Posted on 06/08/2018 6:14:27 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
The housing crisis is a multi-faceted issue, based on problems such as the lack of land space, rising housing costs, and the fact not enough houses are being built.
Yet, there could be a solution to the last one in the form of 3D printed homes.
A city in the Netherlands, Einhoven, will be the first place in the world to have houses made by a 3D printer.
Developed by the Dutch construction company Van Wijnen, in collaboration with Eindhoven University of Technology, Project Milestone as it is called will see five homes built in total.
These will be a mixture of one-storey and multi-storey properties and the company hopes the first residents will move in next year.
Project Milestone: how to 3D print a house
The printer is a huge robotic arm which releases a specially formulated cement, Rudy van Gurp, a manager at Van Wijnen, told the Guardian.
The cement is “printed” according to an architect’s design. Then, the cement is layered to create a wall.
At the moment, the plan is to 3D print the exterior and inner walls of the new homes, off-site. Once a fifth of the homes has been built, Van Wijen hopes to move production to the new housing site.
At this point, the printer could be printing the drainage pipes and other installations for the homes....
(Excerpt) Read more at standard.co.uk ...
I suspect when the technology is ready they’ll incorporte alternative reinforcing materials such as something like nylon mesh or even kevlar if needed. Something that can be co-extruded at the time of construction. I like the printed concrete idea myself, it’s really a small step from pumped concrete work that’s been done for years.
Yep, I’ve seen them. But my first thought was what 2DV thought...The town of Bedrock.
Yes, but it can be hollowed out for insulation:
Don’t know where to start from your statement.
I can find you an open plot of land to build a house just about anywhere in the United States.
Where do you want to build?
Concrete has a terrible R-value.
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These oddly shaped structures are not easy to insulate but normally shaped structures can be insulated with exterior foam ,,, keeps the thermal mass inside the envelope.. You can also just use cement with chopped polyester strands for added strength. The “all one piece” printed house will be plenty strong compared to cement block...
That would be good. Concrete construction has a lot of good features- fire resistance being something we could sure use out here. And no termites.
I don’t see any rebar in the pics but maybe they can integrate it. Not sure.
You definitely have something there.
Next we will be informed that the construction material used is human waste and a cow urine binder.
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