Alquist 3D, a 3D-printing construction firm based in Iowa, has announced plans to build 200 homes in the state of Virginia.
The initiative — dubbed Project Virginia — will see the development of 200 homes across the state over 3-years beginning this summer. Alquist kicked off the project with a demonstration near the site of the first two 3D printed homes in Pulaski, Virginia on Friday, April 29.
Alquist chose Pulaski, Virginia due to the area’s heightened demand for housing as a result of more than 3,000 new jobs that will be created in the area with the presence of Volvo, Blue Star Manufacturing, and American Glove. In addition, Virginia’s New River Valley was identified as having one of the highest growth rates in the country for tech jobs, which will also drive demand for housing in this area.
Project Virginia follows Alquist’s recent Habitat for Humanity project in Williamsburg, Virginia, a 1,200-square-foot, three-bed, two-bathroom home, whose exterior shell was printed in just 22 hours. The company claims that this was the first owner-occupied, 3D-printed home in the world and Habitat for Humanity’s first 3D-printed home in the country.
The company was founded six years ago by Zachary Mannheimer. Prior to founding Alquist, Mannheimer spent the last decade doing revitalization and economic development projects in rural communities around the country through his other company, called Atlas Community Studios.
“The number one issue in every community we went to was housing, regardless of size or location. So for the past six years, we’ve tried to figure out how do we create how do we help solve the housing crisis,” said Mannheimer. “In our opinion, there are only two ways to do it. One, companies need to pay their employees more to afford the rising costs. Two, we lower the cost of building homes. Ideally, both of those happen, but since we have no control over the first piece, we looked at how to drop the cost. I discovered 3D-printing about six years ago, got obsessed with it, and learned everything I could. Building housing that is affordable is the mission of Alquist.”