Construction 3D Printing
The AEC industry consists of three separate segments: architecture, engineering and construction. Thus, by integrating these seemingly separate entities into a single industry, ACE professionals can work more efficiently. For architects, engineers, and contractors alike, construction 3D printing represents the full integration of these approaches.
Over the past two decades, these segments have undergone a deep transformation by adopting digital and 3D technologies. As a result, architecture first, and engineering shortly thereafter, have already embraced the digital manufacturing workflow. On the other hand, the construction segment has only recently begun to look at 3D printing and the use of digital additive technologies. The potential to replace “analogic” practices and manual labor is a huge opportunity.
Change is inevitable
While it appears inevitable, the shift toward construction 3D printing is not going to be an easy and seamless transition. Furthermore, the construction industry has typically been slow to embrace technology. This is now changing for the good. The use of technology to deliver projects is accelerating. The appropriate use of the correct technologies can help to deliver successful projects.
From just 10 firms active in 2017, 3dpbm‘s 3D Printing Business Directory now lists over 40 Construction 3D Printer Hardware Manufacturers and nearly 50 Construction 3D Printing Service Providers (some companies are the same as hardware manufacturers also provide services). The most relevant trend that manifested over the past three-year period is that large material firms (such as St Gobain, Heidelberg Cements/Italcementi and LaFargeHolceim) and several large real estate investment funds are becoming involved directly through partnerships and acquisitions.
A global opportunity
Relevant initiatives are taking place in every continent, with markets in China, Russia, MEMA and Europe (mainly Holland, Denmark, Germany but also Spain and Italy) leading the way. North America is now becoming much more actively involved and taking up a leadership role in many approaches (especially in terms of off-grid and sustainable housing or defense applications). Relevant opportunities for affordable 3D printed housing are also expected to rise in emerging and developing economies.
Multi-story (up to 4) capabilities are now starting to become available. Furthermore, construction 3D printing is not just for housing: applications include restorations, bridges, pedestrian passageways, river revetment walls, statues, furniture, fences, fountains… In this rapidly developing context, the multi-trillion dollar construction segment is soon to be dramatically disrupted.
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Adaptive 3D concrete printing awarded $50,000 research grant
According to Penn State University, a research proposal by Benay Gürsoy, assistant professor of architecture, was awarded nearly $50,000 as the 2023-24 recipient of the Stuckeman School’s Collaborative Design Research…
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Germany receives Europe’s first 3D printed social housing apartment
Germany’s first publicly funded, 3D printed, multi-family house is being constructed in the North Rhine-Westphalian city of Lünen. For the first time, the construction method is being combined with the…
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Black Buffalo 3D bringing construction 3D printing to the Caribbean
Construction 3D printing firm Black Buffalo 3D is partnering with Innova Homes Limited, a Trinidad and Tobago-based property development company to bring its technology to the region. Through their agreement,…
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3D printed building in Qatar enters Guinness World Records
According to the Qatari News Agency (QNA), the pavilion of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (MCIT) TASMU (SMART Qatar) has entered the Guinness World Records Book as the…
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Mighty Buildings to 3D print Buckminster Fuller’s ‘Dome Home’
The R. Buckminster Fuller Dome Home Not-For-Profit and Mighty Buildings, a 3D printing construction technology company, are set to jointly design and develop a new visitor center and museum at…
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Guatemala receives first 3D printed building
Progreso, a leader in Central and South America’s cement industry, has inaugurated Guatemala’s first-ever 3D printed building, through its corporate accelerator, Progreso X. The milestone was achieved in collaboration with…
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Putzmeister introduces KARLOS, a mobile 3D printer for concrete walls
Construction hardware specialist Putzmeister presented many innovations relating to the construction site of tomorrow at the bauma fair in Munich. The German company is looking at construction 3D printing technology…
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Dubai introduces construction 3D printing certification
According to Emirates News Agency (WAM), the Dubai Municipality has introduced the world’s inaugural certification and conformity marking system for 3D printing within the construction sector. This initiative aims to…
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Kind Designs uses CyBe technology to 3D print ‘Living Seawalls’
Miami-based climate-tech startup, Kind Designs, is leveraging 3D concrete printing technology from CyBe as a faster, cheaper, and more sustainable construction method to produce ‘Living Seawalls’. These underwater structures protect…