A seemingly never-ending saga of supply chain disruptions is leaving home builders without traditional building materials in the midst of a nationwide housing shortage. Rather than waiting on delayed supplies, builders are turning to alternative methods and materials to keep new construction projects on track, says Mansion Global.
Builders in the Southwest are using readily available materials like rammed earth and adobe brick in residential buildings, while others are testing out recycled materials and 3-D printing technology to complete projects on time and on budget.
Steve Pallrand, founder of sustainable design firms CarbonShack and Home Front Build in Los Angeles, makes recycling central to home construction, using existing materials left over from demolition when creating a new or updated property.
“Reusing framing reduces the amount of new lumber and reduces costs to the job, especially important in a time of fluctuating materials costs and availability,” he said. “Another aspect of this strategy is when designing an addition to an existing house, we strategize which parts of the structure do not even have to be demolished, but can be preserved and integrated into the new plan.”
