BamCore Supports Whole Life Carbon Building Design

The BamCore Gen 3 Prime Wall Framing Solution supports whole life carbon building design. 

A climate-positive building solution, the BamCore Prime Wall optimizes regenerative biogenic fibers into an efficient and easy framing alternative. From cradle to cradle, the solution has the opportunity to mitigate climate change, the housing crisis, the labor shortage crisis, and global rural poverty.

How?

The Material.

1. Planting timber bamboo on degraded, overgrazed lands that would otherwise have an adverse impact on the environment and livelihoods. Timber bamboo reverses the dangers of desertification, stops soil erosion, filters water, and provides income and food security to impoverished global areas. Sustainably managed, bamboos are an initial tool to bring back biodiversity in barren landscapes.
2. Timber bamboo is the fastest-growing regenerative structural carbon fiber on earth, able to grow nearly 3 feet in a single day. It is a non-invasive noble grass, allowing mature culms to be harvested without disturbing the root system. The more it is harvested, the faster it grows. One clump of timber bamboo captures nearly 2 tons of CO2/year. And, one hectare (2.47 acres) of timber bamboo provides enough framing material to build four homes compared to one framed with pine.
3. With a high tensile and compressive strength and a low weight ratio, timber bamboo is a robust structural material. And when made into durable building products, it acts as a carbon sink efficiently and beautifully sequestering embodied carbon.

The Design.

1. The BamCore Generation 3 Prime Wall is a green engineered nearly hollow dual-panel framing solution. Stronger than traditional stick construction, the Prime Wall eliminates over 80% of studs, headers, and posts that cause thermal bridging. This reduction in framing factor increases insulation space, drastically reducing operational energy consumption. A BamCore home can save 223Mt of CO2 = to the emissions of driving 500,000 miles.
2. The cost to heat or cool buildings is significantly impacted by the air leakage of the building envelopment. BamCore’s shiplap design reduces air leakage by over 83% compared to stick construction. This reduction in air leakage significantly saves operational carbon energy and costs. And can reduce the size of the heat pump typically needed.
3. The BamCore Prime Wall’s high perm and slow flame spread rating eliminate the need for continuous exterior insulation and most gypsum board. The elimination of these high carbon and often toxic materials increases the green aspect of the design. BamCore is rated CA Title 24 compliant in all 16 climate zones without continuous exterior insulation. 

The Technology. 

1. Our patented framing solution utilizes industrialized construction techniques. The high-performance biogenic panels arrive at the job site with every door, window, outlet, and access panel cut to millimeter accuracy following the architectural plan. 
2. BamCore’s off-site custom prefabrication supports fast & easy installation without the need for cranes or other heavy equipment. We open the labor pool to include less-skilled workers by sequentially numbering each panel and drawing on MEP lines and a nail pattern. No onsite cutting is required, and the panels are quickly erected with three laborers and a nail gun. Our solution reduces rework waste and cuts construction time in half. Further, by optimizing nesting routines, we also eliminate waste in the factory.
3. And, our proprietary 3D modeling Design | Bid | Build software allows collaboration between owners, designers, and the trades. This efficiency optimizes design, reduces waste, and saves carbon, time, and money.

The end.

And as with all things, the end of life must spark new beginnings to be a part of the carbon cycle that sustains us. BamCore is exploring and testing the best use of Prime Wall panels once they have been retired from their service in the home. While we have no reason to believe that the panels wouldn’t endure for 200+ years in a structure, we understand that needs of land-use change, and many homes are altered long before the frame has worn out. Some possibilities include repurposing to shelving, flooring (you can consider the website), scrimber, biochar, etc.