Build Time

Build Time to 1.0 Labor-Hour per Square Foot

This page defines how Open Source Ecology (OSE) can credibly achieve approximately 1.0 all-in labor-hour per finished square foot (LH/ft²) for housing construction. This is not a productivity claim but a systems-design outcome based on structural elimination of labor categories.

Canonical Metric Definition

OSE uses a single, non-negotiable metric:

All-in Labor Hours per Finished Square Foot (LH/ft²)

This includes every human labor hour required to deliver a finished, inspected, code-compliant house, excluding land acquisition.

Included:

• On-site and off-site fabrication
• Logistics and material handling
• Staging and setup
• Coordination and supervision
• Inspections and rework
• Training inefficiency
• Tooling setup
• Punch lists and callbacks

Any metric that excludes these categories is not acceptable for system planning.

Industry Baseline

Conventional housing typically exhibits the following labor distribution:

Category	Typical LH/ft²
Direct build labor	~0.85
Trade handoffs and waiting	0.40–0.60
Inspection friction	0.20–0.30
Rework and errors	0.30–0.50
Coordination and supervision	0.30–0.50
Logistics and staging	0.20–0.30
Training and variability	0.20–0.30
Total	~2.5–3.0

OSE’s objective is to remove approximately 1.5–2.0 LH/ft² by eliminating entire labor categories rather than compressing them.

Principle: Labor Is Eliminated, Not Optimized

OSE does not pursue 1.0 LH/ft² through:

• Increased effort
• Better management
• Higher skill
• Motivation
• Lean terminology

OSE achieves 1.0 LH/ft² by making entire classes of labor disappear structurally.

Elimination Strategy

Eliminate Trade Boundaries

Target reduction: 0.4–0.6 LH/ft²

Rule: No build step may require waiting for another trade.

Mechanism:

• Multi-trade modules (structure, wiring, boxes, air sealing combined)
• No rough-in versus finish phases
• No return visits

OSE action: Walls, floors, roofs, wet cores, and power centers are treated as atomic modules that are completed once, fully.

If a worker must return later, the design has failed.

Eliminate Inspection Labor

Target reduction: 0.2–0.3 LH/ft²

Inspections compensate for low process trust.

Mechanism:

• Fixed module designs
• Fixed fastener schedules
• Fixed routing paths
• Process verification instead of outcome investigation

OSE action: Modules are pre-approved. Inspectors verify that the approved process was followed, supported by time-lapse and AI-assisted quality control artifacts.

This model is legally established in modular construction.

Eliminate Rework

Target reduction: 0.3–0.5 LH/ft²

Rework is caused by ambiguity and field decisions.

Mechanism:

• No field interpretation
• No dimensional freedom
• No undocumented decisions

OSE action: CAD-for-swarm is a first-class production output. Every module includes:

• Defined ports
• Datum references
• Tolerance envelopes

If CAD does not exist, the module does not exist.

Eliminate Coordination Overhead

Target reduction: 0.3–0.5 LH/ft²

Coordination exists due to human-dependent sequencing.

Mechanism:

• Self-sequencing modules
• Geometry-enforced order
• Error-proofing

OSE action: Assembly order is encoded in geometry. Modules cannot be installed incorrectly. If explanation is required, the system has failed.

Eliminate Training Drag

Target reduction: 0.2–0.3 LH/ft²

Training drag is driven by variance, not skill.

Mechanism:

• Short, repeatable task units
• Binary quality checks
• Visual instruction dominance

OSE action: Tasks are designed for 15–30 minute execution windows. Workers execute protocols rather than learning trades.

Physics-Limited Residual Labor

After eliminations, remaining labor approaches the physical floor:

Category	LH/ft²
Physical assembly	0.75–0.85
Logistics (irreducible)	~0.10
Oversight	~0.05
Residual friction	~0.05
Total	~0.95–1.05

This is achievable without heavy robotics.

Why OSE Can Achieve This

Commercial builders cannot reach this threshold due to:

• Fragmented incentives
• Trade silos
• IP enclosure
• Adversarial contracting
• Liability partitioning

OSE can achieve this because:

• Unified design authority
• Open CAD and documentation
• Integrated training and production
• Elimination of trade monopolies

This is an institutional architecture advantage, not a technology advantage.

Required Precursor Deliverables

OSE must build the following before house-level optimization:

1. Canonical module library
2. CAD-for-swarm standards
3. Time-lapse and AI quality control pipeline
4. Module-level labor benchmarks
5. Inspection pre-approval agreements

Only after these exist can house-level labor collapse toward 1.0 LH/ft².

Bottom Line

Achieving 1.0 LH/ft² is feasible and defensible. It is not optimistic and not a productivity claim. It is the outcome of correct system design.

OSE succeeds by refusing to allow labor to exist where information should exist instead.