Day 1 of the MOD X Greater Boston 2026 Exchange!

I cannot think of a better way to start the first day of our time in New England than to meet a living legend: Tedd Benson of Bensonwood | Unity Homes. Tedd generously shared the lessons and insights he has accummulated over the course of his incredibly successful 50 years of leading Bensonwood. He said homes should show people that they matter. He has made it his company’s mission to improve lives through Bensonwood’s processes and products.

He translated the lessons he learned as a cabinetmaker to timber framing off-site fabrication and now to the Unity Homes factory. It was inspiring to see a company that continually looks for better ways to build more high quality homes for people.

Tedd shared that Jon Habraken’s Open Building (OB) concept - detangling the shell of a building (longer lifespan elements) from its infill components (shorter lifespace elements) - has been central to how Bensonwood puts homes together. And Bensonwood’s embrace of “OBGrid” Standards for all their projects really streamlined their work.

We first went to their facilities in Walpole, NH. And then we traveled to Keene, NH to see their newer Unity factory.

And it was clear by the images that the employees posted on the lockers that they are proud of what they do at Bensonwood…