A startup called Azure Printed Homes is taking a different approach: By 3D-printing the roof, floor, and walls with recycled plastic, and building the rest of the home inside a factory, it keeps costs lower...

In a world that produces “57 million tons of plastic waste every year” and in a nation with worsening home affordability for the past 20 years, millions of families are finding it increasingly difficult to achieve the dream of homeownership. Rising housing costs, coupled with high interest rates and limited inventory, have created an urgent need for innovative, sustainable, and affordable housing solutions that can reverse this troubling trend and provide relief for those struggling to find a place to call home.

California is leading the way in housing innovation with the recent passage of SB 1211, a landmark bill that updates and enhances current accessory dwelling unit (ADU) regulations. Authored by Senator Nancy Skinner and backed by housing advocates such as California YIMBY and the Casita Coalition, this new legislation promises to reshape the way multifamily properties can increase their ADU potential, creating a blueprint that other states and countries should consider adopting as well.

California is leading the way in housing innovation with the recent passage of SB 1211, a landmark bill that updates and enhances current accessory dwelling unit (ADU) regulations. Authored by Senator Nancy Skinner and backed by housing advocates such as California YIMBY and the Casita Coalition, this new legislation promises to reshape the way multifamily properties can increase their ADU potential, creating a blueprint that other states and countries should consider adopting as well.

In 2024, the U.S. was rocked by elections, natural disasters, and sweeping policy shifts. Rarely have so many jugular issues arisen at once. Inevitably this means that major change is on the horizon for 2025. While no one can predict the outcomes with 100% certainty, one thing is certain: We’ll be hanging onto our hats.

Homelessness has been a challenge in the United States since before it was a country, as the early colonies struggled to address the “wandering poor.” Today, it is a full-on crisis. The Department of Housing and Urban Development reports that in 2023, more than 650,000 people in the U.S. were unhoused due to factors including rising housing costs, immigration, and the end of COVID-19 relief programs. Among the states, California tops the charts, with nearly 30% of America’s homeless and 50% of the nation’s unsheltered homeless.

You may have arrived in a hotel room to find a chocolate on your pillow or a welcome message on the TV. But imagine checking in and finding the exact pillow you specified, the temperature just right, and a personal menu, along with a bespoke wellness program. This is not a fairytale—it’s the future of luxury travel, powered by technology.

The recent L.A. wildfires have been devastating, displacing thousands and leaving behind a stark reminder of how vulnerable our built environment remains. Having lived through the 2018 Woolsey Fire in Malibu, I’ve seen firsthand the immense challenges of rebuilding.

In today’s fast-paced world, it’s easy to feel that external circumstances dictate our existence. We attribute success and failure to factors beyond our control—the economy, the government, societal expectations, or unforeseen events...

Leadership transformation isn’t found in boardrooms—it’s happening in our homes. In a world facing converging crises of climate, technology, and social displacement, how we create our spaces reveals everything about how we’ll lead through these transformative times...

In a world that produces “57 million tons of plastic waste every year” and in a nation with worsening home affordability for the past 20 years, millions of families are finding it increasingly difficult to achieve the dream of homeownership...

Does anybody remember the rush to high-end vacation homes during the 2020 pandemic? Travelers of all levels love to experience the high life on their own terms, if even for just a few days...

Azure Printed Homes manufactures affordable housing by turning diverted plastic waste into recycled plastic building material. Azure's 3D-printed recycled polymer homes received initial funding from angel investors and crowdsourcing, and in its second year the company has generated more than $4 million in revenue and has secured $30 million in pre-orders during 2024.

As small homes/studios and Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) continue to soar in popularity, Azure Printed Homes is a pioneer in the concept of 3D Printed homes that use recycled polymers (plastic waste) as its primary construction material. Since its inception in 2022, Azure has achieved phenomenal growth based entirely on private investors and crowdfunding through WeFunder as well as achieving more than $30 million in pre-orders to be fulfilled within the coming 12 months.

The next time you take a bag of plastic bottles to the recycler, you might be providing the building material for a new home — at least if the would-be refuse ends up on Azure Printed Homes' production floor.

That's because the California company uses some of the plentiful plastic waste we produce to "print" homes. And after years of development, co-founder Gene Eidleman told The Cool Down during an exclusive interview that Azure is poised for impressive growth.

What's more, the innovative production method could remedy housing problems in cities around the world, as well as address homelessness in war-torn countries and storm-ravaged locations.

Azure Printed Homes showed off two of its 3D-printed tiny homes at the Santa Monica Innovation Hub on Monday. Jeremy Peyton told KNX News’ Karen Adams that the 180-square-foot studio could be printed within 24 hours at the company’s Gardena factory.

“So we're using recycled waste plastic, and we're using a special type of plastic – so think food containers, water bottles, non-toxic VOC-free plastic that we’re sourcing,” he said. “And then we're also using a polymer resin compound mixed with fiberglass, so that's what gives it that real structural integrity for the home.”

As California continues to face an epic homelessness crisis, Sacramento County has a sliver of good news: The number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness has decreased by 41% since 2022, according to the recent Point-in-Time count.

But the overall numbers are still higher than 2019 levels, due in part to rising rents, stagnant wages, lasting impacts of the pandemic and a lack of affordable housing. For many advocates, the mission is as solid as a Lego block: get people off the streets and into stable environments ASAP. While it can take five or more years to build permanent homes, interim housing has popped up around the state as a critical stopgap solution.

