Nexii’s Nexiite green building product is more thermally efficient and less carbon-intensive than concrete. (Photo courtesy Nexii)

Green construction technology company Nexii Building Solutions will open a new manufacturing plant on Vancouver Island to accelerate the region’s transition toward sustainable building products.

The Vancouver-based company, which develops green building products through the Nexii Certified Manufacturing program, is investing approximately $50 million in the new facility.

Nexii indicated the new plant is a response to growing demand and will create more than 200 green jobs in the Southern Vancouver Island area.

“Nexii is opening a production facility on Vancouver Island to help meet escalating customer demand in the fast-growing region,” Gregor Robertson, executive vice-president of strategy and partnerships for Nexii, said in an email to Sustainable Biz Canada.

“We are looking forward to sharing some landmark projects on Vancouver Island using the Nexii system in the coming months.”

The new facility will be known as Alexzi Building Solutions Inc., and developed under Nexii’s Certified Manufacturing program.

“The construction industry is entering a period of substantial adjustment,” Amber Simpson, president of Alexzi, said in a release. “The environmental concerns from traditional construction methods and the need for innovations that can enhance efficiencies make the Nexii product a perfect solution.”

Green building products

In its effort to accelerate the supply of more sustainable products for building construction, Nexii uses manufacturing technology and breakthrough materials to assemble high-quality, sustainable buildings and retrofit products.

“Nexii’s revolutionary products can replace the concrete, drywall and siding in traditional construction projects with its proprietary material, Nexiite,” explained Robertson.

“Nexiite is more thermally efficient and less carbon-intensive than concrete and it can be used as a sustainable alternative to concrete in certain building applications.”

The company’s manufacturing approach helps create customizable solutions for its customers, while reducing on-site construction waste to near-zero and accelerating build times by up to 75 per cent, according to Robertson.

“We have old-growth forests, beautiful beaches and extensive wildlife,” added Simpson. “The opportunity to bring a sustainable building product to our island is incredibly exciting. A green alternative to concrete; how awesome is that?”

Certified manufacturing program

Nexii’s sustainable building products are manufactured by both company-owned facilities, as well as through what it calls “certified manufacturers.”

“Nexii uses a certified local manufacturing partner model to enable the rapid regional production of Nexii’s breakthrough building products made from . . . Nexiite,” said Robertson.

Certified manufacturers are independent local businesses, producing Nexii building products in their respective regions. Access to Nexii’s operating systems and protocols enables the partners to manufacture Nexii products and entire buildings with the Nexiite material.

Environmental benefits

With the high amount of waste and global emissions created by buildings and construction – 39 per cent, according to Robertson – Nexii aims to minimize the impact with its products and technology.

“Nexii has created a breakthrough design, manufacturing and assembly system that provides a solution to the challenges of construction waste,” said Robertson, “as well as the carbon footprint that stems from the construction and operations of buildings.”

Robertson said Nexii’s precision, off-site manufacturing creates near-zero waste and it can minimize carbon emissions of buildings with a pair of innovations – the building material and its assembly process.

“. . . Nexiite – which is used within its building panels – is more thermally efficient and less carbon-intensive than concrete,” he said. “In addition, when assembled, the Nexii panels create an airtight building envelope.”

These two factors combined improve a building’s energy efficiency and lowers the climate pollution from building operations.

Nexii

As reported in a June 2020 article by Sustainable Biz Canada, Nexii does not release information on its proprietary Nexiite product.

It involves fused layers of the concrete-like material with traditional insulating materials. The building components are fabricated in its factory, then shipped to building sites.

Several key names have also been added to Nexii’s boards, including AECOM chair and CEO Michael S. Burke and business executives Ram Charan and Dennis Carey.

Dr. Ronald Sugar, chair of Uber and a board director at Apple, also joined Nexii’s advisory board.

In addition to the upcoming Vancouver Island plant, the company now has six facilities in development or operational, including in Squamish, B.C., Moose Jaw, Sask., Toronto,  Alberta and Pennsylvania.

“We’re excited to enter into a new Nexii certified  manufacturing agreement with our partners on Vancouver Island, which will see Alexzi Building Solutions Inc., use Nexii’s breakthrough green technology to produce our sustainable building products in the region,” Stephen Sidwell, CEO of Nexii, said in a release.

“Vancouver Island is home to some of the fastest-growing cities in the province and it’s essential to ensure that all new construction on the island is also green construction.”