community of 3D-printed homes by ICON and BIG takes shape outside austin

100 3D-printed homes are taking shape

ICON, a pioneer in large-scale 3D-printing, shares the latest updates on its 100-home community 3D-printed together with homebuilders Lennar and co-designed by Bjarke Ingels Group / BIG. The team at ICON has already proven the success of its Vulcan construction technologies with a development of four homes printed in 2021, followed by its House Zero which was completed earlier this year with architects Lake | Flato.

This undertaking was first announced last fall, and will be located north of Austin, Texas in the city of Georgetown’s master-planned community ‘Wolf Ranch.’ Now taking shape, the project will showcase ICON’s ability to build at such an ambitious scale. What’s more, the development will demonstrate that the team is capable of building both luxury or affordable homes — all resilient and environmentally sustainable. With reservations beginning in 2023, those interested are invited to join a notification list here.

images courtesy ICON

architecture printed by icon

3D-printed by ICON together with Lennar, the 100-home community will express a contemporary, elevated Texas ranch-style aesthetic with architecture co-designed by Bjarke Ingels Group. The additive construction method is inherently energy-efficient and resilient to storms and floods. The speed and scale with which the project will be delivered is achieved by employing a fleet of ICON’s massive Vulcan robots. The system further produces far less material waste than a traditional new home, and allows the architects more design freedom.

Stuart Miller, Executive Chairman of Lennar, comments: ‘We are very pleased to partner with ICON and BIG in building a first-of-its-kind, printed home community that combines innovative designs with sustainable features at an affordable price.

‘Given the housing shortage that persists across the country, it has never been more important to innovate in order to find new methods of construction that will enable greater design flexibility and greater production at affordable prices.’

inside the ultra-efficient homes

The 3D-printed community by ICON, Lennar, and BIG will comprise eight floor plans and twenty-four unique elevations ranging from 1,574 to 2,112 square feet of thoughtful living space. The homes will offer three to four bedrooms and two to three baths, with prices anticipated to start from the mid-$400,000s.

Each home will be powered by the sun with rooftop solar panels and will feature components from Lennar’s Connected Home package including a Ring Video Doorbell Pro, a Schlage Encode™ Smart WiFi deadbolt and a Honeywell Home T6 Pro WiFi smart thermostat. What’s more, each home will come equipped with a Wolf Ranch security package.

Jason Ballard, co-founder and CEO, ICON says: ‘For the first time in the history of the world, what we’re witnessing here is a fleet of robots building an entire community of homes. And not just any homes, homes that are better in every way… better design, higher strength, higher energy performance and comfort, and increased resiliency.

‘In the future, I believe robots and drones will build entire neighborhoods, towns, and cities, and we’ll look back at Lennar’s Wolf Ranch community as the place where robotic construction at scale began. We still have a long way to go, but I believe this marks a very exciting and hopeful turn in the way we address housing issues in the world.’

the housing types will comprise eight floor plans and twenty-four unique elevations a fleet of Vulcan robots will rapidly print the community of homes