As the United States grapples with a significant housing shortage, new technologies are emerging to address the issue—one of which is 3D-printed homes.

Azure Printed Homes, based in Southern California, has developed a 3D-printing process that can produce homes at a cost of approximately $35,000.

These homes are constructed from recycled materials, including plastic water bottles and food containers, along with a polymer resin reinforced with fiberglass. This approach reduces the need for traditional building materials like lumber, potentially cutting both costs and environmental impact.

As the United States grapples with a significant housing shortage, new technologies are emerging to address the issue—one of which is 3D-printed homes.

Azure Printed Homes, based in Southern California, has developed a 3D-printing process that can produce homes at a cost of approximately $35,000.

These homes are constructed from recycled materials, including plastic water bottles and food containers, along with a polymer resin reinforced with fiberglass. This approach reduces the need for traditional building materials like lumber, potentially cutting both costs and environmental impact.

The 3D Printing Industry Expert Committee, in conjunction with readers, helps select winners of the annual 3D Printing Industry Awards.

Members are appointed for their expertise across additive manufacturing and specific fields of interest, for example, industry verticals such as aerospace, space and defense, material science knowledge, engineering, or design skills. The unifying factor across all experts is the depth of experience in the 3D printing industry.

Since its founding in 2022, Azure Printed Homes has rapidly emerged as a major player in the construction industry by using recycled polymers to build homes. In just one year, the company achieved sales exceeding $4 million and secured pre-orders worth $30 million for 2024.

“We are addressing both the housing crisis and the dire need as a society to reduce and eliminate plastic waste,” said Ross Maguire, CEO of Azure. “The ability to solve two of the biggest problems at once, and to do it quickly and with superb quality, has contributed greatly to our growing success.”

There’s 3D-printed cultured beef, and soon, ten 3D-printed homes across Southern California, courtesy of Azure Printed Homes in partnership with Re-Inhabit. Azure already has a waitlist of pre-orders that exceed $16-million, and they expect to deliver their first backyard studios by the end of this year, while dwelling units as well as homes should arrive in 2023.

Amid a growing U.S. housing crisis, Azure Printed Homes, Inc. a Calif.-based company that makes 3D-printed homes using recycled polymers, says it is expanding operations by more than 100 percent. Azure, which says each of its homes repurposes over 150,000 plastic bottles, aims to fill the growing need for affordable and sustainable dwellings throughout the U.S. The company says it can build and deliver units within three to four weeks of order, with costs starting around $39,000 per unit.

Azure Printed Homes, a company 3D printing homes using recycled polymers, is expanding its operations by more than 100% – directly responding to the growing need for affordable and sustainable small home and ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) solutions. Launched in 2022, Azure Printed Homes is emerging rapidly as a category leader in the creation and production of high-quality small dwellings. Azure’s small houses and ADUs have been particularly successful due to their ability to use recycled plastic polymer as their primary building material.

In a strategic move blending affordable housing solutions with sustainability, Azure Printed Homes announced a significant expansion during the OpenTech 24 conference. The company, known for transforming recycled plastic into 3D-printed homes, is doubling its production to meet the surging demand for accessory dwelling units (ADUs) and small homes.

As the fastest growing phenomenon in outdoor hospitality, glamping’s moment has arrived, according to a press release from Azure Printed Homes, Inc. Within the glamping sector, Azure is an award-winning pioneer in 3D-printed units constructed recycled polymers, and is answering the industry’s demand for luxury accommodations that are sustainable and environmentally friendly as well, the release stated.

As Azure Co-founders Ross Maguire and Gene Eidleman noted in their recent column for Fast Company: “Glamping is expected to reach $4.8 billion by 2025. Despite a volatile job market and a challenging economy, the interest in glamping continues to rise and shows no signs of abating as it appeals to comfort campers, luxury travelers, families, business groups, and couples on romantic getaways.”

Azure Printed Homes, a California-based leader in 3D-printed, eco-friendly housing solutions, has achieved notable acclaim both nationally and globally this week. The company, which uses recycled polymers to create sustainable homes, has received the Emerging Startups award at CREtech’s 2024 Real Estate Tech Awards (RETAs) in New York, while simultaneously exhibiting at Cityscape Global 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

California-based Azure Printed Homes, Inc., a leader in 3D-printed housing from recycled polymers, is receiving significant recognition both nationally and globally this week. On November 14, Azure CEO and Co-Founder Ross Maguire will take the main stage at CREtech New York as the company celebrates its win in the Emerging Startups category of CREtech’s 2024 Real Estate Tech Awards (RETAs). Co-Founder Gene Eidelman will also be recognized as a finalist for Impact Entrepreneur of the Year.

Azure Printed Homes’ recognition as an Emerging Startup and its role at major industry events such as CREtech New York and Cityscape Global 2024 emphasize its rising influence in sustainable construction. The company’s ability to leverage 3D-printing with recycled polymers for rapid and affordable home-building solutions is a compelling model in an industry increasingly focused on innovation, environmental responsibility, and cost-efficiency. As Azure expands internationally, its pioneering technology could be transformative, particularly in high-demand real estate markets where sustainability and speed are crucial factors.