INCOMBUSTIBLE Workshop: Compressed Earth Blocks (CEB)
Friday Sept. 18, 2026 , 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
The Materials Lab hosts a talk and demo on compressed earth blocks (CEB), featuring Ryan Runge and Sterling Roberts of Advanced Earthen Construction Technologies (AECT).
Join the Materials Lab on Friday, September 18 from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM for a live demonstration exploring compressed earth blocks (CEB). The event features a 30-minute introductory talk at the Materials Lab (WMB 3.102), with coffee provided by Flat Track Coffee. A live demonstration and Q&A will follow in the WMB courtyard from 12:00 to 1:30 PM. We will observe the on-site production of these dense, fire-resistant masonry blocks, highlighting their exceptional thermal mass and role in future resilient design.
Based in San Antonio, Texas, Advanced Earthen Construction Technologies (AECT) is a global leader and premier manufacturer of mobile compressed earth block machinery. With projects spanning over 50 countries, AECT designs state-of-the-art hydraulic block presses that allow builders to produce high-strength, structural, and fire-proof masonry units directly on-site using local resources. The workshop is led by AECT President Ryan Runge, who has leveraged 26 years of experience to expand AECT into over 50 countries and establish the first large-scale CEB plants in the U.S.
This event is organized in support of INCOMBUSTIBLE, an exhibition curated with Associate Professor Nichole Wiedemann, on display at the Materials Lab March 2026 – February 2027. INCOMBUSTIBLE proposes a material palette for a future where wildfire is a fundamental design parameter, not an exception. In 2025, Austin formally recognized that over half of its habitable land in now wildfire vulnerable –up 38% from a decade earlier– setting the stage for this exhibition. INCOMBUSTIBLE explores how architecture can respond not only with policy, but with matter itself. Curated from the vast library of building materials at the SOA, the exhibition catalogs materials and assemblies that exhibit inherent resistance through unique composition and structure, whether mineral or biological.
