Building a solution for affordable housing

Jul 10, 2023

Glenn Brady and Mark Sherman have a vision to address local and regional housing issues: modular prefabricated panels made from foam-insulated light-gauge steel.

The panels will be fabricated locally, purchased by customers who are looking to build a house or other structure, and assembled on site.

"In theory, a few people with standard hand tools could assemble it in a few days," Sherman said.

Brady and Sherman showed off a prototype version at Sun-Air Metal Sheet Thursday afternoon, which involved just a small-scale steel-frame-only version of the project. The product is called Arctic Light Modular structural system, built under the company PanAlaska. The partners launched the idea a year ago, and it was borne out of the Eielson Air Force Base Task Force.

"The takeaway was that we as a community were not meeting the demands for Department of Defense family housing," Brady said. He added if personnel could not move their families up for a three-year assignment, "then it can become a pretty miserable job."

Sherman said when the partners began investigating, they realized there was a wider need.

"We found that housing was an infrastructure challenge across the state," Sherman said. "Our format could be applied to a lot of different structural needs."

Brady added that it solves another problem: affordable housing.

"Right now, the cost of housing is what is keeping workers away from Alaska, which is hobbling our economy," Brady said.

Brady said the process boils down to constructing the steel frames, placing them into a block mold filled with individual beads of expanded polystyrene foam insulation (or EPS foam). Steam is applied and the beads are melted and fused into a solid block.

The final product is a standardized 12-inch thick insulated panel with an insulated value of R-50.

Patents have already been filed, including a novel approach "on how the bolts are put together."

A 4-foot-by-10-foot-by-12-inch panel would weigh 140 pounds. Structural tests were done for wind, snow load, earthquakes and other conditions "to refine the design," Brady said.

Brady said the advantage of the Arctic Light system over others, including structural insulated panels, "is that testing was done without the foam."

"We could theoretically fill these panels with anything," Brady said. "The structure is agnostic from the insulation." He added the difference between the Arctic Light and similar products is that the latter relies on foam as part of the load stress tests.

Sherman and Brady projected a home cost at between $225 and $235 per square foot for the entire process. North Pole Mayor Mike Welch estimated his city's residential cost ranges between $265 to $275 per square foot.

For the manufacturing cost of the Arctic Light panels, Brady estimates around $50 to $75 a square-foot, based on current material and labor market costs.

But it could change, depending on whether material prices rise or fall. He added EPS insulation material has been difficult to obtain in the past two years, but he expects its availability to rise again. The company's preference would be to purchase from a non-Chinese source.

Building up

Brady said PanAlaska's product will be built up in three stages.

At the moment, PanAlaska remains in the pilot stage, "so we’re on a shoe-string budget trying to piece together all the financing."

Brady and Sherman are developing a manufacturing site in Fox near Silver Gulch Brewing to take advantage of available steam supply required in the insulation process.

The pair reconditioned a 1980s EPS block mold made in America by German manufacturers for the insulation component of the process.

A modern version would cost $500,000, take eight months and can only be procured in Europe or Asia.

"It's like taking a 1980s Chevy and turning it into a 2022 Corvette," Sherman said.

Once the Fox facility is up and running, the process could move from its pilot hand fabrication phase to the first stage of commercial production. A full-scale, seamless automated production process would come later, dependent on securing the capital investment of at least $5 million.

Brady said the goal is to start having panels and products available for the 2023 construction season.

Modular format

Sherman said another key difference between Arctic Light and similar products is the prefabricated, ready-to-go panels.

"To order a house out of similar panels, you would need to have your design with all the architectural dimensions sent in, and they manufacture individual panels," Sherman said. "That can take anywhere from 90 days to six months."

The Arctic Light concept involves about a dozen modular shapes a customer could design. They would also include floors and trusses installed with connectors.

"It's like a Lego house, and we’ll have them all manufactured so when you come in with a floor plan, we can sell you the pieces to make that house," Sherman said.

Local production and manufacturing in theory cut down supply chain and delivery issues. In the event that a section of the home sustains damage, a panel could be removed.

"It really is a game changer with respect to labor, that you’re not having to do field repairs or modifications to things," Brady said.

The interior and exterior sidings would be up to a homeowner, along with all wiring and plumbing.

The end result would be a locally manufactured, fully insulated, weather-proof domicile that could be constructed from recycled materials. The modular, prefabricated nature would also extend the construction season by one or two months.

Benefits to developers

Brady said another goal includes reducing the labor intensity in housing development, especially during a shortage of skilled laborers.

"This would allow contractors and home developers to provide greater capacity," Brady said. "Right now a contractor might be able to put up three houses in a season. This reduces labor time, and they could put up 30 houses in a season."

Brady stressed that while an Arctic Light home could be set up in a few days by a few people, skilled contractors would likely be needed for additional work, from pre-construction foundation to wiring, plumbing and utilities and siding.

"We’re trying to make it cheaper for developers to come into the market," Brady said.

Contact reporter Jack Barnwell at 907-459-7587 or [email protected].