Flood-ravaged Merritt, B.C., hopes to build 3D-printed homes as part of recovery efforts

It's been four months since hundreds of Merritt, B.C., residents were forced out of their homes due to catastrophic flooding, and now the city has an innovative plan to house some of them.

Greg Solecki, the city's recovery operations manager, said they are turning to robotic technology to help them rebuild quickly and efficiently.

"So it was almost a joke in our emergency operations centre that has become a pretty viable reality now," he said.

It didn’t seem plausible that homes could be built using a 3D printer, but once they started to research it, Solecki said, they realized it's already being done.

"It's really exciting and relieving because our main priority is to get Merrittonians back home and back into some houses, which of course they're not able to do right now, so the 3D printing option is incredible," he said.

The city is teaming up with the University of British Columbia to purchase a $1.5 million printer from Twente Additive Manufacturing, which specializes in architectural 3D printing and has a branch in Nelson, B.C.

Ian Comishin, president of Twente, said his company uses robotic technology to extrude mortar or concrete into layers that build on top of one another, creating the 3D structure.

"We generally can print about two metres tall in about six hours. So you can be doing a small shed or you could be doing an entire house, and you can be basically printing the entire thing in about a day," Comishin explained. "Communities that are need housing quickly can get to have these robust structures potentially permanently installed in a very short timeframe."

He said typically, it would take time to change building codes, but since the city is joining forces with the university as part of a pilot, the timeline is shortened.

"We have this amazing opportunity to provide housing, hopefully that lasts for hundreds of years…and perhaps, you know, leave a legacy that is future generations be proud of," he said.

The walls of the home can be printed off in about 48 hours, Solecki said.

Once all the homes are complete with roofing, windows, utility, people can move into the transitional housing by September.

"It's a lot of hope for all of us," he said. "You've got people that want to get home, but their homes aren't livable so they still have to fix them up; they've got to renovate them; they've got to clean them and they need a place to live or stay while they're doing that."

After the transition is done, he anticipates the homes can be used for affordable housing.

People will also have the option of staying in mobile homes, for which the city has already found a plot of land.

Before people can return home, the city needs to raise the funds.

Solecki said if they are able to get half of the money raised, they can start building the 20 3D-printed homes.

There is an online fundraiser happening Sunday, March 13, benefitting communities impacted by last year's floods.