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Plans have been unveiled for a 3D-printed community of 100 new homes in the Austin area, Texas — which would become the largest development of its kind in the United States to date when construction begins next year.
The project is the result of a collaboration between real estate and homebuilding firm Lennar and ICON, a construction engineering company specialising in the development of large-scale 3D-printing technology.
They are joined by the architectural firm BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, who will be designing the houses which will be produced using so-called 'additive manufacturing' — in which objects are printed up one single layer at a time.
According to ICON, their 'Vulcan construction system' can produce resilient, energy-efficient homes both faster and with less waste than conventional building approaches, while also offering more freedom of design.
Buildings and other structures can be built as large as 3,000 square feet using the system, they added.
Plans have been unveiled for a 3D-printed community of 100 new homes in the Austin area, Texas — which would become the largest development of its kind in the United States to date when construction begins next year. Pictured: an artist's impression of the neighbourhood, showing houses being slowly printed layer-by-layer in the foreground
The project is the result of a collaboration between real estate and homebuilding firm Lennar and ICON, a construction engineering company specialising in the development of large-scale 3D-printing technology. Pictured: an artist's impression of the 3D-printed neighbourhood, which is to be located in the Austin area of Texas
'Construction-scale 3D printing not only delivers higher-quality homes faster and more affordably, but fleets of printers can change the way that entire communities are built for the better,' said ICON CEO Jason Ballard, who said that he founded the firm as a response to the global housing crisis.
'The US faces a deficit of approximately 5 million new homes, so there is a profound need to swiftly increase supply without compromising quality, beauty, or sustainability and that is exactly the strength of our technology.'
'It is an honour and a huge milestone for ICON to partner with Lennar, an elite top-tier homebuilder with a commitment to innovation. We believe this will be a watershed moment in the history of community-scale development and the future breaking into the present,' he concluded.
'Labour and material shortages are two of the biggest factors pushing the dream of home ownership out of reach for many American
