Building a home in just five weeks may sound like a marketing gimmick. But for NXT TEC. founders Natasha Di Ciano and Mataki O’Goshi Lim, it’s a reality they believe is critical to solving Australia’s housing shortage and part of a bigger global challenge.
“We established NXT TEC. because we were motivated to create a solution to the global housing crisis,” Di Ciano told the Tech Day Network. “Since well before the current Australian housing crisis, we identified that the need for safe and stable housing is critical worldwide, and it is essential to the wellbeing of individuals and society as a whole. Our technology enables more homes to be built globally through a model that delivers speed, quality and sustainability.”
The Technology: A Skeleton for Housing
Founded in 2015 in Western Australia, NXT TEC. has spent nearly a decade refining its patented “superstructure” technology. The system is built around 11 prefabricated, precast components, from piles and footings through to beams, columns, walls and roof which fit together like a human skeleton.
“The whole structure, from the foundation to completion, is precision-designed and prefabricated offsite,” Di Ciano said. “The components are brought to site, and the structure can be assembled in four days, locked up with windows and doors, and then finished with interiors and landscaping in weeks. That’s how we can deliver a home in five weeks.”
For Lim, the inventor and NXT TEC.’s Technical Director, the explanation is even simpler.
“Our superstructure is like the human skeleton,” he said. “The footings are the feet, the columns the legs, the beams the hips, and the roof the head. Once you understand that, you understand how our system works. We can lock up a house in four days because we’ve designed every part of the structure to work together.”
Time, Cost and Sustainability
The numbers are stark. Traditional builds can take 18 – 24 months. NXT TEC.’s first display home in Anketell, WA, went from slab to lock-up in four days and practical completion in just five weeks, around 20 times faster than conventional construction.
Speed is only part of the story. The model slashes waste and cost.
“In traditional construction you often order 20 per cent more material than needed, and that waste is money as well as an environmental issue,” Di Ciano explained. “Our fabrication process is precise. Some other prefabricated products offer part of a solution, but we deliver a complete package and tick all four boxes: time, cost, environmental impact and quality.”
The display home also achieved a 7.8-star NatHERS rating, well above the national benchmark, thanks to precision design and reduced onsite waste.
“Our technology produces little to no waste on site,” Di Ciano added. “We also localise manufacturing near project sites, cutting transport emissions and supporting local economies.”
Addressing Australia’s Housing Shortage
The urgency is obvious. Under the federal government’s National Housing Accord, Australia must deliver 1.2 million homes in five years. That’s 60,000 completions every quarter. Yet in early 2025, only 43,517 homes were finished, well short of target. Immigration adds another 650,000 people annually, requiring about 250,000 homes each year, while actual completions hover around 160,000 – 180,000.
Western Australia is hardest hit, meeting just 48 per cent of housing demand. Nationally, the undersupply is estimated at 200,000 – 300,000 dwellings.
Di Ciano believes NXT TEC.’s model can help bridge the gap.
“The biggest way our technology addresses the housing crisis is that we can manufacture homes quickly and supply more to the market,” she said. “Through our technology licensing model we can bring in manufacturers and builders across Australia to deliver at scale.”
The phones are already ringing. “We get calls every day,” she added. “From manufacturers, builders and developers who want to deliver projects with our technology. Social housing, rental housing, ownership, all markets are affected.”
A Global Model
The problem is not just Australian. Globally, 2.8 billion people lack adequate housing. Over 1.1 billion live in slums, and 300 million are homeless. Developed economies also face severe shortages: Europe requires 9.6 million homes, while the United States faces a record shortfall of 4.7 million units.
“Our primary target market is the US,” Di Ciano confirmed. “There is a clear need for resilient housing given the hurricanes and fires. We’ve signed agency agreements and are preparing for a public listing in the US because it is a technology-focused market.”
But the need spans every continent. From India to Africa and Latin America, demand for affordable, sustainable homes is urgent. NXT TEC.’s licensing model allows local manufacturers to produce components close to projects, cutting freight costs, transferring skills, and creating jobs.
“Governments are looking for long-term solutions, not just imports,” Di Ciano said. “Our licensing model delivers that.”
Overcoming Tradition
Breaking into an industry that has built the same way for centuries is no small challenge.
“The construction industry has operated in the same way for hundreds of years,” Di Ciano said. “Convincing stakeholders to do something new requires a change of mindset. But traditional methods simply cannot keep up with demand. We are seeing governments and financiers starting to accept prefabrication, which is encouraging.”
Lim takes a more philosophical view.
“Every second the world’s population increases but the planet doesn’t grow bigger,” he said. “What humanity needs now is shelter, food and medical care. My role is to put a shelter on people’s heads.”
A Vision for the Future
For Di Ciano and Lim, NXT TEC. is not just about technology, it’s about changing lives.
“Our aim is for construction to become simplified and housing to become readily accessible, and like food and water it is essential to survival,” Di Ciano said. “We want to drive the price of homes down so that young people can own a home and that nobody is left without shelter.”
She added: “With technology it becomes more accessible, more affordable, and ultimately more people will have homes. We founded NXT TEC. to help those who need it most, and we believe that everyone should have a home. Enhancing accessibility to housing for more people is key.”
The TGB Take
NXT TEC. represents more than just a construction disruptor. It is a reminder that while the Australian industry struggles with cost blowouts, labour shortages and regulatory challenges, innovation is not optional.
Five-week homes won’t solve the housing crisis alone. But if embraced at scale, they could form part of a broader mix of solutions giving builders, governments and developers another weapon in the fight to deliver housing where it’s needed most.
For builders watching closely, the lesson is clear: the way we build homes is changing. The question is who will change with it.
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