3D-Printed Community Of Ultra-Low-Cost Tiny Homes Planned For Poor Families

 Could a 3D printer be the solution to global homelessness?

The issue of providing affordable housing  quickly is a priority for governments all over the world. Now Icon, a tech company based in Austin in collaboration with the non-profit organization 'New Story' believe that  they have struck on the solution. In recent weeks, Icon has completed the construction of an enormous 3D printer which can print a house frame in the space of only one day.New Story was founded in 2014 in the wake of the Haitian earthquake. Activists from the organization witnessed first hand the terrible destruction wreaked by the natural disaster which destroyed large portions of the settlements in the Central American nation. They noted that the pace of change when it came to rebuilding the shattered urban spaces was frustratingly slow and beset by problems with planning and cost and set about finding a way to make a difference. 

 According to New Story and Icon, the new 3D  printer named the Vulcan II could make the kind of situation Haiti faced a thing of the past. The Vulcan II works with extraordinary efficient, building walls and floors by squirting  levels of quick setting concrete which can allow an entire house to be built in the space of only a day. The cost of this kind of house is not known yet but it is believed that it will be  significantly less than the $7000 it typically  costs to build a small modern home. 

 Initially, the team planned to pilot their house building scheme in El Salvador but these plans floundered following planning issues.  Instead, the team will go ahead with the building of more than fifty of these printer homes  in an unspecified location in Latin America.Brett Hagler, the CEO, and co-founder of New Story, explains that the location was chosen because it was felt that there was a dire need for modern housing in this particular of the world. The families who will be catered to by New Story typically earn less than $200 per month and currently live in shack-like housing provided to them by the local factory where they are employed. These people work very long hours in unsafe working conditions. They are not paid very much for their labors but the housing provided to them by the industry means that they are very reluctant to leave and seek better employment. 

 New Story has said that the new housing will give these people an opportunity to seek more  pleasant and better-paid employment elsewhere. The charity has said  that they will initially fund the building  of the homes and the residents will be able to pay them back in a no-interest monthly fee based on their income level. All money accrued from local  residents will be put back into community funds to allow for further developments in the  future.

If this endeavor proves to be a success, then Hagler hopes that New Story will be able to put the Vulcan 2 technology in the hands of as many organizations engaged in ending global  homelessness as possible. 

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