In our latest Spotlight Interview, we spoke to, Craig Strachan, Co-Founder of XERA Innovations. Craig delves into XERA’s latest innovation, X-IST, platform designed to streamline the custom build process, delivering individual and high-quality homes at scale and incorporating modern technologies such as AI. “We saw a need to simplify the often complex and costly practices, while empowering buyers to personalise their homes in a way that aligns with our climate crisis. The concept for X-IST will streamline this journey, making sustainable, customised homes more efficient to deliver and accessible to all.”

Q1: What inspired the development of the X-IST solution?

The inspiration for X-IST came from XERA Innovations’ mission to develop integrated technology solutions that increase housebuilding production and facilitate the delivery of customised, zero carbon homes at scale. With over 50 years of combined experience in the industry and more than 200 completed projects, XERA has seen firsthand the challenges and inefficiencies in the self and custom build process. We saw a need to simplify the often complex and costly practices, while empowering buyers to personalise their homes in a way that aligns with our climate crisis. The concept for X-IST will streamline this journey, making sustainable, customised homes more efficient to deliver and accessible to all.

Q2: Why custom build and what are the opportunities and challenges with delivering at scale?

The housing market is seeing a renaissance in the desire to individualise and break from uniformity, with an established and growing demographic in the UK motivated by the prospect of exercising agency in the design and specification of their new home.

Government recognise the social, economic and environmental benefits of custom build homes, requiring all local authorities to measure demand for these homes and make sufficient land available. A significant proportion of this land is likely to be allocated plots on forthcoming strategic and large developments, where a traditional housebuilder or land promoter will already be involved.

However, developing self and custom build homes is typically fraught with cost inefficiencies, time delays, and the difficulties of managing unique designs and individual homebuyers; none of which aligns with the current volume housebuilder business model.

X-IST will address these issues by offering a home configuration platform that streamlines the marketing, sale and design processes, allowing potential homebuyers to configure and reserve their home, with fixed costs and known carbon impacts. Upon reservation the drawings and specification of the home are transmitted to the housebuilder, allowing efficient production, reduced overheads and known costs.

Q3: How do you balance individual customisation of homes while ensuring that they remain sustainable, cohesive and cost-certain?

We achieve this balance by offering pre-configured typologies and specifications with known time, cost and carbon impacts, allowing prospective homebuyers to customise elements within these parameters. X-IST ensures that individual choices are aligned with zero carbon goals and budget certainty, ensuring that every decision supports both sustainability and financial predictability.

Q4: How will XERA develop X-IST and take the solution to market?

XERA is still in the process of developing X-IST and actively seeking investment and funding to take the solution to market; we are also looking for partnerships with other housebuilders to bring the necessary volume in delivering homes at scale.

The UK government continues to push for more housing supply, making our approach timely in addressing this demand. Our go-to-market strategy includes showcasing its scalability in real-world projects and highlighting the platform’s ability to efficiently deliver customised, zero carbon homes; in securing new collaborations, we aim to demonstrate the impact and potential of X-IST.

Q5- What role do you think technology such as AI and  blockchain will play in the future of homebuilding, and how is XERA positioning itself to take advantage of these?

Technology, including AI and blockchain, has the potential to revolutionise homebuilding by improving efficiency, reducing costs, and enhancing the personalisation of homes; GenAI could go considerably further. The construction industry is beginning to emphasise digital integration, sustainability, and data-driven processes as key drivers for future growth, but has historically been slow to integrate new technologies.

Right now, XERA is more focused on building the right datasets but in time may bring these technologies to X-IST to enhance decision-making, streamline workflows, and reduce costs. As technology continues to advance, we aim to ensure that X-IST evolves to stay ahead of industry trends and meets the future demands for customised, zero carbon homes.