Teen engineering phenom builds prototype modular home to help homelessness

London engineering student who previously made waves with his model Mercedes G-Wagon presenting modular homebuilding. Bryan Bicknell reports.

When he became aware of the devastation in his hometown of London, Ont., caused by homelessness, Ribal Zebian was determined to do something about it.

“We have around 1,800 homeless people, and that number is rising, right?” exclaimed Zebian in an interview with CTV News.

A first-year engineering student at Western University and Schulich Foundation Scholar, we first met Zebian last year when, as a high school student, he designed an electric, wooden, working model of a Mercedes G-Class SUV, which he subsequently donated to the London Children’s Museum.

Now, the 18 year old has developed a prototype of a new modular home that he believes could help to house those living on the street.

“And it’s not mainly the homeless issue. I’m concerned about the people in the future that will end up facing that problem. Right, because house prices are increasing and increasing and increasing,” said Zebian.

Made of fibreglass panels and equipped with utilities, he believes his new home can be functional, built inexpensively, and look attractive.

“With fibreglass you can make extravagant moulds, and you can replicate those. It can be duplicated. And for our roofing system, we’re not using the traditional truss method. We’re using actually an insulated core PET foam that supports the structure and structural integrity of the roof,” he explained.

Longtime affordable housing advocate Gary Brown is encouraged by what he sees so far.

“Are tiny homes the entire answer? No, but it’s a part of the solution. I’ve seen quite a few going up in other cities, and it’s something London itself is kind of lagging behind a little bit,” said Brown.

But Zebian is not stopping there. Beginning in May, he plans to live in the home for one year, testing it for himself. He says the test home will be located far from the comforts of his family home to get a first-hand experience of what works and what doesn’t.

“We want to see if we can make it through all four seasons- summer, winter, spring, and fall. But if you can make it through that, great. But that’s not the only thing. When you live in something that long and use it, you can notice every single mistake and error, and you can optimize for the best experience,” said Zebian.

Once the prototype has been refined, his goal is to partner with manufacturers to mass produce it, and get the new home to as many people who need housing as possible.

“But I do believe eventually we’ll get to the point where we’ll be able to deliver these homes to people,” he stated.

The City of London provides insights into the municipality’s homelessness system, including current data, on its website here.