The key for scale in affordable housing and solar is likely to be in construction technology innovation

Today, most construction projects globally typically take 20% longer to finish than scheduled and are up to 80% over budget. Yet construction is amongst the least innovative and technology impacted industries. Overcoming these barriers by digitalising methods could propel the industry forward.

Construction technology for homes has been stagnant and highly dependent on manual labour. BillionBricks leverages new mass production manufacturing technologies to achieve economies of scale, reduction in costs and improvement of quality.

Building great communities and neighbourhoods go beyond constructing hardware and managing software. The community is an opportunity to break from traditional development processes – explore and define new ways to integrate long term sustainability through physical and digital tools. 

Balance mass and local construction

70% of the finishes of the BillionBricks’ buildings are customisable and made on site. The localisation will maintain the identity of BillionBricks’ communities by adapting to the region’s environment, culture, climate and materials. Local construction will also create jobs and opportunities for local craftsmen and construction workers, allowing BillionBricks’ communities to be globally relevant and responsive to different customers around the world.

Modular construction and prefabrication

The design of BillionBricks’ homes will be extendable both horizontally and vertically – adapting to different customer needs and developed to serve new purposes or improve performance. Prefabrication components are limited to 30% of the building, leaving the rest of the building to be localised. Prefabrication will be undertaken in exclusive BillionBricks-owned micro-factories that will manufacture the standardised components to be delivered in pieces and then assembled on site. Because construction of the building happens at the same time the site is prepared, this process can be up to twice as fast as traditional projects.

Impact of innovative construction technologies

  • Decreased construction waste as excess materials from one project can easily be used for another since many buildings are constructed simultaneously in one factory.

  • Decreased carbon emissions by reducing total deliveries and total time spent on-site.

  • Optimised machine learning through software enhancements will further reduce waste and increase efficiency.

  • Increased job opportunities for the local community.

  • Flexibility to respond to different customer and regional needs.

Innovation in construction technologies will create local jobs, economic development and retention of wealth within the area of impact. The BillionBricks team aims to make homeownership more affordable through creative financing, building partnerships, improvements in the construction process, and optimising time and costs to become more competitive in the market globally. 

If you are a provider of construction technologies or are interested in partnering with us, please send us an email at hello@billionbricks.org.

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