Resetting Hospitality: Ben Uyeda’s Modular Desert Lab in Joshua Tree

Building RESET: Modular Lessons from Joshua Tree's Backyard | Ben Uyeda

Ben Uyeda leverages modular construction, innovative design, and strategic partnerships to create unique, high-end outdoor hospitality experiences, such as RESET, that cater to the growing demand for nature-based escapes.

• 00:00 🌳 Ben Uyeda creates RESET, a modular outdoor hospitality project near national parks, capitalizing on the growing desire to escape screens and connect with nature.

  • We have reached peak screen time, and as a result, people now value and aspire to spend time in nature, which may soon shift to valuing agriculture.

  • Ben Uyeda started buying land outside national parks to build RESET, inspired by the rise of outdoor hospitality and Instagram's growth.

• 01:55 🏗 Ben Uyeda uses modular construction with careful planning, advanced tech, and simultaneous multi-phase construction to compress building timelines and adapt to financial challenges.

  • Modular construction requires early commitment and careful planning, as it depends on factors like team, location, budget, and level of investment, with no one-size-fits-all solution.

  • To compress the construction timeline, Ben Uyeda's team uses modular construction across three sites, including laser-cut steel framing and robotic fabrication to shave months off the project timeline.

  • Ben Uyeda tests modular building methods by creating a prototype, gathering social media feedback, and working on multiple phases of construction simultaneously to save on costs and adapt to financial challenges.

• 05:16 🌟 Building in public and showcasing the design process is a more effective marketing strategy than just posting polished outcomes.

  • Building in public and showcasing design effort, construction, and fabrication is a more effective marketing strategy than just posting polished outcomes.

  • Showing genuine effort and passion in content creation builds an audience that understands and appreciates the process, which is more valuable than artificially manufactured content.

  • The modules, 8 ft wide by 40 ft long, were made with a modular mill work package and detailed fabrication using Euro-style plywood and a French cleat detail for easy shelving installation.

• 08:24 💡 Ben Uyeda partners to replace hotel's pod coffee machines with custom, modular pourover coffee experience using on-site CNC machines and leftover materials.

  • Partnering with Fellow, Ben Uyeda aims to replace hotel's noisy, slow, and inconvenient pod coffee machines with a better-tasting pourover coffee experience.

  • The team created custom, modular elements, such as cabinetry, mill work, and concrete trays, using on-site CNC machines and leftover materials to reduce labor costs and increase efficiency.

• 10:35 🏕 Ben Uyeda creates modular, high-end camping experiences, like Building RESET in Joshua Tree, that combine innovative design, art, and luxury amenities to attract a premium demographic.

  • Ben Uyeda partners with consumer companies like Solo Stove to create modular additions, such as a grill attachment and concrete surround, that enhance their products and capitalize on trends like Korean barbecue.

  • Building RESET offers a unique, innovative approach to camping that appeals to a high-end demographic, focusing on constant improvement and valuable experiences over traditional marketing.

  • The hotel's installation art will combine immersive experiences with programmatic functions, such as yoga and sound baths, to add value to the property.

  • The yoga studio and sound bath place at RESET features a unique, low-cost design using repurposed concrete pipes and local trees to create a shaded structure estimated to cost $45,000 to $50,000.

• 14:14 🏗 Modular construction offers schedule and cost benefits, but faces financing challenges, requiring creative teams and flexible jurisdiction partnerships.

  • Modular construction's main benefits are its schedule and cost neutrality, with labor costs offset by shipping, and a potentially shorter construction process.

  • Modular construction projects face significant challenges, particularly with financing, due to lenders' unfamiliarity with the process and potential proprietary equipment, requiring a creative team for both engineering and financial planning.

  • In California, working with both state and local jurisdictions can provide flexibility, as the state has more predictable and stable regulations, allowing for easier management of complex projects.

• 17:18 💰 Modular construction must balance high crane rental costs with efficient logistics and transportation to minimize overall expenses.

  • The factory's module shipping strategy must balance the crane rental cost of $14,000 per day, which can install 7 modules, with the logistics of transporting modules 2400 miles and minimizing truck driver wait times of $300 per day.

  • For modular construction, buying an off-the-shelf product is more efficient than designing and commissioning a new product, which adds complications and a longer timeline.

• 18:55 🏕 Autocam's success came from emulating the iconic Airstream trailer profile, rather than trying to reinvent it, to achieve scale in outdoor hospitality.

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