Students at Woodbury University in Burbank, California are hard at work on solving the affordable housing crisis. The architecture students created the first 3D-printed structure to be permitted and built in the city of Los Angeles. This home is 425 square feet and took only 15 months to construct. It was designed as an entry into the solar decathlon, which is a competition encouraging different colleges to create a high-performance structure powered by renewable energy.
“It’s a proof of concept that this really can be done and then can be repeated and scaled in a way that has a huge effect on our community but on the world at large even,” says Dr. Barry Ryan, the president of Woodbury University.
“It’s a prototype, it’s many things all rolled into one and that was really what we were offering Los Angeles and the community to sort of learn and incorporate in their projects, in their homes, just offering it as an example,” says Kishani De Silva, the construction management chair at Woodbury University.
The home required over 30 different organizations to come together to construct. RM CONCRETE provided the labor for the traditional concrete components. The company was aided by a three-day printing process, that is so precise, no concrete is wasted. A huge win for sustainability and budget-conscious construction alike.
“I think it looks really nice. I’m glad that we kept it raw concrete…we didn’t add any paints or anything like this on top of it so we can see all of the different layers and the actual material,” explains Jade Royer, a recent Woodbury graduate.
Cutting down on things like paint also aids in lessening the environmental impact and cost of the home. From an aesthetic standpoint, concrete can be surprisingly versatile on its own. It doesn’t always have to give off the drab, grey, industrial look most people associate with the material.
These students found as many ways as possible to keep things sustainable while keeping costs down. The shower water is recirculated for toilet flushing, cutting down on freshwater usage. This house’s roof is formed and sloped to maximize solar power. The concrete design helps reduce noise and preserve internal temperatures but is also an environmentally friendly formula. Coupled with mineral wool insulation which serves as a fire barrier.
“I also enjoy the kitchen because it uses a lot of sustainable materials as well.. so like the dining chairs and the table is made from recyclable paper, so we try to think sustainably from the building but also with how we wanted to furnish it,” said recent Woodbury graduate Jessica Gomez.
There is a possibility the new home may, eventually, serve as student housing. However, the outdoor living space is designed to meet any community’s housing needs. With the ability to conform to virtually any site conditions at a reasonable cost.
“It’s funny, you think that advanced technology is more expensive, but the fact is, we were able to get this project built for just over $250,000, and that’s incredibly affordable for housing in Los Angeles,” said Heather Flood, the dean of Woodbury’s School of Architecture.
Even though, its $250,000 price tag and 15-month build time have many scoffing at this design aiding in the affordable housing crisis. We’d like to remind everyone that housing in California, specifically L.A. is notoriously expensive. Again this is also just a proof of concept. As kinks in the design are worked out and the project is scaled up, those costs will more than likely drop.
Either way, this is students offering yet another option to ensure people can keep a roof over their heads.
