Around the globe today 1.2 Billion people do not have access to adequate housing. This number will grow to 1.6 Billion people by the year 2025. Solving this problem is a critical step to a brighter global future. Better housing generates economic growth, improved social justice, health care and education; and enhances global stability, security, and sustainability.

Existing construction methods are not suited to solve the global housing shortage. Construction is slow, inefficient, rooted in the past, and incapable of effectively scaling to meet the tremendous demand. It does not adapt quickly to new technologies, or better methods. Additionally, existing methods are not sustainable and are heavily reliant upon polluting factories, large trucks ferreting concrete across the world, and energy-intensive construction methods. All this amounts to one massive carbon footprint.

At EchoStone, we challenge the status quo. We are substantially improving housing options for low-income communities by offering high quality, dignified housing, at a rapid rate, and at industrial scale – while significantly reducing the carbon footprint of traditional concrete construction. We are paving the way to a better, cleaner tomorrow.

EchoStone is an innovative housing system designed specifically to address the worldwide housing shortage. So, what does that mean? EchoStone combines best in class design, development, and construction elements to achieve higher housing standards for communities in need through the use of state of the art technology and construction process.

At the center of the system is a mobile, computerized, in-situ concrete factory on wheels that produces consistent and continuous monolithic pouring of high quality houses on location in almost any environment. Depending on density, the 625 machine can produce EchoStone’s proprietary cellular light weight concrete, or CLC, at a rate equivalent to that of five standard concrete trucks; and has the capacity to deliver it 60 meters vertically and 200 meters horizontally. By utilizing three machines and 16 sets of formwork, the EchoStone system produces houses at a rate of four, 64m2, houses per day.

EchoStone walls are constructed using customizable, lightweight, easy to use, and reusable panel formwork – replacing the use of steel, aluminum, plywood, and cinderblocks. No heavy lifting equipment is required for operation.

Invented in Sweden in 1904, EchoStone utilizes CLC because it is scalable, more environmentally friendly, and quicker to set than traditional concrete. CLC eliminates the need for coarse aggregate, and instead is infused with millions of tiny air bubbles. The airbubbles allow CLC to retain the same tensile, compression, and rigidity standards of traditional concrete while offering certain advantages.

As tested by the Swedish Cement and Concrete Institute against traditional concrete, EchoStone CLC demonstrates measurably higher standards for thermal conductivity, water vapor permeability, fire resistance, and soundproofing, while drying within hours. EchoStone CLC, meetings the European and American standards of concrete.

Construction operations are guided and standardized by a proprietary job site operations plan, lean design and construction concepts, value engineering, and procurement solutions to allow for rapid scalable and consistent quality construction.

According to the World Bank, each new house creates five new jobs. EchoStone’s durable, sustainable, houses are sourced primarily from local materials and are built using local labor – further contributing to the local economy.  

In our effort to promote a more sustainable future, we offer more than just a rapid, scalable, and ecologically friendly way of building houses. At an additional cost, we offer a way for communities to thrive independently and with dignity through our sustainable ecological off-grid system. That could include: photovoltaic panels, solar hot water, composting toilets, rainwater capture, convection cooling, and greenhouses with significant reductions in greenhouse gasses. For additional information on this off-grid system, contact EchoStone.

About

EchoStone Opco LLC is an international company with the mission of rapidly constructing high-quality housing for low and middle-income communities, at scale. The company was established in 2015 and is headquartered in Victor, New York USA. To find out more about EchoStone and their housing system

echohousing.com