Characters such as RAL Homes Reiny Loeliger don’t come around very often. When asked recently by our Founding Publisher Greg King what first attracted Reiny to coming to Australia from Switzerland, he joyfully replied “Kangaroos and gold!”

It’s his infectious personality that makes Reiny as unique as the homes he pre-fabricates out of his spick-and-span workshop in Ararat, Victoria.

As Greg discovered quite quickly, Reiny immediately makes you feel like an old friend. He’s also a true romantic at heart.

A NOT SO SQUARE PEG

The remarkability of Reiny’s story is his seemingly simple idea that eventually turned into RAL Homes. It’s one of those moments when you scratch your head and wonder, “Why haven’t more people thought of this?”

After working as a traditional building business for 15 years, Reiny soon became puzzled as to why no one else was questioning the structure and design of the standard residential homes he saw at work every day.

“I was just thinking, “˜I’m getting sick of it.

“After working in traditional building for a long time, we started thinking more and more about modular building,” Reiny recalled.

He was determined to create a home that would be a base for healthy living. Disenchanted by the timber-framed, brick veneer homes he saw so commonly, he was inspired by the seemingly simple structure of a water tank.

“I was trying to think of better ways of doing things, and after some experimenting and with some help from some fellow Swiss boys that were working with me at the time, we looked at the shape of a water tank and how it could be modified, and it just took off from there!” Reiny recalls.

The idea of a simple yet effective modular and prefabricated housing system lingered on Reiny’s mind, also driven by the desire to create something special for customers that was still affordable.

Listening to the background of RAL Homes and its story, it’s obvious that Reiny and Lorraine have always wanted to maintain a positive experience for their customers.

Whether it be from the concept, to the production, delivery or the final result, RAL Homes is truly something unique within the timber industry.

During the mid-1980s experimenting ensued, and eventually Reiny settled on the now signature, curvature shape for the homes, which today is still the essence of RAL.

If you would like more information about RAL Homes, check them out online ralhomes.com.au

You can also read the full RAL Homes feature in the April edition of TimberTrader News.

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