IBG launches multi-tenant building design library

Key Takeaways:

• IBG Designs offers high-performance, climate-resilient, and cost-effective building designs that are specifically tailored for smaller communities and organizations, making advanced, sustainable architecture more accessible to those with limited resources.
• The designs provided by IBG Designs have undergone rigorous municipal approval processes, reducing delays and uncertainties for builders and developers, thereby expediting project timelines and easing the building approval process.
• Unlike large developers focused on urban areas, IBG Designs is dedicated to helping smaller organizations and communities.

The Whole Story:

B.C.-based Innovation Building Group (IBG) has launched IBG Designs, a new online platform that provides readily-available designs for multi-tenant buildings that smaller communities and organizations can use to address their affordable housing supply challenges.

The customizable building designs offered through IBG Designs are high-performance, climate-resilient, and cost-effective designs for low-rise buildings. IBG stated that by providing accessible and affordable design options, they are making advanced, sustainable architecture accessible to smaller communities and organizations that might otherwise be constrained by limited resources or financial limitations.

The company explained that IBG Designs is the culmination of its 40-year track record of constructing energy-efficient buildings.

Their team noted that IBG Designs’ selection of high-quality, customizable building designs are offered at a discounted price compared to traditional methods. They stated that unlike large private developers focused on urban areas, IBG Designs is dedicated to supporting smaller organizations and builders in small to mid-size communities across Canada. They believe that its expedited design process, combined with a de-risked construction approach, ensures faster project timelines. The techniques and technologies used in the designs are proven to lead to high-performance buildings with low operating and maintenance costs.

“We are sharing our hard-earned knowledge to empower smaller communities and
organizations to unlock the housing potential in their own backyards,” said Rod Nadeau, CEO
and founder of IBG. “We’ve spent years constructing and operating our
own projects, so every design is meticulously refined and rigorously tested by independent case
studies and real-life operations, ensuring they are of the highest quality. Local builders and
organizations can now pursue projects they might not have thought were possible.”

IBG noted that the approach can have the following benefits for smaller communities and organizations

• Expertise and Technology Integration: Each architectural plan in the IBG Designs
  library is a result of extensive testing and refinement, incorporating state-of-the-art
  technology to enhance building performance. This ensures that each project is not only
  cost-effective but also meets the highest standards of sustainability and resilience.
• Diverse and Customizable Options: The library currently features nine customizable
  designs that cater to various project sizes and needs, with plans to increase the number of designs and options over the next year. IBG Designs ensures a wide range of choices to meet diverse requirements for multi-tenant buildings in infill lots and other spaces that can be used to help alleviate the housing supply crisis.
• Municipal Pre-Approval Initiative: Recognizing the complexities of the building
  approval process, IBG Designs streamlines project approvals as each of the designs
  have previously undergone rigorous municipal approval processes and incorporate
  changes and improvements that will ultimately reduce delays and uncertainties for
  builders and developers.
• Third-Party Validation: The performance and cost-efficiency of IBG Designs’ offerings
  are backed by third-party case studies and cost analyses, providing reliable evidence of
  their benefits.

“Canada is facing both an affordability and a climate crisis. Tackling both will require a rapid
increase in housing supply, built to a low-carbon standard,” said Melina Scholefield, executive
director, Zero Emissions Innovation Centre. “IBG Designs will put high-performance, climate-
resilient, and cost-effective building designs into the hands of builders, speeding the
development of low- and zero-emissions homes across Canada.”

Innovation Building Group is a semi-finalist in the (CMHC) Housing Supply Challenge, which
aims to reduce or remove barriers that hinder housing supply in Canada. Being selected has
enabled IBG to expand its library of designs and share its knowledge with full plan packages
that can be used anywhere in Canada.

DMZ, a global startup ecosystem, in partnership with GroundBreak Ventures, is a designated Scaling Hub for the CMHC initiative, and is providing IBG with access to expert-led mentorship, business coaching, peer-to-peer support, and networking opportunities to help the company scale IBG Designs and transform the way Canada delivers housing.

It’s an approach the the Province of B.C. has been experimenting as well. Late last year they launched the Standardized Housing Design Project to create customizable, standardized designs for small-scale, multi-unit homes like townhomes and triplexes. This initiative aims to expedite housing development by simplifying the permitting process and reducing costs for builders and homeowners.