Over the past several years, countries across various continents, including Thailand, have begun to experience a stagnation in the home and building construction industry that fails to align with demand and population growth. This has contributed to a crisis in the real estate market; housing developments and condominiums have seen negative growth across all segments, particularly with unsold condominium units. Developers bearing the burden of traditional construction methods, which entail high costs, have led many countries to seek solutions to reduce construction expenses, aiming to incentivize consumers to invest more in real estate by experimenting with 3D printing technology for housing or offices, in the form of "Home 3D Printers."
Home Building 3D Printers are a process that has been extended and developed using the principles of 3D plastic printing, known as FDM (Fused Deposition Modeling). Traditional construction methods involve complex steps, require a large labor force, and are subject to various factors that affect construction costs each time. This creates a direct problem for low-income earners who wish to have or build their own homes. Coupled with fluctuating economic conditions, this has pushed costs beyond what is affordable for the average person.
The world's first office building using a 3D printing system was completed in Dubai, covering an area of 6 x 36 x 12 meters and taking 17 days to construct.
- Estimated Price: $140,000
- Construction Companies: Killa Design and Winsun
- Location: Dubai, UAE
- Completion: Mid-2016
Later, in 2019, another 3D-printed building was constructed in Dubai, becoming the largest in the world. Built in the Al Warsan area, it was recorded in the Guinness World Records as the first and largest two-story building created with a 3D printer. It was successfully constructed within 2 days using a 3D printer and has passed all relevant building inspections, proving itself to be a quality 3D printing solution for the construction industry that meets all necessary construction standards. The use of more curves and zigzag shapes in the architecture served as a true test of the printer's capabilities.
2. Russia
Apis Cor is a Russian company that has developed a 3D printer capable of building a house in just 24 hours. The machine is 4.5 meters long, 1.5 meters wide, and 1.5 meters tall, making it easy to transport via crane. It is a steel-headed 3D printer that extrudes concrete layer by layer, with a printing capacity of 132 square meters. Furthermore, the printer can be set up on-site and ready to work within 30 minutes. Apis Cor has developed its own proprietary software for the printer along with a control program to facilitate construction work.
The cost to build the house is $10,150, with details as follows:
- Foundation: $277
- Walls: $1,624
- Floor and roof: $2,434
- Wiring: $242
- Windows and doors: $3,548
- Exterior finishing: $831
- Interior finishing (including suspended ceiling): $1,178
Construction Company: Apis Cor
Estimated Price: $10,150
Location: Russia
Completion: February 2017
3. France
Constructions-3D is a French company that collaborated with Machines-3D and Belgian architect Gael Collaro. This project aims to build customizable houses from locally sourced recycled materials, based on modeling technology. By mixing and extruding concrete layer by layer to form the structure, 3D printing technology allows the construction of buildings and other structures to be completed in a matter of hours, opening up new options in the construction sector. Moreover, it allows for the creation of complex geometries that cannot be built using traditional production methods. The world's first family to move into a 3D-printed house is located in France: the Ramdanis family.
The Ynhova house is a 95-square-meter rectangular home built for a family, featuring five rooms and a large common area. It utilizes a patented 3D printing method called BatiPrint3D, which is based primarily on Additive Manufacturing. This resulted from research developed at the University of Nantes, in collaboration with a French housing association, resulting in a house that is 20% cheaper than traditional construction, with a cost of approximately £176,000. While the printing took 54 hours, it required an additional four months for contractors to complete further interior work, such as installing windows, doors, and the roof.
4. Italy
WASP, a manufacturer from Italy, has developed the largest concrete 3D printer on the market today. The 3D printer is 12 meters high and 7 meters wide, with an adjustable length of up to 6 meters. Called the BigDelta, it aims to address the housing crisis by building low-cost homes, particularly for developing countries. The long-term goal of the project is for the BigDelta to develop the ability to print with straw, clay, and other materials, allowing houses to be constructed from natural resources. Currently, the machine can lift up to 200 kilograms, though it is recommended to use 40-50 kilograms.
Gaia is an actual residential home built using a 3D printer. The main focus was "low cost." It took 10 days to build this 9-square-meter house, which stands 12 meters tall.
- Construction Company: WASP
- Estimated Price: $900
- Location: Northern Italy
- Completion: October 2018
Another interesting Italian manufacturer is D-Shape, which produces a large-scale industrial 3D printer capable of building massive structures. Using Binder Jetting technology with a mixture of sand, water, and magnesium-based binding agents, D-Shape can create large structures from this stone-like material. This process was created by Italian Enrico Dini in 2006, who is known as ‘the man who prints buildings’.
5. The Netherlands
CyBe Construction is a Dutch company with a mission to revolutionize 3D printing into reality through housing construction applications. They produce two models of concrete 3D printers, the CyBe RC 3Dp and The CyBe R 3Dp, along with proprietary mortar materials. These large industrial 3D printers require two operators to oversee production, but they are capable of printing large structures in just 20 minutes due to their high printing speed of 200 mm/sec.
6. The United States
Contour Crafting is a 3D printing technology company developed by Behrokh Khoshnevis at the University of Southern California. Inspired by the potential for rapid home construction to build cities affected by natural disasters, the house construction is carried out by a computer-controlled 3D printer to create the entire structure quickly and without human interference. Utilizing the Contour Crafting principle and quick setup, the resulting concrete-like material is laid layer by layer until construction is complete. Various technical components, such as plumbing and wiring, can be added while the layers are being printed.
