Former Apple and Tesla employees launch mass production development company

Juno Residential Inc. plans to use prefab techniques to build housing for cheaper

Juno CEO Jonathan Scherr and a rendering of the project 
Juno CEO Jonathan Scherr and a rendering of the project

Juno Residential Inc. the latest Silicon Valley startup set on re-ordering the real estate development world.

The firm plans to use mass production and prefabrication techniques to make it cheaper and more ecological to develop housing nationwide. The firm was co-founded by former employees of Apple and Tesla, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The firm officially launched operations this week and has so far raised $11 million in funding since its founding last year.

The company plans to design and develop properties using a set of components and basic designs. Some elements would differ at properties, including the size of buildings, facades, and lobbies. Juno wants to use timber as a structural material instead of steel and concrete, a practice that’s become more popular with developers in recent years but hasn’t seen widespread adoption.

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Unlike SoftBank-funded Katerra, probably the largest prefabricated housing company in the country, Juno won’t manufacture its components itself. Instead it will design components and outsource manufacturing. If that sounds familiar, it’s deliberate.

Co-founder Jonathan Scherr said Juno is “treating our supply chain like Apple treats its supply chain.”
It’ll ship those components to a job site where they can be assembled.

Katerra has run into issues with its own operation in recent months, mostly tied to problems in fabrication.

The company replaced its CEO Michael Marks in May and a month later laid off 400 employees. [WSJ] — Dennis Lynch