Better Buildings

When you picture dense, urban areas, visions of concrete and steel come to mind. Intelligent City is taking a different approach. This Vancouver-based startup’s material of choice is mass timber: thick, compressed layers of wood suitable for large-scale projects. The company works with clients from the initial design phase to the final stage of construction, streamlining the process with software automation, modular designs and robotic manufacturing. By pre-fabricating its mass timber components off-site, Intelligent City can cut construction times in half and lower costs by 20 percent, says co-founder Oliver Lang. “By bridging the gap between scalability and customization, we can significantly increase the production and affordability of housing,” he told Forbes magazine earlier this year. In 2020, the National Building Code of Canada updated regulations, allowing mass timber to be used in buildings upward of 12 storeys. In Ontario and B.C. that permit has been upped to 18 storeys. The company is working on several projects across the country, including two multi-storey mass timber rental buildings in Toronto and a mixed-use development in Vancouver.

Windows are one of the biggest culprits for a building’s energy loss. It’s the first place cooling escapes during sweltering summer heat, and where heating is lost on a cold winter day. Toronto’s NxLite has crafted a transparent, lightweight nanocoating that can be slid into existing window frames. This means building operators can save upward of 40 percent on energy bills, and lower a building’s carbon footprint by as much as 30 percent, says CEO David Mather. Its nanocoating can also be used on passenger and industrial vehicles, as well as industrial refrigerator windows to improve insulation. Having completed a Beta pilot project and modelled two large commercial projects, Mather and his team are now looking to establish a commercial pilot.

Tinybox, with operations in Toronto and Montreal, is developing a system to massively speed up construction — on a small scale. Its modular tiny home kits that can be assembled in as little as 48 hours. The company’s net-zero, self-reliant units feature a solar roof, ultra-insulated walls, a closed-loop shower system and a bioreactor toilet — meaning there’s no need for a septic tank or hydro grid hookup, says co-founder Pooya Saberi. While the homes have a small footprint — modules start from around 106 square feet — the ceiling heights are over 8 feet high, and are decked out with multi-purpose furniture for maximum space efficiency, whether it’s being used as a backyard office or off-grid cabin. In 2025, Tinybox plans to set up more than 15 units, including an off-grid resort in P.E.I., a four-unit cottage in Costa Rica and housing for a new city in Texas.