CMAX Systems' building-in-a-box seems almost too good to be true. It offers a solid-floored, robust, habitable structure, 19 ft long by 7.4 ft wide (5.8 x 2.25 m) with a ceiling height of 7.2 ft (2.2 m), so only a handful of pro basketball players would brush their heads on the ceiling.
The CMAX System's most transformative super power though, is its ability to fold into a manageable 330-lb (150-kg) unit that can easily be transported on the back of a pickup or a trailer, then set down more or less anywhere, raised off the ground and leveled out with its adjustable legs and ready to go within about 10 minutes, using two people and no special tools. You could look at it as a super-robust, solid-floor, eight-person tent that won't blow away in a storm, or as an easily relocatable temporary building.
The rigid central structure of the unit enables the CMAX (at additional cost) to mount solar panels, air-conditioning and/or a water treatment unit. It also gives it a lockable door – although to be fair, security-wise it's only really locked until somebody wanders up with a knife and makes a new door of their own.
The unit is designed to take advantage of natural ventilation, with numerous retractable surfaces, yet it can be closed up for complete privacy – and it can be made airtight enough to operate as a mobile medical unit or laboratory.
The potential uses for CMAX's portable fold-up buildings are almost limitless – temporary storage, shelter, living or working quarters for everyone at an affordable price. Many a race team would have one or more, as would construction companies, mining companies, party, events and outdoor hire companies.
The CMAX System was originally designed as an emergency shelter for humanitarian aid, but the design appears so broadly useful and durable in a range of different climates that it appears an ideal solution for a lot of American problems – not the least of which is affordable emergency housing, given the wave of homelessness sweeping the country.
As it was designed to be set up quickly in disaster scenarios, the CMAX sits on 20 height-adjustable feet, so the CMAX can be made stable on most stretches of relatively flat ground, and emergency teams can put buildings where they need them. Of course, it also means the CMAX can give campers or mountaineers a cabin in the mountains exactly where they want it, pronto.
Now here's one small catch.
Buying the CMAX System
If you go to the CMAX System web site, you can request information about buying a CMAX by filling out a form. You won't find the buy price unless you directly enquire via the form. And if you do directly enquire, they will try to get you to buy shares in the company.
We spoke directly to Argentinian Founder and CEO Nicolas Garcia Mayor about this, and he assured us that you can indeed buy one for US$8,000 – buying shares in the company is not necessary. It's certainly an odd way to do business, but then the consumer side of the CMAX system is less of a focus than the CMAX Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit whose core stated aims are to help out with natural disaster relief and refugee support.
Indeed, earlier versions of the CMAX system have already been in use for more than a decade, and every 11 CMAX systems sold to consumers will trigger the donation of one unit to the Foundation to be used in a refugee camp or disaster site.
The CMAX System company is selling these things to consumers on pre-order – so standard buyer-beware advice applies, and we're not sure when deliveries are expected.
Source: CMAX System
