Construction on the largest neighborhood of 3D-printed homes in the US will begin in Austin in 2022

October 29, 2021

Construction on the largest neighborhood of 3D-printed homes in the US will begin in Austin in 2022 - take a look at the 100-home community

rendering of the 100-home 3D-printed community from Icon, Lennar, and BIG — A rendering of the upcoming 100-home community.
Icon, Lennar, BIG

Homebuilding giant Lennar is teaming up with Icon, a construction tech startup, to create a neighborhood.
Together, the team will produce a 3D-printed 100-home development in Austin, Texas in 2022.
Creating printed homes can be more cost, waste, labor, and time-efficient than traditional construction.

The future of homebuilding is here: Home construction giant Lennar is teaming up with Icon, a 3D printing construction startup, to create a community of 100 3D-printed homes in Austin, Texas, the companies announced Tuesday.

Source: Icon

Austin-based Icon has previously produced smaller clusters of 3D printed homes, including a four-home community in its hometown.

Source: Insider

But this new development - which will begin construction next year - will be the largest of its type, according to the two companies.

The homes will be designed by the Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG), which also designed Icon's 3D-printed Mars habitat for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

rendering of the 100-home 3D-printed community surrounded by trees — A rendering of the upcoming 100-home community.
Icon, Lennar, and BIG

Source: Icon

Lennar and BIG both recently invested in Icon during the startup's $207-million Series B round.

Source: Icon

"Lennar has always expanded the boundaries of technological innovation to keep quality homes affordable and 3D printing is an immensely encouraging approach," Eric Feder, president of Lenx, which also invested in Icon during its Series B, said in the press release.

Source: Icon

The homes will be created using Icon's printing and construction system Vulcan, which prints the company's proprietary "lavacrete," shown below.

the printer printing a home — The 3D printer.
Icon

Source: Icon

According to Icon, its systems create dwellings that are "stronger and longer lasting" compared to traditionally constructed homes.

The units will also have photovoltaic roofs to make the homes more energy-efficient.

Icon isn't alone in this seemingly futuristic endeavor: Home construction companies and developers around the world have recently been turning to 3D printing as an alternative to traditional construction.

Source: Insider (1) (2)

In the press release, Feder notes that the "labor and material shortages" prevalent across the US have been "pushing the dream of home ownership out of reach for many American families."

Source: Icon

But according to 3D home printing enthusiasts, this budding construction technology could tackle these two issues.

Jason Ballard, CEO and co-founder of Icon, recently described 3D printing as "the toolkit of the builder of the future."

Source: Insider

Producing printed homes is often seen as more cost, waste, labor, and time-efficient when compared to traditionally constructed homes. And in terms of aesthetics, printers can create developments that look more creative and nontraditional.

Source: Insider

"ICON exists as a response to the global housing crisis and to put our technology in service to the world," Ballard said in the press release. "There is a profound need to swiftly increase supply without compromising quality, beauty, or sustainability and that is exactly the strength of our technology."