Half a croissant, on a plate, with a sign in front of it saying '50c'
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Construction Vouchers

Built to last
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Imagine the scenario, you're looking for a nice present for a couple who've just bought a house. They have a toaster, and will never use the ice cream maker you're considering so... Get them a present built to last, the Construction Voucher.

It works like this: when you're in Ikea (for example), it says next to the bed you're buying : "Have this assembled in your own home for just 40 Construction Vouchers", you buy said vouchers at the store, then 'phone the hotline, the voucher people will then send round someone fully trained to construct the exact thing you purchased at the time of your choosing : no missing parts, no pointless allen keys, no hassle, no strained relationships.

The best thing about this is that the Construction Voucher company is a cooperative, run and owned by skilled craftspeople who go on to train still more people, and it tries to employ people who are long term unemployed. Oh yeah, and they do police checks and stuff to make sure that their team are safe to be in your home.
neilp, Jan 06 2004

(?) Aussemble http://www.assembly...nt.aspx?topicID=195
these people have a database of products and how long it takes to build each one. But.. they haven't picked up on the voucher idea yet. nor the cooperative bit. [neilp, Dec 05 2005]

[link]






       and for 12000 construction vouchers, you can have a new conservatory. tis a gap there in the market [neilp], good work.
jonthegeologist, Jan 06 2004
  

       Personally, I like building flatpack furniture. However, I have noticed a certain reluctance towards such tasks in members of the opposite sex. This seems to be due to previous bad experiences which in turn are caused by an inability to read the instructions *before* trying to construct said furniturial item.   

       I think a service does exist which is specially tailored for putting together flat pack stuff, but I've never seen it advertised in store.
hazel, Jan 06 2004
  

       Expand this, it could be the response of local builders to the gift cards from the HomeDepot & Sears mafia. For example sell vouchers to use for paying local carpenters "Even with the best hammer you can smash a finger. Don't put your holiday fun at risk, let a professional do it."
kbecker, Jan 06 2004
  

       40,000 Construction Vouchers for my new study. I wonder how many Construction Vouchers it would take to physically relocate one's house across town.
Letsbuildafort, Jan 06 2004
  

       i'll do it for 120,000, [Letsbuildafort]
buddymatt, Jan 08 2004
  

       personally i like to build things myself...but if the construction guys are cute and friendly...hey i may pitch in for job security sake.....;)
babyhawk, Jan 08 2004
  

       Excellent ... lemme just find the wheels, they're arround here somewhere ...
Letsbuildafort, Jan 08 2004
  

       This is really a great idea. Like gift certificates or food stamps because you know they can't be (really) abused.
phoenix, Jan 09 2004
  

       Why not do this for aid agencies.   

       You buy a fresh water well voucher, or 50lb seed corn voucher, whatever.   

       Each charity sells these and you can then decide which ones are putting the most into the aid instead of wasting your money on 'administration', 'advertising' etc etc.
timbeau, Jan 21 2004
  

       I really do like this. It would be great to get these as gifts for holidays and birthdays. Take care of all those little details I'd rather avoid like bathroom remodeling.
nth, Dec 05 2005
  

       //I wonder how many Construction Vouchers it would take to physically relocate one's house across town.// Contact your local Air Force. A couple of 500kg deconstruction vouchers will normally relocate a house across at least a couple of blocks.
coprocephalous, Dec 05 2005
  
      
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