Business View Caribbean l Feb 2023

73 74 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN VOLUME 10, ISSUE 2 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN VOLUME 10, ISSUE 2 and acoustic insulation, making the homes more environmentally sustainable and quieter. “Our houses are also monolithic, so in an earthquake or hurricane scenario, the whole structure stays as one instead of ripping apart. If it does fall, they are much lighter, so getting people out alive would be much easier,” Hurst relays. Bau Homes currently has one development underway called Lightfoot West. The development is priced slightly above affordable housing rates, which Hurst explains ensures the houses provide all the amenities while offering a better aesthetic experience. However, despite this focus, it’s not been easy, stimulating demand for houses, especially given the wait-and-see culture on the island. “We’ve so far done seventy houses in the Lightfoot West project and are on course to build 191 houses by the end of the project,” Hurst says. “These have given us some proof since most people want to see how durable the houses are. There was an initial challenge of selling people houses they cannot see, but with this first batch of houses done, our business model has exploded because we now have people who can say they have lived in one of our houses for eight to nine years,” he elaborates. The company has a second project in the works called Lyons, which it hopes it can undertake once it sets up its own EPS factory on the island. “Importing EPS to the island isn’t cost-effective, especially when competing with other building products,” Hurst explains. “This second project, plus our expansion plans to the rest of the BAU HOMES property because many these days will take your money, and the day you come back, there is no house and no money.” Having lived and worked overseas for many years, these factors drove Hurst’s formation of Bau Homes, which acts as a trusted real estate link between Antiguans and Barbudans in the diaspora and their homeland. Bau Homes builds homes to withstand the island’s environment, providing a unique selling point to potential homeowners. “Our houses are built to withstand three main environmental factors,” Hurst says. “Serious hurricanes, earthquakes, and termites, which are a significant pest on the island.” Hurst explains that the company uses an innovative construction method called the BAUPANEL® SYSTEM. “The central core of the panel is made up of expanded polystyrene (EPS) with a density of 15 kg/m3 – 25 kg/m3 that is cut in a rippled manner to improve the compliance of the concrete when discharged, “Hurst outlines. “The EPS core is edged with a mesh of straight and/or corrugated steel, depending on the kind of panel linked together by a series of connectors that go through the EPS core. Once the micro- concrete has been shotcreted, the panel performs like a compound section because of the steel connectors’ connection of the two concrete layers.” “We then cover the whole thing with high-level concrete mixers. Even the roof is concrete to ensure it does not fly off in a hurricane,” he describes. “In terms of earthquake resistance, this method is superb because buildings with the expanded polystyrene are capable of absorbing up to 60% of the energy generated in an earthquake, resulting in less structural damage.” Bau Home’s EPS materials also provide thermal