Current Research Projects
Current research projects
Building momentum for
next-gen construction
Seed grants are funding five active projects aimed at modernizing how the industry builds. As the Coalition's first investments, they mark a tangible start — funding in place, work already moving forward — and a preview of what's possible when the industry tackles its hardest problems together. The following project descriptions are just a sampling of our work, with full outcomes available to Coalition members.
Blocked: Affordable Customizable Modular Housing via Computational Design and Digital Fabrication
Research theme: Construction operations and advanced materials and manufacturing
Goal: Develop and test a customizable modular construction system, based on an adjustable set of parameters, using oriented strand board sheets, cut into parts by computer numerical control milling machines
- Ramtin Haghnazar, assistant professor, school of architecture
- Mehdi Setareh, professor, school of architecture
- Ali Shojaei, assistant professor, school of construction
- Vahid Nasir, assistant professor, wood and science engineering, Oregon State University
- Babak Vakilzadeh, principal structural engineer, Ziggurat Bold Designers, Ontario, Canada
Automated Modular Sub-Assembly for Affordable Housing Using Precision Interlocking Oriented Strand Board and Engineered Wood Panels
Research theme: Construction operations and advanced materials and manufacturing
Goal: Develop and validate a process and technology for an industrialized construction system that optimizes digital fabrication, automation, and human labor
- Adam Phillips, associate professor, civil and environmental engineering
- Hongrui Yu, assistant professor, civil and environmental engineering
- Tripp Shealy, associate professor, civil and environmental engineering
- Daniel Hindman, associate professor, sustainable biomaterials
- Max Ofsa, 3D Design Studio Manager, University Libraries
Transforming Precast Concrete Construction through a Cradle-to-Cradle Approach
Research theme: Sustainability, construction operations, and digital human interfaces
Goal: Explore a cradle-to-cradle approach for building design and construction using precast concrete elements to reduce the massive accumulation of construction and demolition waste
- Tanyel Bulbul, associate professor, school of construction
- Jim Jones, professor, school of architecture
- Sean McGinnis, professor of practice, civil and environmental engineering
- Metromont: Precast Concrete Manufacturer, Winchester, Virginia
- Precast/Prestressed Concrete Institute Mid-Atlantic, Chicago, Illinois
3D Printed Concrete Enabled by Real-Time Tracking of Print Quality and Properties
Research theme: Construction operations and digital and human interfaces
Goal: Use AI to track printed concrete quality and to use surface waves to track the setting times of the printed concrete
- Alexander Brand, assistant professor, civil and environmental engineering
- T.A. Kamakshi, postdoctoral researcher, civil and environmental engineering
- Zhenyu “James” Kong, professor, industrial and systems engineering
- Andrew McCoy, professor, school of construction
- Nathan King, assistant professor, school of architecture
- Q. Tran, assistant professor, civil, environmental, and geospatial engineering, Michigan Tech
- Michael White, chief executive officer, Crain Company 3D, Crain Impact
Setting the Stage for the Coalition for Smart Construction Mass Timber and Construction Hub for Innovation Lab
Research theme: Advanced materials and manufacturing and sustainability.
Goal: Launch a first-of-its-kind construction prototyping facility centered on mass timber construction.
- Daniel Hindman, associate professor, sustainable biomaterials
- Brian Bond, professor, sustainable biomaterials
- Adam Phillips, associate professor, civil and environmental engineering
- Edward Becker, associate professor, school of architecture