DASH Year In Review
Unlocking the Potential of Prefabrication in Canada’s Construction Industry
March 13, 2025A Look Back at a Year in Development of BC Housing’s DASH
Development of BC Housing’s DASH platform for mid-rise housing gained real momentum in 2025. DASH(Digitally Accelerated Standardized Housing) is a first-of-its-kind solution to Canada’s housing shortage – it offers a set of ready-to-use digital building tools and permit-ready designs to help architects, designers, and housing providers build multi-family homes faster and easier.
Scius has been intimately involved in DASH from the very start. Over the past 2 years, we have been working side-by-side with BC Housing’s research team to assemble the partners, processes and technologies necessary to create a full “stem-to-stern” open-source system that includes standardized blueprint designs, digital rules, regulatory guidelines so municipalities can create prefab-friendly development policies, planning and prefab configuration technologies, and a virtual market place of local prefab suppliers.
Today, the DASH “Pathfinder” team comprises Scius with Chris Hill Consulting, Aliova, and Iredale Architecture with Timber Engineering Inc., and together we advise and support BC Housing as DASH is deployed internally within BC Housing and externally with project partners and the many stakeholders. In fact, DASH now involves dozens of other companies to support commercialization and scale-up. DASH has evolved dramatically since its inception, and while we are excited to see how we progress in 2026, it is good to look back at how far we have come.
From the Beginning
At the start of 2025, we launched the DASH website to introduce the platform concept, the DASH technical team and the initial toolset to the public. In February, the team travelled to Ottawa to celebrate our success as a finalist in the CMHC Housing Supply Challenge and had the opportunity to connect with researchers from the National Research Council of Canada, exploring potential innovations for DASH in the near future. We also established a Leadership Council of industry leaders, researchers, and government representatives to provide oversight and advice.
In the following months, the focus was on identifying potential demonstration projects within B.C., with BC Housing, Metro Vancouver Housing, and private developers. A DASH “roadshow” started rolling with presentations at conferences and events in BC and across the country. To get it all down in writing, we developed the “How to Guide” for those wishing to use DASH on a project, and our DASH Playbook, a reference for other regions or organizations who wish to have their own version of DASH, will be published in early 2026.
In the summer, BC Housing made great strides in planning the future of DASH implementation. Projects were identified, potential layouts were explored, and typology and use ideas were expanded. Two blueprints were completed for 3-6 storey multi-family buildings that meet the B.C. Building Code requirements, with one also meeting BC Housing Guidelines.
Looking Forward
2025 culminated with the official announcement of DASH by Christine Boyle, Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs. The fall also saw RFPs issued for architectural services for the first DASH projects, and “market sounding “ RFIs were sent out to invite contractors, construction managers and manufacturers to provide input into how future proposal calls can be optimized for BIM and prefab. 2026 is shaping up to be a busy year. In addition to launching DASH demonstration projects, BC Housing is also expanding the blueprint library, and project teams have already been prequalified to develop new standardized designs that include 7+ storey mass timber, single egress stair layouts, youth housing solutions and more. Research projects are also underway that are developing bathroom pods and wet walls for future designs.
2026 will also be the year in which outreach knowledge mobilization gets underway. The website will get a refresh and more resources added. Expect to see lots of opportunities to learn about DASH, how it works and how developers, not-for-profit housing providers, architects, builders and manufacturers can all benefit from the efficiencies afforded from using pre-vetted, permit-ready designs.
Don’t miss our panel presentation at BuildEX Vancouver on February 11!