Focused on the Future in New Mexico
Advanced manufacturers in New Mexico are addressing workforce and housing needs.
By Val Hunt Beerbower on November 27, 2024
Livability: New Mexico
Advanced manufacturers in New Mexico are leveraging the state’s resources and talent pool to drive innovation.
As a result, creative solutions are arising for modern-day challenges. For example, Albuquerque startup Build With Robots is tackling workforce demands, while B.PUBLIC Prefab in Santa Fe is developing affordable housing options.
Advocating for Affordable Housing
New Mexico’s growing popularity presents an opportunity to develop innovative affordable housing models for its expanding population. Fortunately, one woman-owned, public-benefit corporation has stepped up to the challenge.
B.PUBLIC Prefab launched in 2019 to make climate-friendly homes more accessible for residents. To do so, the company creates high-performance, prefabricated assemblies that expedite the building process.
“We believe that the shortage in housing is a humanitarian crisis,” says Edie Dillman, CEO and co-founder of B.PUBLIC Prefab. “Building faster, better, responsive housing to address specific and growing needs is urgent, and all effort should be made to create access and affordability.”
Dillman’s company generates insulated wall panels that are assembled into houses and low-rise multifamily buildings. The company also offers floor plans that developers or any potential homeowner can use to design a home.
In addition, the company launched a wall panel that meets the requirements for a single building material that provides all the structure, insulation, and air and weather barriers for the shell of any building from one to three stories high. Introduced at the International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas, this advance in the manufacturing process replaces the time-consuming steps of a site-built project into a single order, delivery and installation.
“Our little company was on the biggest stage for building materials, among 1,800 exhibitors and 76,000 attendees. We were the only company of our kind there and making a big splash,” Dillman says.
She credits collaborative efforts from public and private institutions in New Mexico with jump-starting companies like hers and ensuring businesses have the support they need to succeed. The Job Training Incentive Program, for instance, funds classroom and on-the-job training for newly created jobs in expanding or relocating businesses. The program reimburses 50% to 90% of employee wages, allowing companies like B.PUBLIC Prefab to pay new staff while they’re in training.
“We look to our local and state economic development departments for ideas, advisers, encouragement and opportunities, and we always get their support,” Dillman says. “Innovation and entrepreneurship are a part of the culture of New Mexico. People are very encouraging of new ideas and creating something unique here. We have also been very fortunate to have support from the state in many ways.”