3D PRINTING CONSTRUCTION/3D COSNTRUCTION: A BEGINNER’S GUIDE

3D PRINTING CONSTRUCTION/3D COSNTRUCTION: A BEGINNER’S GUIDE makenica.com/3d-printing-construction-3d-contruction-a-beginners-guide September 18, 2020

Category Engineering September 18, 2020

We use printers in our daily lives to print a number of documents but imagine if we could print an entire house. Sounds crazy, right? Well, not anymore.

With the technological advances in the 3D printing technology, printing buildings is no more a pipedream. But what is 3D printing and how is this possible? Don't worry; this article will lay all your doubts to rest.

WHAT IS 3D PRINTING? 3D printing, also known as additive manufacturing, is a process of creating a physical three dimensional object from a digital model. This is simply done by adding the required layers one step at a time.

WHAT IS 3D PRINTING CONSTRUCTION? When this technology of 3D printing services is applied to construction of buildings and/or to create construction components, the process is called 3D Printing Construction (3DPC) or Construction 3D Printing (C3DP).

Many renowned companies in the construction business have already adopted this technology and are using it to build houses, bridges, civil infrastructure, sculptures and several construction components.

HOW ARE 3D PRINTERS USED IN CONSTRUCTION? Before we discuss the other aspects of 3D Printing in construction, let's take a look at the various technologies being used in this sector.

1. ROBOTIC ARM EXTRUDERS

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This is popularly known as Contour Crafting. Rails are installed around the building ground that act as the structure to direct a robotic arm which is attached to the rails.

This arm moves back and forth to build the house layer by layer by extruding concrete material from the nozzle. To flatten the extruded layers and strengthen the model, trowels are placed on the side.

This is the most popular 3DPC technology being used to build XL structures.

2. SAND 3D PRINTING This technology was developed by an Italian architect Enrico Dini who built his own DShaped 3D Printer. The machine spreads and deposits layers of sand powder according to the desired thickness. Then droplets of a binder are poured on to the sand to harden it. This is similar to the way most metal 3D printers work.

3. METAL 3D PRINTING An innovative construction method called WAAM (Wire Arc Additive Manufacturing) was developed by a Dutch company called MX3D. In their own words, "we combined an industrial robot with a welding machine to turn it into a 3D printer that works with our own software."

This technology allows you to 3D print metal structures with a 6-axes robot that drops 2 kilos of material per hour. It can be used to build structures like bridges which have to withstand more stress.

WHAT ARE THE MATERIALS USED IN 3D CONSTRUCTION? Like a mix of cement, sand, and concrete is used in the traditionally built structures, 3D printing makes use of certain variants of such materials. This may include: Bioplastics Concrete mix Recycled plastic Synthetic stone-like material composed of sand and chemicals

WHY USE 3D PRINTING FOR CONSTRUCTION? Now that we've discussed about how to use 3D printing in construction, you must be wondering why we need this technology when we already have so many ways to construct a building.

Here are some reasons why.

1. EFFICIENCY & FAST PRODUCTION

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We all must have heard that in today's fast paced world time is money. So clearly, any technology that saves time is the better alternative.

By using 3D printing, you can reduce production time to a great extent. This is because these machines are fully automated and do not involve any human assistance.

In contrast to human labour, they don't even need to sleep or eat so they can work as long as we want. Some of the machines can construct a house of 600 to 800 square foot in just 24 hours!

Moreover, the 3D printers don't require any additional tools. The construction is already programmed and they just produce it.

2. REDUCTION IN HEALTH & SAFETY RISKS 3D printing does not require heavy manual labour therefore a number of dangerous steps in the construction process will be eliminated.

3. ECO-FRIENDLY Since the 3D printers print materials on demand, the machines produce less waste. This is one of the most advantageous factor of using 3D printing in construction. Less waste in turn also means that there will be low production costs.

Moreover, the machines are capable of using eco-friendly and recycled materials. Some machines can even run on solar energy and generate low CO2 emissions.

This makes 3D printing a much better alternative to traditional ways of construction as far as the environmental impacts are concerned.

4. AFFORDABLE COST As we've discussed so far, 3D printing requires less material, greatly reduces the need for human labour and completes construction in a lesser span of time. Because of these reasons, the cost of 3D printed buildings is very low.

They are highly beneficial to people in poverty-stricken areas after natural disasters.

5. INNOVATIVE & FLEXIBLE DESIGNS There are no limitations to design when it comes to 3D printed construction since it involves designing models in digital format through modeling softwares. This can enhance the project planning as you will be able to make technical drawings of the building with all the required parameters.

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3D construction even allows you to create curved walls and unique facades which are difficult to achieve through traditional methods. You can even have 3D printed curved furniture to accompany the walls! Sounds amazing, right?

This is also beneficial when working with a client as you will be able to show them the 3D models which can actually be 3D printed right away.

WHAT CAN LIMIT YOU WHILE USING 3D PRINTING IN CONSTRUCTION? The advantages of 3D printing in construction are definitely attractive but in addition to those, there are a few factors which may hinder your decision to opt for additive manufacturing.

1. INTIAL INVESTMENT IS EXPENSIVE The cost of 3D printing equipment and materials is high which increases the initial expenses of using the technology even though in the long run it will cut down on labour costs.

2. PARTIALLY-BUILT HOUSES House 3D printers are only designed to build the frames. This means the process will need to pause to include manual installation of plumbing, wiring and other required appliances.

4. LIMITED MATERIAL The variety of materials available for 3D printing is rather limited and some printers may be limited to using only one type of material which could be a drawback while construction.

5. STRICT REGULATIONS AND LACK OF CERTIFICATION Construction business is regulated by strict laws and certain safety standards need to be met which poses a challenge with 3D printing techniques (varying repeatability, dimensional stability, etc) 6. REDUCTION IN AVAILABLE JOBS For the human labour employed in the construction business, including masons, erectors, builders as well as the producers of conventional manufacturing products will reduce significantly which will greatly impact their livelihoods.

While there seem to be some challenges to the use of additive manufacturing, the benefits are no less. That is why many major companies and architects are adopting 3D printing for construction these days. With new and improved advancements in the 4/5

technology, 3D printing will definitely prove to be the way of the future.

Also Read : Applications of 3D Printing î‚‹ Tags 3d printing, sla 3d prinitng

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