| 103 T T Hugh de Lacy Market expanding for modular home supplier The homes are pre-wired for solar energy, feature a heat pump and even a log burner if required, and there’s a choice between gas and electric water heating. Whio Homes BUILDING Whio Homes’ first transportable home was delivered in 2024, four more followed last year, and this year the Christchurch company has a target of 16 modular homes to come out of its factory in Rolleston, south of the city, with three of those already booked. That’s exponential growth in the three years since husband-and-wife team Leesa and James Anderson launched their business in a container barn that has since grown big enough to allow two of their 70m models to be built under cover at the same time. Whio Homes offers pre-drawn plans for 56sqm, 70sqm and 110sqm homes, with a modular option that consists of bedroom, living and garage modules that can be arranged on-site to create a180sqm home. The company’s happy to do bespoke designs, and in the wake of the Government’s liberalising of the rules for granny flats, sleepouts and offices, Whio Homes is pitching into this market too. It has partnered with local company House and Heavy Haulage to transport the finished homes, which feature a magnesium oxide board (magnum) that’s vapour permeable, doesn’t grow mould, is fire-resistant and contains no silica. The homes are pre-wired for solar energy, feature a heat pump and even a log burner if required, and there’s a choice between gas and electric water heating. They are designed to full Foreverbreathe specifications, which include magnesium oxide (magnum) board and terra lana wool insulation. This system was developed by Health Based Building, previously Harvey and Thompson, a 150-year-old Christchurch business, and it allows the house to be both air-tight and vapour- permeable, creating a more energy-efficient and healthier home that manages its own moisture and doesn’t need to be mechanically ventilated. The Whio Homes designs are modern, attractive and versatile, and produced under cover, meaning no weather delays and a dry home with increased efficiency. The business had its beginnings during a 15-month working holiday that Leesa and James took in the United Kingdom in 2015, and they noticed how much warmer houses were there, even though they could be hundreds of years old. Leesa, a large-animal veterinary surgeon by profession, was practising in Wales and Somerset, and James followed working as a farm labourer. When they returned home, James, previously a painter and decorator, completed a carpentry apprenticeship with the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation (BCITO). He then worked as a labour-only contractor on a variety of projects for a few years, specialising in foundations, until he and Leesa formed Whio Homes in 2019, naming the company for the rare native blue duck that “sits motionless in the flowing stream while its feet are going flat out under the water, similar to our lifestyle of three young kids and a business to grow,” Leesa says. “We wanted a company name that was quintessentially Kiwi. “Over the last couple of months we have hit the ground running with our goal of 16 houses this year, doubling this again in the years to come, and expanding into the North Island and Australia too.” “Over the last couple of months we have hit the ground running with our goal of 16 houses this year, doubling this again in the years to come, and expanding into the North Island and Australia too.” BUILDING SUPPLIES | POWER TOOLS | HARDWARE | POLE SHEDS 15 Station St, Leeston 03 3243385 info@buildlinkselwyn.co.nz Proudly supplying building materials to Whio Homes PROUD TO SUPPORT Whio Homes healthbasedbuilding.com Visit our website for more
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