Digital solutions sought to address B.C.’s housing deficit

Key Takeaways:

• DIGITAL will work with collaborative project teams from industry, government and academia to develop new ideas.
• The call will develop a portfolio of innovative digital solutions that can be shared and deployed across the province.
• Project proposals are encouraged to contemplate opportunities across the full life cycle of housing construction.
• DIGITAL’s Housing Growth Innovation Program is leveraging a $9 million investment over three years from the province.

The Whole Story:

DIGITAL, Canada’s Global Innovation Cluster for digital technologies, has launched a call for proposals under their new Housing Growth Innovation Program to grow housing production capacity in B.C.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) report “Housing shortages in Canada: Updating how much housing we need by 2030” forecasts that B.C. will need to add hundreds of thousands of new housing units by 2030. Under the Housing Growth Innovation Program, DIGITAL will work with collaborative project teams from industry, government and academia to develop new ideas, find what works and action solutions that grow the construction sector and build more homes.

Project proposals are encouraged to contemplate opportunities across the full life cycle of housing construction including due diligence, design, construction and post-construction stages and those related to medium to large-scale residential construction, including prefab and mass timber. DIGITAL says there is also room to address friction points that inhibit growth through an open category aimed at systemic supply chain or market challenges as housing production capacity grows. 

DIGITAL stated that the call will develop a portfolio of innovative digital solutions that can be shared and deployed across the province to unlock the growth and economic potential of housing construction in B.C., and ultimately help grow housing stock.

“DIGITAL is proud to announce the launch of our Housing Growth Innovation Program, an effort that will leverage our proven approach to developing digital solutions to address the housing challenge in British Columbia,” said Sue Paish, CEO of DIGITAL. “We look forward to working alongside private industry, government and housing community partners to develop new ideas, find what works and action solutions for the benefit of all British Columbians.”

DIGITAL stated that it believes in assembling collaborative project teams to develop and drive forward innovative solutions to some of society’s biggest challenges. Its partnerships include but are not limited to builders, educators, professional service providers, not-for-profits, technology developers and government bodies. 

They argued that this approach allows teams to draw upon a larger range of skills, expertise and experience, thereby improving the quality of the innovations produced and ensuring they are ready for commercialization and real-world applications.

DIGITAL’s Housing Growth Innovation Program is leveraging a $9 million investment over three years from the province, which was announced in April 2023, as part of the Digital Housing Construction Initiative in their Homes for People Action Plan.

“This is another step forward in our government’s commitment to use existing technology and leading innovation to bring a more efficient permitting process to B.C. so we can build more homes, faster,” said Ravi Kahlon, minister of housing. “We are excited to see DIGITAL work with partners to advance digital innovation and increase productivity in British Columbia’s housing construction sector.”

Interested parties are encouraged to visit the Housing Growth Innovation Program call for proposals page for more details and to submit an Expression of Interest (EOI).