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Venice Biennale spotlights Speedstac as a modular solution for Ukraine’s housing recovery.
Speedstac, a modular construction system developed by Sparkbird and WZMH Architects, will be featured in the French Pavilion at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale. As part of the exhibition’s theme Vivre avec / Living with, which addresses architecture’s role in responding to instability, climate change and social fracture, Speedstac is being recognised for its technical potential to support reconstruction in conflict-affected environments such as Ukraine. (main pic: Render of a completed Speedstac building.)
Modular construction designed for scale and speed
Speedstac is built on a prefabricated system of concrete modules, engineered to be stacked both vertically and horizontally using a proprietary bolted connector system. These modules are self-contained structural units, each incorporating integrated plumbing, electrical and HVAC services. The system is designed for rapid manufacture, transport, and assembly, making it suitable for constrained urban environments and projects with compressed timelines.
The structure of each unit includes a sandwich concrete system that eliminates the need for applied finishes such as tiles, plasterboard or suspended ceilings. Instead, the exposed high-performance concrete serves as the final interior surface, contributing to material efficiency, acoustic performance and fire safety. Reductions in thickness and the use of lightweight concrete improve liftability on site and help simplify craning operations in dense or damaged settings.
Originally conceived to address urban housing demand in Canada, Speedstac has since been adapted to respond to the different technical challenges of post-conflict contexts. The system’s modular format, low material wastage, and fast install times make it particularly relevant in countries like Ukraine, where infrastructure has been severely compromised.
Potential applications in Ukraine’s reconstruction effort
Since 2022, more than 25,000 residential buildings have been damaged or destroyed across Ukraine. Speedstac has been proposed as a system that could help repair partially destroyed structures without requiring full demolition. In regions like Kharkiv, where Khrushchovka-era panel housing dominates, the system could replace individual units while retaining intact portions of existing buildings. Ukrainian architects working alongside the Sparkbird team in Canada have explored these repair-and-infill approaches using Speedstac’s modular format.
Additional prototypes designed for the Ukrainian context include a single-family Speedstac Private House, intended to serve both as emergency shelter and permanent accommodation, and a two-storey kindergarten made from 37 modular units. The kindergarten design includes segregated learning areas, integrated shelter space, and rooftop access, and can be installed in under two weeks.
Part of a wider architectural response to crisis
The French Pavilion at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale will present Speedstac as one of 50 international projects selected to explore architecture’s role in addressing global challenges. As part of the pavilion’s section on Living with the Broken, the system highlights how prefabricated construction can be applied to rebuilding efforts in conflict zones.
While deployment in Ukraine is still in development, Speedstac offers a structured and replicable method of delivering residential and social infrastructure in severely affected urban areas. Its modular nature, combined with pre-integrated services and flexible installation options, makes it a strong candidate for post-conflict housing programmes where speed, durability and material efficiency are key.
See: Speedstac
