BIG, ICON, and Lennar Complete the First 3D-Printed Model House at the Wolf Ranch Community in Austin, Texas

BIG, ICON, and Lennar Complete the First 3D-Printed Model House at the Wolf Ranch Community in Austin, Texas

The first 3D-printed model home built by ICON and Lennar and co-designed by BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group is now open for visits at the 100-home community of Wolf Ranch in the city of Georgetown, near Austin, Texas. The house is part of the largest-scale development of 3D-printed homes in the world, currently under construction. Several of the homes have already been sold. With more than 80 of the home sites actively under construction and nearing completion, the first homeowners are scheduled to move in this September.

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The master plan for the new neighborhood, located north of Austin in Georgetown, includes 8 different types of homes ranging from 1500 to 2100 square feet, with three to four bedrooms and two to three bathrooms. For their construction, ICON and Lennar combined the possibilities of 3D printing with sustainable features to ensure an affordable price, aiming to help alleviate the effect of the housing crisis in Austin. The new neighborhood will also include amenities such as pools, recreational trails, and parks within easy access to downtown Georgetown and Austin.

Built using 3D robotics and an additive construction technique, the homes feature wall systems that are energy-efficient, mold, water, and fire-resistant, and require minimum waste during the construction period. The design of the houses also follows and highlights their construction techniques, showcasing the unique texture resulting from the piping of the materials using ICON’s Vulcan construction system. The homes are designed for comfortable living, with advanced materials reducing temperature fluctuations. Additionally, each home is equipped with photovoltaic solar panels to help reduce energy consumption.

The robotic construction method ensures a fast delivery speed while creating less waste and allowing for more design freedom. Built at scale using ICON’s Vulcan robotic construction systems, software, and advanced materials, each home features complete wall systems to create comfortable living conditions and ensure resilience against natural phenomena.

First announced in 2021, the collaboration between homebuilding company Lennar and construction technologies company ICON and international architecture office BIG, culminated in the construction of the largest community of 3D-printed homes to date. Internationally recognized for their innovative construction-scale 3D printing technologies, ICON was selected as one of ArchDaily’s Best New Practices of 2021. The company also collaborates with NASA to create 3D-printed habitats to be built on the Moon and Mars under Artemis and CHAPEA missions.