year, there appears to be a plan that is all coming together now.
Congratulations holders. We now own a construction company – one that owns its own specialist technology that gives us the potential (again, if executed well) for a very deep moat.
So now FBR's a construction company.
That means FBR will have to be licensed like any other building contractor pay into home building compensation for statutory warrantys. They'll have to guarantee every block wall they lay structurally for 7 years, they'll have to guarantee that pre ordered window's are going to fit openings left behind, against water ingress in single leaf masonry HX can't work over starter bars and has no means of compensation for undulations in slabs or discrepancies of any kind, no expansion joints. And using glue for the ease of the machine!!!! Oh dear Archistruct won't touch this imo.
(20min delay)