LIHU‘E — Jensen of Hawaii Inc. executives Chris Jensen, Kevin Hurst and Ross Hood are working to popularize a way of building they hope will put more Kauaians into homes faster and at less cost.
Over the past year, the Kapa‘a-based company owners have laid the foundation of their “custom building systems.”
The process involves uses engineered, pre-numbered pieces of lumber that can help cut construction costs by 10 percent and more, the owners say. Use of the materials also can help reduce building time by a month or two, depending on the customized features of a home to be built.
The building method can help homebuyers stretch their building dollars. The building method also can be applied to commercial and industrial projects as well.
Jensen said contractors who use the system also benefit because they don’t have to hire as many workers and use materials that are cut precisely.
Because there will be less waste material, contractors also won’t have to pay as much in fees to the county for dumping debris from the worksite at the county landfill in Kekaha.
The cost-cutting savings would theoretically be passed onto homebuyers or contractors using the CBS system.
The building method has been used extensively in the mainland and in Europe. At least 1,000 homes in Hawai‘i also have been built using that method, including those on Kaua‘i, Jensen said.
CBS, the building arm of Jensen of Hawaii, has put emphasis on the building method as a way to help discerning buyers get the best home for their money, Jensen said.
“I am basically going public with it,” he said. “I am trying to educate the public about this. They won’t have to spend as much as they thought they had to.”
CBS is constructing a home in Kapa‘a and another in the second phase of the Molokoa subdivision in Lihu‘e.
Jensen and Ross are particularly proud of their Lihu‘e home. Work started in mid-summer and is expected to be completed in November.
The home has already sold for about $350,000, boasting custom fans, lights, a $16,000 stucco exterior, a master bedroom with a walk-in closet, a high-ceiling garage, a glass front door and a food pantry with a fan.
Plans are afoot to build three more CBS homes soon, and another six homes by the end of the year. Traditional builders generally take between five to six months to build a home, although they can build other homes simultaneously.
CBS has the dealership for the paneled building materials with West Coast Mills Inc. in Chehalis, Wa., which has been in business since 1947.
Jensen also has dealerships with other building materials companies to provide building options for his customers on Kaua‘i.
The engineered pieces are created in West Coast Mills’ facilities and are shipped to Kaua‘i.
CBS brings in building materials like interior walls, windows, exterior doors, roof trusses, wall panels, interior partitions, exterior windows and doors, Jensen said. On request from customers, the company can bring in sinks, bath tubs, lights and other customized pieces, Jensen said.
The panelized materials are treated, are of high quality, and are comparable in cost to that of raw lumber used in building homes the traditional way, Jensen said.
Where the CBS customers save money is in the labor.
Traditional contractors use raw lumber to make structures like frames, windows frames and panels, a process that slows down the building process and makes it more expensive, in Jensen’s opinion.
“We beat the traditional stick method (building materials from scratch) by time. Saving time saves money,” Jensen said.
Promotional materials from the Wood Truss Council of America in Madison, Wi. noted, for instance, “stick frame” (traditional building) methods to build a floor frame would take 38 hours, as opposed to 12 hours for the same floor using panelized materials.
CBS, using the pre-made materials, can complete a home in five months, or a little longer, depending on the customization of the home and the delivery of goods for the work, Jensen said.
Jensen and Ross said they don’t mean to knock traditional builders, “just to offer something different” to homebuyers also wanting a quality product with the CBS method.
The CBS system is intended to allow contractors and homebuilders build homes with as few frustrations and challenges as possible, Jensen said.
CBS offers various building packages that include instructions, helping to reduce the risks of building mistakes, Jensen said.
“Every plan comes numbered with a breakdown of where everything goes,” Jensen said. “The homebuilder will be using materials that are pre-cut to size, numbered and coincide with the plans.” An inventory sheet also helps to keep down thefts that can occur at building sites, Jensen said.
Once the materials are brought to Kaua‘i, they can be kept at a CBS warehouse or secured at the building site.
The delivery of the material is timed with the issuance of Kaua‘i County building permits, sparing homebuyers any lag time in getting their homes built, Jensen said.
“If it is important for you to get into your home early, and it is important for you to build in a certain amount of time, then we are probably your best bet to get the job done in a timely manner,” Jensen said.
The homes they have built and are likely to build on Kaua‘i run between 1,200 to 1,500 feet square feet, Jensen said.
The homes are built according to Kaua‘i County building codes, are fitted with hurricane clips, and are inspected by county inspectors before they can be occupied, Jensen said.
He said his company also will work with contractors and homebuilders to meet their building demands.
For builders who don’t want to use expensive machinery, the company will make available shorter and smaller wall panels that can be put up by one or two people, he said.
CBS wants to help the local building trade, using local workers and subcontractors for its projects, Ross said.
CBS targets middle-class homebuyers, but can build homes for the affluent or families or individuals on budgets, Jensen said.
Jensen said he decided to start his business a year ago because he “wanted to think out of the box.”
“Instead of building homes (the traditional way), I wanted to think of a better way to help people, import materials and bypass the middle man and go into another niche,” Jensen said. “You try to figure out what you could do, to make money, to make an honest dollar.”
Jensen, who is 31 years old, said he has been in the construction business all his life. His stepfather worked on construction jobs in China and Alaska.
Prior to starting his business, Jensen worked as maintenance personnel at Wilcox Hospital.
Jensen, who is originally from Los Angeles, is a 1989 graduate of Kapa‘a High School and Ross, originally from Dallas, Texas, is 1990 graduate of Kapa‘a High.
Ross said he and Jensen were friends in high school, and went their separate ways for a while.
Ross said he has gained extensive experience about the lumber business while working for a Kaua‘i lumber yard for the past ten years.
Ross and Jensen said providing top quality service to their customers is among their priorities.
“We are not about dropping you a (building) package and leaving you behind,” Jensen said. “We can be full-service from start to finish. We can take that house from design, and we can build you that house and hand you the key.”
For more information about CBS, contact Jensen, president of Jensen Hawaii, Hurst, vice president for Jensen, and Ross, executive manager for Jensen, at http://www.cbshawaii.com.
Staff writer Lester Chang can be reached at 245-3681, Ext. 225 or mailto:lchang@pulitzer.net.
