We are proud to announce a new series of blog posts, “Tech in Coliving”.

As coliving expands its wing and becomes an asset class in every portfolio, the technology around it also evolves. This series attempts to help the coliving stakeholders discover the best-in-class products specifically built for the coliving sector.

For January, we wanted to start the year with a tool that no one from us expected and which is making designing coliving radically easier. No need to be an architect to start designing spaces - meet Rayon.

On Designing Coliving Spaces

Whether starting or established coliving operators, we’ve witnessed how designing a coliving space isn’t the easiest:

• You have to rely on professionals and architects to get your drawings
• You have to go through multiple iterations and coordination
• You have to pay for multiple iterations with your architect to come to a conclusion

But it doesn’t have to be this way!

Two years ago, a company was founded to help small and large teams work more efficiently in creating floor plans, designs, and feasibility studies.
Small and large-scale operators have been using it: meet Rayon, your go-to design tool.

Working With Rayon

Rayon is a 2D collaborative space design tool that enables teams to edit floor plans and extract precise information quickly.

What makes Rayon different from other softwares is that it doesn’t require to have a master’s in design or architecture; instead, it developed tools for anyone to work with floor plans:

1. You can easily upload your floor plans as images, PDFs or DWGs and Rayon recognizes the layout, making it editable.
2. You don’t need to know about precise furniture dimensions: Rayon created an entire Space Planning Guide which includes furniture elements with industry standard dimensions and layout examples - you can choose a room typology and get all the info you're looking for in a snap!
3. And, as soon as you upload your floor plan, you can easily extract relevant data such as space measurement, square meters and precise dimensions, allowing you to conduct feasibility studies.

Rayon also offers real-time collaboration features, making it user-friendly and efficient for tasks like design ideations, furniture test fitting, or generating layout schedules as a team.

We recommend Rayon to coliving operators we work with for how easy it is to use. To show you, let’s elaborate on three ways that coliving companies use the tool.

#1 Create Floor Plans Yourself

In the past, conducting a feasibility study was a lengthy and costly affair, dependent on external architects and marked by waiting periods.

Mayank Pokharna, cofounder at Artof.Co, remembers his time when he was running SimplyGuest Coliving in India:

“I would struggle with designing any new space we would take. It would always take multiple visits to the architect's office and hours of discussion to reach a conclusion, with a tool like Rayon it looks so easy.”

Rayon is changing this narrative by empowering users to take control: you can effortlessly modify floor plans, create and adjust zones, and generate comprehensive schedules:

Imagine you are working on a new asset and want to try a few variations for the new coliving space that is coming up. Now, you don't have to go to your architect. You can just clone the main plan, edit bits of it and visualize the variations to have a quick and better decision making!

The team at Coloc Housing describes this situation the following way:

"There was kind of a 'black box' situation where architects I was working with would describe project restrictions, but I would not always be able to understand what they were referring to and if it was definitive. Rayon has leveled the playing field. Although I don't have an architectural background, I can speak the same language and better pinpoint how I view the situation."

#2 Design Spaces Like A Pro (And Extract Relevant Data)

Once you have your floor plan, it’s time to go to the next steps, namely making sure the design fits in the furniture/lifestyle that you’re imagining and makes financial sense.

On the design part, Rayon makes it rather easy with its design and collaboration features:

• Rayon enables easy tracking of furniture and equipment movement, crucial for event planning or guest requests.
• Test fit furniture and equipment to optimize event spaces and plan refurbishments with precise information on SQM and dimensions.
• Teams and facility managers in coliving spaces can use Rayon to collaborate on a unified, up-to-date floor plan.
• And, as mentioned above, use the Space Planning Guide which includes furniture elements with industry standard dimensions and layout examples

Rayon is reshaping the way we approach space design, making it accessible and efficient for everyone. See for yourself:

Finally, you want to extract relevant data.

To do that, it’s simple - once you have your layout, Rayon gives you all the important data points (square meters for each room, overall dimensions) which you can export into an Excel instantly:

As Nicolas Leroy, cofounder of Roof Coliving, explains:

“Rayon is just fast and simple: feasibility studies are now done 2 to 3 times faster than before”.

Rayon not only simplifies space management but also brings a new level of efficiency and collaboration to coliving spaces.

#3 Create One Source Of Truth For Your Team

Using Rayon will also simplify your team work and also be used for better operations.

Uploading a floor plan in Rayon creates a single, reliable source of truth for various teams. This unified floor plan is always up-to-date, shared across facility management, sales teams, clients, and other stakeholders.

Here's how Rayon enhances client communication and is being used by sales teams:

• Clients can gain access or be shown the entire floor plan, gaining an understanding of amenities, room sizes, communal areas, and bathroom locations.
• Sales representatives can update the floor plan in real-time to show which rooms are occupied or available, ensuring all parties have the latest information.

Moreover, Rayon can be used for operations when the building is live and gives teams an overview of the current state of the coliving space:

• Team members can track the location of furniture and equipment when they are moved around for events, special requests of guests, etc.
• Team members can hold test fits, for example to see how many chairs and tables can fit for a given event in a space.
• They can also communicate in real time in case a facility manager has a few locations that they are handling.

Here is how Marine, one of Colonies’ architects, describes working with Rayon:

“As an architect, Rayon allows me to exchange with my colleagues, whether they are architects or not. I can advise them directly in the app. Rayon truly is a time-saver

This approach not only streamlines communication but also fosters transparency and efficiency in managing coliving spaces.

What Coliving Operators Think About Rayon

We’ve seen Rayon being used by newcomers and established operators alike. Some of them are Commune, Colonies, Alihoop, Cosima, Cette Famille, Roof and Coloc Housing. It’s a serious tool to consider to facilitate your day-to-day operations and planning.

Here is what some other fellow coliving operators are sharing:

"It takes us about 3 hours to process large projects of thousands SQM with Rayon. Which is incredible since, before that, the same process with outsourced architects would take a day or two." Commune (Read their case study here)

"Since Rayon is a multiplayer software, we collaborate more effectively. We'll have sessions with two to three people on the canvas running test fits, stacking comments directly on the plans to determine how we envision the house to be very quickly and seamlessly." Coloc Housing, (Read this case study here)

Start Working With Rayon

We truly are grateful for tools like Rayon to exist. We’ve been recommending at Artof.Co to all coliving operators we work with.

To use the software, anyone can create a free Rayon account with up to 3 models (where you upload floor plans). Other than the free tier, Rayon offers a 29$ or 59$ subscription - nothing compared to the time you’ll save!

Try it out yourself: rayon.design

PS: Once you get to know the tool, you’ll also get to know the amazing team. If you want to join them, Rayon is also hiring with roles in technology, architecture, HR and marketing.