It’s fair to say that Icon is dominating the 3D-printed construction space at the moment – both here on Earth and even potentially on Mars. Following its completion of four homes in Austin, Texas, the firm has now teamed up with homebuilder Lennar to create a remarkably ambitious new development consisting of 100 3D-printed family houses co-designed by Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG).
The project, described by Lennar as the «world’s largest neighborhood of 3D-printed homes,» is slated for an undisclosed location in Austin. Icon did confirm that they will be single-family homes, all arranged on one floor. The homes will also feature roof-based solar panels installed to reduce their draw on the grid.
The build process will be much the same as other 3D-printed construction projects and will involve Icon’s own Vulcan model 3D printer extruding a cement-like mixture out in layers to build up the basic structure of each home. Once the shell is complete, human builders will then come in and finish it off, adding a roof, doors, windows, and so on, as well as interior furniture.
The project is due to begin construction sometime in 2022. However, to put it into perspective, Icon’s previous 3D-printed family homes fetched US$450,000.
Source: newatlas.com