Nomodic Adds Pioneer of Prefab Interior Construction to its Board of Directors

Mogens Smed, a leader in prefabricated interiors and former co-founder and CEO of DIRTT and SMED International, joins Nomodic.

We are pleased to announce that Mogens Smed has been appointed to our Board of Directors. Mogens is the former co-founder, CEO, and director of both DIRTT and SMED International, and is considered a pioneer of prefabricated interior construction in North America.

Under his guidance, SMED International grew into a publicly traded modular interior construction company with over $300 million in annual revenue before being bought by Haworth Inc. in 2003. DIRTT (Doing It Right This Time), a company co-founded by Mogens in 2005, was listed in the top ten of Alberta Venture magazine’s 2010 and 2011 Fast Growth Companies over $25 million. In its 14-year history, DIRTT has become a leader in prefab interiors, and has completed thousands of projects worldwide for a variety of sectors, including hospitality, healthcare, and education. His latest venture is Falkbuilt, a company that plans to build interiors using alternative forms of fabricated construction materials.

In 40 years of industry experience, Mogens has demonstrated innovation and a commitment to the environment. He was named Environmental Champion by Interiors & Sources magazine in 2004 for his drive to prevent corporations from wasteful excess while building interiors. In 2013, Mogens was named EY Prairies 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year in the Clean-tech category.

The addition of Mogens to our Board ensures that we are committed to continued innovation and excellence in permanent offsite construction.

The importance of affordable multifamily housing

For many of us, the holiday season was time spent at home with family, with our worries limited to buying gifts or preparing a big meal. For too many others, however, the worry over having a place to call home remains first and foremost.

That’s why affordable housing is so essential for our communities. At Nomodic, we aim to improve the lives of those in need by investing our time and resources into creating affordable multifamily housing options that help individuals and families into comfortable homes of their own.

Using modular and hybrid construction methods, multifamily housing can be built 30–50% faster than traditional construction, with greater schedule certainty and less construction waste and impact on the environment. This time savings is especially important when projects are needed quickly, such as the current BC Housing Rapid Response to Homelessness initiative. The tenants who will be moving into our two newest supportive housing buildings in Smithers and Terrace, B.C. will have the opportunity to move into new homes faster than what would normally be possible with traditional construction, with no sacrifice in quality. 

Rendering - Supportive housing (Terrace, B.C.)

Hybrid construction methods also provide the benefit of project continuity. We take projects from start to finish, utilizing our own site installation team’s combined 150+ years of experience. Our clients can trust that their projects are in good hands throughout the entire process. Each project and client is unique, which is why we maintain partnerships with fabrication facilities across Canada in order to choose the best partner to suit each specific design, location, and schedule requirements.

For affordable multifamily housing projects to be successful, they not only need to meet the standards many of us look for in a home; they need the community to be supportive. Our offsite construction process helps in garnering support, ensuring a lower impact to the surrounding community during construction: less noise, less waste and environmental impact, and finished buildings that are a welcome addition to communities.

Photo - Craning of supportive housing modules (Smithers, B.C., November 2018)

With increased population growth, migration to urban areas increasing, and increasing costs of living, communities need to consider developments with higher densities. Multi-storey supportive housing allows more people to live in a comfortable home closer to central areas, providing better access to urban amenities and public transportation.

There is an opportunity to supply affordable, supportive multifamily housing at a much quicker rate than typical site-built construction. At Nomodic, our priority is to expeditiously get people in need into quality, comfortable spaces that far exceed typical affordable housing — spaces that truly feel like home.