Our first Accelerator Partner for 2025 is B. PUBLIC! The New Mexico-based firm is known for its innovative panelized building systems designed specifically to serve US Passive House AEC professionals. Their flex design platform gives them the ability to build super-insulated and efficient homes at greater speed and with less waste than stick-built construction. Because their panels are manufactured in climate-controlled workshops, there are no delays in construction due to inclement weather. B. PUBLIC’s standardized methodology facilitates their stringent QA/QC and reduces material waste by up 95% when compared with conventional construction practices. 

For professional teams, B. PUBLIC’s platform affords them a streamlined process for designing, specifying, and delivering thermal-bridge-free structural building envelopes. B. PUBLIC offers design assistance with standardized detailing for walls, foundations, roofs, and connections for high-performance buildings that are capable of meeting even the most rigorous building standards in the world, including Zero Energy Ready Homes and Passive House. The pre-engineered panels range from R35-R80 and can be outfitted with customized exteriors to better match regional styles.

B. PUBLIC has also taken an active role in educating builders and professionals about high-performance building techniques and Passive House design. This includes hands-on training sessions for contractors and tradespeople and lunch and learns with architects and engineers. Additionally, B. PUBLIC has taken a leadership role in the national Passive House movement by sharing knowledge, experience, and resources to help people build better.

Projects that rely on B. PUBLIC’s panels have appeared throughout North America. Some of the more recent highlights (see below) include a new home in the mountains of Colorado; a spacious retreat in the forests of North Carolina; a 6,000-ft² lecture hall with a kitchen that is being built by the Santa Fe Institute; and a new house for a family in Santa Cruz, California, who lost their home in the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex fires. 

Last year, B. PUBLIC was invited by Terner Labs to be one of six cohort companies nationwide in its Builders Lab, an accelerator program that works with innovators in architecture, engineering, construction, and manufacturing to scale efficient, cost-effective, and sustainable methods of housing. Terner Labs is part of the Terner Center for Housing Innovation based at the College of Environment Design at the University of California, Berkeley. B. PUBLIC’s inclusion as one of the partners will allow them to continue to expand their operations, while also working with other entrepreneurs and trailblazers within the construction industry to advance decarbonizing building technologies and work to mitigate the housing crisis. 

You can learn more about B. PUBLIC by checking out their site!

The B. PUBLIC team collaborated with SFI Staff Architect Tom Easterson-Bond to create what will ultimately be the primary gathering space for members of the institute at their new Miller Campus. The project was designed to feature a steel superstructure, covered passages, and a steel deck over a pond to create a functional indoor-outdoor gathering space for four seasons that opens to the Tesuque Valley’s sweeping view. The 6,000-ft² enclosure utilized B.PUBLIC wood prefab insulated floor panels (R51), wall panels (R35), and roof panels (R59).

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Settled at the base of the Collegiate Peaks along U.S. Forest Service land just outside Salida, Colorado, this multigenerational retreat boasts 360-degree mountain views as far as the eye can see, in addition to state of the art features that combine design with performance.

This home incorporates extreme high-efficiency wall and roof panels made by B.PUBLIC, triple-pane windows and doors, radiant floors, photovoltaic solar panels, electric appliances, energy recovery ventilators, large south-facing windows, deep overhangs, and cross ventilation to create an almost completely self-sufficient home clearly in a league of its own.

The main house reflects a modern concept with a reduced palette of wood, concrete, and steel while still blending into the landscape with simple forms reflective of the historic mountain vernacular. The small guest cabin that sits lower in the landscape, holds a rustic character from Colorado’s historic settlement period giving the appearance of being at the site for many years. Combining the main house with the cabin bridges the past with the present.

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North Carolina Home

B. PUBLIC also worked with Jeff Hopper of Hopper Construction to build a prefabricated Passive House in the first 100% net-zero energy neighborhood within North Carolina, the Array Community. Located in Orange County, the home’s performance is certainly impressive, but the speed within which it was constructed is truly amazing. Assembly of the panelized home began on a Monday this past October, and was completed in time for an open house hosted by Hopper that weekend! 

“This home is everything we hoped for—a modern, beautiful space that aligns with our values,” said one of the homeowners. “Knowing that we’re reducing our carbon footprint while living in comfort gives us an incredible sense of satisfaction.”

Santa Cruz Rebuild

Following the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex fires in Santa Cruz, California, B.PUBLIC worked with some families affected by the fires to create new homes. The assembly in the above video is weather-tight, foam-free, vapor-open, fully insulated, and outfitted with a continuous air-barrier. Perhaps even more impressive, the full structural thermal envelope was erected in just one week!

“While building a home was never part of our plan or dream and we entered the process reluctantly, working with B.PUBLIC has become another step in our journey to living more sustainably through building a resilient and efficient home," said one homeowner. "We are excited to share our experience with our fellow fire families, and we hope B.PUBLIC's expertise can support many others in coming home soon.”