GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A company in West Michigan is creating homes, swimming pools and everything in between, all from old used shipping containers that they source from across the Midwest.
Newco Design Build, out on Roger B Chaffee Memorial Blvd SE, has been around the last decade— working with old shipping containers for the last 7 years.
About 2 years ago, they officially formed their Blox brand— a brand focused entirely on creating unique structures out of these containers.
“If you look at, you know, the cost of building materials in general, both wood and steel, this was an excellent time for us to kind of showcase what it is that these particular containers can do,” Burton Cardwell, development at Newco/Blox, told FOX 17 when they stopped by Wednesday morning.
Cardwell says the pandemic has pushed people to rethink how they utilize the space around them.
“I think going forward, you're going to see more and more of this,” he said Wednesday.
“We're already seeing the uptick in people wanting to have backyard container locations for them to do entertaining outdoors."
They were able to supply container-based structures to several businesses throughout West Michigan during the pandemic, allowing them to adjust their operations with ease.
"We did a project for a local restaurant... we were able to basically increase their seating during the winter months, they were then able to heat the area for their guests," Cardwell said.
They source the containers from Detroit, Chicago, and Indiana. Most of the containers they receive come with a chain of custody, meaning they are often able to share with their clients exactly where the container has been.
On Wednesday, they showed FOX 17 one of their off-the-grid hunting cabins. Besides plenty of room to move around inside, there was ample storage, including a hidden gun safe under the floor. There are also high quality, yet smaller than usual, appliances, and a compost toilet.
They are also now producing a swimming pool created from a shipping container. Something you truly have to see yourself.
“One of the things that people may or may not think of... these containers, they are actually gathering places, and they don't only have one purpose, they can have multiple purposes.”
Blox— Visit their Website
