Mighty House

California, USA

As major real estate markets of all kinds face severe shortages of affordable housing, investors and prospective homebuyers are looking for new, preferably climate-friendly solutions. Enter Buro Happold and Oakland, California-based Mighty Buildings, a company that constructs prefabricated ADU dwellings on site, in a range of sizes, using a proprietary 3D-printing technology to build them.

Prefabricated ADU dwellings on site, in a range of sizes, using a proprietary 3D-printing technology to build them

Designed to net zero standards including an all-electric design to minimize the operational carbon of the building

Certified Title 24 compliant across all climate zones in California

Challenge

Buro Happold was brought on early in design to provide structural and MEP engineering, as well as sustainability and facades consulting for Mighty House.

Mighty Buildings’ goals related to carbon are uniquely comprehensive compared to industry standard. As such, the sustainability analysis comprised of not only high-performance building design to lower the operational energy demand, but Mighty Buildings’ additionally chose to conduct a full life-cycle embodied carbon analysis.

Solution

Buro Happold’s extensive energy modeling services ensured the units are certified Title 24 compliant across all climate zones in California. The homes were also designed to net zero energy through the use of photovoltaics and battery storage. In addition, the Mighty House includes an all-electric design to minimize the operational carbon of the building in line with California’s goal of an all-electric grid by 2045.

These innovative and sustainable modular homes take advantage of the latest in digital fabrication, automation and 3D printing to enable rapid production, efficient use of materials and minimal construction waste. The technology also allows for industrialized production of buildings in any shape, leading to unique designs and appealing geometry.

The life-cycle embodied carbon analysis entailed a detail comparison between the Mighty House design and traditional timber, steel, and concrete systems. Based on ongoing analysis conducted by Buro Happold, Mighty Buildings engaged their chemists in an iterative design process of their proprietary 3D printed material until the product’s lifecycle embodied carbon was estimated lower than that of the traditional alternatives.

Value

The 3D-printed material like Mighty Buildings’ “Light Stone Material” (LSM) has strength and durability comparable to concrete and steel and is engineered to resist fire and withstand seismic activity. The technology also results in reduced embodied carbon — meaning reduced impact on the climate — and construction is fast and cost-effective. 

According to Patti Harburg-Petrich, SE, LEED AP, structural engineer and principal in the Los Angeles office, “technology of this type can help address the dual challenges of affordable housing and sustainable construction”.