Robots are not taking to B.C. construction sites to build the next generation of homes. At least not yet.

But if one hears from a friend that robotic arms played a big part in the building of their humble abode, it may be closer to fact than fiction in the coming years.

“There’s just really no innovation in the construction sector for the better part of 75 years,” says Oliver Lang, founder and CEO of Vancouver-based Intelligent City Inc.

While advances in telecom have seen communications do away with rotary phones in favour of smartphones, no such analogue exists in the construction industry over that same period. In the meantime, climate change, housing affordability and housing supply have been heightening British Columbians’ anxiety levels.

“We’re trying to tackle all of these things at once and ask ourselves the question: Can we use technology to overcome these hurdles?” Lang told BIV.

His construction firm has embarked on answering that question by tapping robotics to assemble mass timber buildings geared towards mid-to-high-rise homes and offices.

Intelligent City’s first factory, based in North Delta, officially opened its doors October 14, paving the way for what Lang describes as a more sustainable, efficient and less costly way of pursuing home construction.

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